Browse Items (93 total)

Education has always been important in the life of Robert “Bob” Bates, former dean of the College of Arts and Sciences (now College of Science). Both of his parents were college-educated, and his mother was a teacher, while his father worked for the…

You don’t have to graduate from Virginia Tech to be a Hokie. After moving to Blacksburg as a faculty spouse, Linda Plaut joined the university’s staff as a part-time teacher. What started as a temporary position blossomed into a permanent career of…

Neal Henshaw took a roundabout path to becoming a Hokie. He was born in Buckingham, Virginia, and despite being familiar with Virginia Tech, he decided to go to BYU and pursue Spanish education. After graduation, he worked several jobs to help…

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…

Although Rich and Libby Carpenter each experienced their own unique version of Virginia Tech, they can both attest to the sense of community that they felt during their time here. Rich Carpenter, class of 1967, did not join the Virginia Tech Corps of…

For Kimberly Williams, Virginia Tech has filled many roles. From 2002 to 2008 it was her university, and recently her place of employment – but it is, and has been, much more. A graduate of the class of 2008, she majored in psychology with sociology…

Mayer Levy was born and raised in Newport News, Virginia to a VPI family, and came to VPI partly on that influence and through a scholarship. He graduated in 1960 as a biology major, and continued to dental school at Georgetown. After finishing in…

Dr. Ezra A. “Bud” Brown grew up in New Orleans, Louisiana knowing he was expected to attend college. After graduating high school, he attended Rice University and after switching majors a few times, ultimately chose math. When he graduated from…

Susan Anderson got her passion for social justice and community service from her family. From a young age, she was taught by her mother to stand up for those in need. Her grandparents were involved in their communities, and her grandfather worked in…

Doug Montgomery grew up in Radford, Virginia, playing baseball and golf, knowing that he would continue in higher education. Now a proud triple Hokie of industrial engineering, Doug graduated with a BS, MS, and Ph.D in 1965, 1967, and 1969…

William (Bill) Starnes, Jr., Virginia Tech class of 1955, never seriously considered any other school. Bill always knew that he was going to college, and because his father attended the university, having graduated in 1924, it seemed like the perfect…

Mary “Prim” Jones grew up in Blacksburg and around campus. Although she considered other colleges, she chose to attend Virginia Tech for her undergraduate degree, studying mechanical engineering as an early female student. She graduated in 1962, and…

Pat Hyer grew up in Cleveland, Ohio, in a household where education was paramount. She attended undergraduate school at Hillsdale College, receiving a scholarship to the University of Michigan for a master’s degree in French. After working for a few…

Frank Beamer was born in Mount Airy, North Carolina in 1946, but grew up just across state lines in Fancy Gap, a suburb of Hillsville, Virginia. Growing up on a farm, hard-work was instilled in him from an early age, along with the value of higher…

Rosemary Beiszner came to Virginia Tech as a foot in the door to the academic world. She attended undergraduate at Mercyhurst College, studying home economics. She went on to pursue a master’s degree in family and child development at Ohio State.…

Mallory Foutch came to Virginia Tech in 2016 after attending both undergrad and grad school elsewhere. During school, she was a passionate social activist and feminist, which she turned to in her work here with the Women’s Center as a program…

Jim Hatch went to Lynchburg College as an undergraduate, majoring in management. Upon graduating, he attended Virginia Tech for a Master’s of Accounting and graduated in 1972. Afterwards, he began working as a public accountant and remained active in…

Douglas Martin, Ed.D. is Director Emeritus in the
Department of Human Resources at Virginia Tech. This
nearly hour-long interview contains his first-hand account
of several impactful people and events that shaped Tech in
the last half century.…

Gerald Miller grew up on a farm in Harrisonburg, Virginia. From an early age, he had responsibilities and schooling expectations drilled into him, which heavily guided his career. He attended Virginia Tech and graduated in 1965, majoring in Agronomy.…

Roger H. More was born and raised in Baltimore, Maryland in 1942. From an early age he knew that he would attend college, but planned on going to Baltimore Polytechnic Institute. These plans changed when his best friend and his bother went to…

In an hour and 10 minute interview of Mary Nolen
Blackwood and Willis Blackwood, Ren Harman asks about
their lives as they connect to Virginia Tech. Along with
early life at Virginia Tech and family life, this interview
touches on their continued…

Ida Powell graduated from Virginia Tech in 1958 with a bachelor's degree in home economics. In this hour-long interview, Powell discusses her experience as a female student attending Virginia Tech's campus in the 1950s as well as her humanitarian…

Bob Quisenberry, Class of 1962, discusses his life and
career, including his time as a student at Virginia Tech and his continued involvement with the university in the decades since.

In this nearly hour long interview, Ren Harman, Project Manager for VT Stories, interviews Kevin Crofton, Class of 1982, in the Holtzman Alumni Center on the campus of Virginia Tech in Blacksburg, VA. In this interview, Kevin reflects on his time…

In this VT Stories interview from 2018, Manisha Sharma interviews the former Director of University Publications Clara Cox in the Holtzman Alumni Center. In this oral history Cox talks about her rise through the ranks of university relations, her…

In this VT Stories oral history interview, Ren Harman interviews Jerry Hulick, Class of 1973. Hulick discusses his time at Virginia Tech during the protests of the Vietnam War and the changing landscape of the culture in Virginia Tech and Blacksburg.…

Natalie Strawn Kelly grew up in Blacksburg, and was nearly predestined for Virginia Tech. She graduated in 1974, majoring in Elementary Education. In this interview, she talks about her time at Virginia Tech, taking classes, living in Northern…

Emily Haynes Cooper
Tara Fortune
Jeryl Payne
Kaye Pereras

The first in a special series of interviews with Chris Kappas, a local Blacksburg businessman, land lord, and restaurateur. Born in Greece in 1938, Chris Kappas is the son of Nick Kappas, early Greek immigrant and restaurateur in Southwest Virginia.…

The second session in a series of oral history interviews with Chris Kappas, local Blacksburg restaurateur and land lord.

In this interview, Chris Kappas recounts his early life growing up in the Greek countryside during World War II while…

The third installment of a series of oral history interviews with Blacksburg local, restauranteur, and active community member Chris Kappas.

This oral history interview begins with Chris talking about his childhood growing up in war-torn Greece.…

The fourth oral history interview in a series with Chris Kappas, longtime Blacksburg local and restauranteur.

In this interview, Chris Kappas talks about becoming principal partner in the Greek's restaurant with his father's former business…

The fifth oral history interview in a series about the Greek community in Blacksburg, local history, and the restaurant industry with Chris Kappas.

In this interview, Kappas talks about establishing Souvlakis in the Blacksburg community as a…

In this final installment of an oral history series, Chris Kappas is joined by his wife, Maria Kappas, to talk about their life working in the restaurant industry and raising a family in Blacksburg.

In this interview, Maria recounts emigrating…

Jack Kise was born in New Haven, Connecticut and moved around several times before landing in Portsmouth, Virginia where he spent most of his school years. In high school, he took an interest in Virginia Tech as he had several friends attend and…

Marguerite Laurette Harper Scott, also known as Chick, grew up in Norfolk, Virginia in a family of Virginia State graduates. Although she intended on doing the same, when Virginia Polytechnic recruiters visited her high school, her father decided it…

Judy Swecker Slaughter was born into a Virginia Tech family as her father graduated class of 1935. Growing up in Woodstock, Virginia, she had decided to follow her father's footsteps and also attend. She arrived in 1966, studying psychology and…

Frank Nolen grew up in Macon County, North Carolina, raised with school in mind. In high school, he decided to attend North Carolina State College, but dropped out after encountering college chemistry. He transferred to Gaston Technical Institute, a…

George Fox, born in Charleston, West Virginia, grew up in a Virginia Tech household. His father from Virginia Polytechnic Institute for industrial engineering in 1941 and claimed that their extended family has more than twenty graduates.…

James Boone, born July 25th, 1915 is among the earliest Virginia Polytechnic students to be interviewed for VT Stories. He grew up in Holland and Ivor, Virginia, and arrived in Blacksburg in 1933. While at Virginia Polytechnic Institute, he studied…

James "Bud" Robertson was born and raised in Danville, Virginia. There was a railroad close to his house, which led him to become interested in them (which he maintained throughout his entire life). The yardmaster understood his interest and offered…

Theodore King, Jr. grew up on a farm in Lunenburg County, Virginia. While in high school, King was recruited by many colleges, including Virginia Tech. He was drawn to the school because of its appeal to common people, as he was a lower class African…

Bertram Kinzey, Jr. arrived in Blacksburg as an architectural engineering student in 1940. While living in Richmond, Kinzey enrolled in the engineering extension program, which led him to Virginia Tech for his final two years of undergraduate. As a…