1 50 2 https://digitalsc.lib.vt.edu/files/original/73965bb4b3313c65ee309dc3e9996607.jpeg c41820bef72ffe7984fc660fbcffb4f3 https://digitalsc.lib.vt.edu/files/original/901841367fe976ea81b88d7a6d1fb9c4.mp3 2abe0cb692a9b1831cbd3b31d182d816 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource VT Stories Oral History Collection (Ms2016-015) Subject The topic of the resource University history Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context Ms2016-015 Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource <a href="https://digitalsc.lib.vt.edu/files/thumbnails/spec_forms/PubPermission.doc" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Permission to publish material from the VT Stories Oral History Collection must be obtained from Special Collections, Virginia Tech.</a> Rights Holder A person or organization owning or managing rights over the resource. <a href="http://spec.lib.vt.edu" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Special Collections and University Archives, University Libraries, Virginia Tech</a> Description An account of the resource Initiated in 2015 by the President’s Office and managed by faculty and staff in History, English, TLOS, VT Libraries, and the Alumni Association, the VT Stories Oral History Project collects and examines stories, memories, tall tales, tragedies, and triumphs of all members of the Hokie community to help us know our shared history and to make sense of it. At the heart of the project is Hokies interviewing Hokies—largely student-staffed and trained by oral historians, interviewers engage with VT Alumni to learn their history and to make mentoring connections that go beyond the student experience. As we seek to understand why Virginia Tech is top rated in its success in engaging alumni, we highlight the exciting, memorable, historic moments in Hokie lives that have forged strong and enduring connections. Any questions regarding this collection should be directed to Ren Harman, Oral History Projects Archivist, harman07@vt.edu Is Referenced By A related resource that references, cites, or otherwise points to the described resource. <a href="http://vtstories.org/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">VT Stories</a> Oral History A resource containing historical information obtained in interviews with persons having firsthand knowledge. Interviewer The person(s) performing the interview. Ren Harman Duration Length of time involved (seconds, minutes, hours, days, class periods, etc.) 01:33:15 Viewer Select which type of viewer is needed for the files OHMS Narrator A person being interviewed during an oral history recording. Rhonda Rogers Phil Rogers Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource VT Stories Oral History with Rhonda and Phil Rogers, April 6, 2017 (Ms2016-015) Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context Ms2016-015_RhondaandPhilRogers Subject The topic of the resource University History Description An account of the resource For Rhonda and Phil Rogers, “the rest of history” isn’t just a well worn phrase or one that is used to indicate their place in the history of Virginia Tech. The story that would take them from small towns in Southwest Virginia to the growing campus of Virginia Tech in the early 1970s is one that stands as a list of “firsts” for the Rogers’ and the university. Rhonda was one of the first African-American secretaries hired at Virginia Tech in 1973. Phil, a 2011 Virginia Tech Sports Hall of Fame inductee, led the football team in his senior year in 1975 as the first African-American starting quarterback for the Hokies to an impressive 8-3 record. In this VT Story, the virtues of humility and gratefulness highlight the contributions Rhonda and Phil Rogers have made to Virginia Tech and the impact of their legacy and service in ways both big and small. Rhonda Miller Rogers was the second of two children born into a middle-class family in Wytheville, VA to parents Roy and Carly Miller. Wytheville, a small town nestled in the corner of Southwest Virginia, was heavily segregated at the time of her upbringing. Due to the separation of the town’s population, Rhonda spent much of her time at the black recreation center playing ping-pong, watching TV, and dancing to the jukebox music. As an energetic student, Rhonda loved school and in 1966, the schools in the area were integrated. The differences between the schools became more apparent for Rhonda following integration as she saw the inequities and lack of resources in the black schools compared to those offered to her brother who was attending a school that had previously been all-white. In a series of firsts for Rhonda that would follow her throughout her life, she was a member of the marching band in high school as well as the first black majorette. Due to the economies of the area, Rhonda attended Wytheville Community College initially to pursue a career as a teacher. After her first year and following the decision to actually not become a teacher, she enrolled in the two-year secretarial science program. During her second year, a visit from Judy Ridinger and other personnel from Virginia Tech visited students enrolled in the program to inquire about possible jobs available at the university. In 1973, Rhonda was hired in her first job among a group of five other women and moved to Blacksburg, where she would soon meet her husband. While working at Virginia Tech in the Division of Student Affairs, Rhonda worked closely with colleague Ed Spencer, someone she still recalls as being a supportive, caring, and family-oriented person. Her main priority was to listen to students that would come to her for guidance relating to housing, dining, and more so in her current position, after having unfair experiences relating to discrimination and simply being different from others. She’s given 44 years of her life to this job, so it can be easily understood how she received both the VT Division of Student Affairs Heroine Award and the Virginia Tech President’s Award for Excellence. Rhonda experienced discrimination herself while in the workplace, not for her race but for her job title as being a secretary. She remembers feeling like a second-class citizen compared to most other colleagues, though that ceased to occur over the years. Outside of this initial setback, she considers Virginia Tech to be her livelihood, as she has spent so much of her time working here and loving her job. She’s been encouraged by students that have been passionate about speaking up for what they believe in and thinks this campus is the most beautiful one in the country. Philip Gary Rogers was born in Gate City, Virginia in a small town quite like that of his wife Rhonda’s. He grew up in a large family with five siblings, and it wasn’t long before he and his two older brothers found their love for sports, which helped keep them busy as schools integrated when Phil was in the sixth grade. His love for sports, particularly football, allowed him to later lead Gate City High School to a football state championship in 1970. While Phil and his cousin, Michael Wolfe, had been causally exploring universities that they could potentially play football at, Virginia Tech practically fell into their lap. He recalled the head coach welcoming them to the university before they even had accepted, and they sure enough decided to give Virginia Tech a shot. During his football career at Tech, Phil went from being a receiver, switching to running back, and then becoming the first African-American starting quarterback during his senior year. He grew incredibly fond of his trainer, Eddie Ferrell, considering him to be like a second father after his real father passed away while he was in high school. His career after senior year began with him getting drafted in the seventh round by the St. Louis Cardinals. He had ankle-related injuries and ended up playing in Canada after. Phil and Rhonda met when during Phil’s senior year, when he kept losing his dorm key and saw Rhonda working in the same building as the housing office. They would make small talk and it wasn’t long before they went roller skating as their first date together. They got married in 1978 and have had two children together. When asked what their favorite experiences at Virginia Tech were, Rhonda and Phil both agreed that it had to be when Phil was inducted into the Virginia Tech Sports Hall of Fame in 2011. It brought their families together to celebrate the significant achievement and made them feel even closer to the university. Having spent much time at Virginia Tech, both doing what they loved, Phil and Rhonda Rogers have such strong connections to the university and what it represents. They have both worked hard through the roles that they have played and, most importantly, they found love here. Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2017-04-06 Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource Permission to publish material from the VT Stories Oral History Collection must be obtained from Special Collections, Virginia Tech. Is Referenced By A related resource that references, cites, or otherwise points to the described resource. <a href="http://vtstories.org/2018/02/26/rhonda-and-phil-rogers-vt-passion-and-fulfillment/" target="_blank">Rhonda and Phil Rogers, VT Stories</a> Type The nature or genre of the resource Oral histories References A related resource that is referenced, cited, or otherwise pointed to by the described resource. <a href="https://oralhistory-dev.cloud.lib.vt.edu/ohms-viewer/viewer.php?cachefile=Ms2016-015_RhondaandPhilRogers.xml" target="blank">Click here for synced audio and transcript</a> https://digitalsc.lib.vt.edu/files/original/370a3c6d32d0271da79d10123738c6c9.jpg 736d3e0289934830c3226049a1349897 https://digitalsc.lib.vt.edu/files/original/dd2539f47f7448a4503dfdcdf83c4904.mp3 11275356b01537710fa8669f0c0b44f1 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource VT Stories Oral History Collection (Ms2016-015) Subject The topic of the resource University history Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context Ms2016-015 Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource <a href="https://digitalsc.lib.vt.edu/files/thumbnails/spec_forms/PubPermission.doc" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Permission to publish material from the VT Stories Oral History Collection must be obtained from Special Collections, Virginia Tech.</a> Rights Holder A person or organization owning or managing rights over the resource. <a href="http://spec.lib.vt.edu" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Special Collections and University Archives, University Libraries, Virginia Tech</a> Description An account of the resource Initiated in 2015 by the President’s Office and managed by faculty and staff in History, English, TLOS, VT Libraries, and the Alumni Association, the VT Stories Oral History Project collects and examines stories, memories, tall tales, tragedies, and triumphs of all members of the Hokie community to help us know our shared history and to make sense of it. At the heart of the project is Hokies interviewing Hokies—largely student-staffed and trained by oral historians, interviewers engage with VT Alumni to learn their history and to make mentoring connections that go beyond the student experience. As we seek to understand why Virginia Tech is top rated in its success in engaging alumni, we highlight the exciting, memorable, historic moments in Hokie lives that have forged strong and enduring connections. Any questions regarding this collection should be directed to Ren Harman, Oral History Projects Archivist, harman07@vt.edu Is Referenced By A related resource that references, cites, or otherwise points to the described resource. <a href="http://vtstories.org/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">VT Stories</a> Oral History A resource containing historical information obtained in interviews with persons having firsthand knowledge. Interviewer The person(s) performing the interview. Ren Harman Location The location of the interview. Holtzman Alumni Center Duration Length of time involved (seconds, minutes, hours, days, class periods, etc.) 1:39:40 Viewer Select which type of viewer is needed for the files OHMS Narrator A person being interviewed during an oral history recording. Matt Winston Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource VT Stories Oral History with Matt Winston Jr., April 6, 2017 (Ms2016-015) Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context Ms2016-015_MattWinston Subject The topic of the resource University History Description An account of the resource As one of Virginia Tech’s first black graduates, Matt Winston’s father was able to share a number of stories, both positive and negative, about the university. While he did hear stories of his father being called by the university’s president and asked to not attend ring dance so as to avoid stirring racial tensions, Winston was also told stories of the incredible leaders and supportive students within the university. His father told him the truth about some of the hardships he faced at Virginia Tech, but he also made sure to inform Winston of the many positive qualities of the university, particularly in terms of academic excellence. While he was aware of some of his father’s experiences at Tech, Winston, Class of 1990, says that his father wanted him to have the freedom to form his own opinion of the school based on his own experiences there. He made the choice to attend Virginia Tech to receive a degree in marketing management after being contacted directly by Norrine Bailey Spencer, the Associate Dean of the College of Business, and asked to join the university. Since then he has formed relationships within the Virginia Tech community both as a student and a faculty member. As a student, Winston was struck by the beauty of the campus and encouraged by the camaraderie of the students. He was able to enter Virginia Tech’s student body among others that he knew from his high school, allowing him to come in with a previously built support group, and he networked and formed new relationships to expand this support group as well. He remembers the hiring of Frank Beamer and Nikki Giovanni, both of which occurred the year after he enrolled, and he remembers the increase in Hokie Pride that followed after those hires. He can also share stories of watching superb athletes, experiencing nearly every natural disaster possible in Blacksburg, and visiting the most popular dance spots of the time. During his time here, Winston has been able to use the relationships he built to make a difference for the university. He worked with Nikki Giovanni to help create the first black studies program and he and his father both sponsor the mural on the outside of the Black Cultural Center. He also served as the public relations director for the Student Government Association, was part of the original Hokie camp, and worked as an orientation leader. Following graduation, Winston worked at Virginia Tech for eight years before spending 17 years working for the University of Georgia. During these 17 years and the years following, Winston continued his affiliations with Virginia Tech by volunteering with alumni associations, which led him to be given the Distinguished Service Award in 2015. Winston eventually returned to Virginia Tech after being offered a position as Senior Associate Vice President for Alumni Relations, and he has stayed with the university since then. After all of his time here as both a student and an employee, Winston has both seen and exemplified the university’s aptitude for service. He is encouraged by the number of alumni that work to stay involved with the university, and he is proud of the way the university continues to produce fantastic people who do great things in terms of both education and service. Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2017-04-06 Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource Permission to publish material from the VT Stories Oral History Collection must be obtained from Special Collections, Virginia Tech. Type The nature or genre of the resource Oral histories Rights Holder A person or organization owning or managing rights over the resource. Special Collections, University Libraries, Virginia Tech Is Referenced By A related resource that references, cites, or otherwise points to the described resource. <a href="http://vtstories.org/2017/08/31/matt-winston-spokesman-for-hokies/" target="blank">Matt Winston, VT Stories</a> References A related resource that is referenced, cited, or otherwise pointed to by the described resource. <a href="https://oralhistory-dev.cloud.lib.vt.edu/ohms-viewer/viewer.php?cachefile=Ms2016-015_MattWinston.xml" target="blank">Click here for synced audio and transcript</a>