BLACKSBURG, Va., April 20, 2005 – The Virginia Tech Board of Visitors named Jennifer W. Jessie as its undergraduate student representative for the 2005-2006 academic year. Jessie will serve as a liaison between Virginia Tech’s undergraduate student population and the board of visitors.
The two student representatives to the board, Jessie and a graduate representative, are appointed to one-year terms. They each sit on a committee on the governing board and serve as ex-officio members on the Commission of Student Affairs. Student representatives are non-voting members and are required to maintain contact with university administrators, including the President's Office and the Provost, as well as Tech students.
Jessie, a native of Woodbridge, Va., will articulate undergraduate student issues and perspectives to the board of visitors, report back to undergraduate students, and serve on task forces and search committees. “It's an honor to be selected to serve as the Board of Visitors undergraduate representative,” Jessie said. “I hope to accurately portray the student body's voice to the board while explaining the implications of decisions made by the board to the students.”
One of the most important issues Jessie believes needs to be addressed for the students is undergraduate research. "As we move forward in our attempts to become a top 30 research institution, I believe it’s important to give students opportunities to participate in achieving this goal by conveying the importance of undergraduate research.” Jessie said. “I want to work to further unite this campus so that we can all work to one common goal, making this school the best it can be”
Jessie, an undergraduate student in the College of Liberal Arts and Human Sciences, has a triple major in political science, history, and sociology.
As an undergraduate, Jessie is extensively involved in both Virginia Tech and community activities. Some of her honors include: College of Liberal Arts and Human Sciences Ambassador, vice- president of Phi Alpha Delta Pre-Law Fraternity, and member of the Outstanding Honor Student Society. Jessie has participated in Habitat for Humanity and several political campaigns in both her hometown and in Blacksburg, as a member of College Democrats and Young Democrats Club.
The board of visitors, the governing authority of Virginia Tech, typically meets four times throughout the year and makes decisions regarding policies pertinent to the university as a whole. The board is composed of 14 members, not including the two student representatives, 13 of which the governor appoints. The 14th member is the President of the Board of Agriculture and Consumer Services, who serves ex-officio. The term of office is four years. In addition to statutes in the Code of Virginia, the board is governed by its own by-laws.
Founded in 1872 as a land-grant college, Virginia Tech has grown to become the largest university in the Commonwealth of Virginia. Today, Virginia Tech’s eight colleges are dedicated to putting knowledge to work through teaching, research, and outreach activities and to fulfilling its vision to be among the top 30 research universities in the nation. At its 2,600-acre main campus located in Blacksburg and other campus centers in Northern Virginia, Southwest Virginia, Hampton Roads, Richmond, and Roanoke, Virginia Tech enrolls more than 28,000 full- and part-time undergraduate and graduate students from all 50 states and more than 100 countries in 180 academic degree programs.