Principles of Community Awards

What Are the Principles of Community Awards?

The Principles of Community Awards were established in 2014 and recognize members of the Virginia Tech community who demonstrate an active commitment to the Virginia Tech Principles of Community. This year, the university will present awards to individuals, departments, groups, and/or initiatives that uplift the Principles of Community.

Nominations may be submitted by alumni, undergraduate and graduate students, faculty and staff members, and community members.

Nominations are reviewed by members of the awards committee in the spring. Award recipients will be invited to a reception on May 6, 2025, hosted by the President’s Office. Recipients will receive their award at the reception. A monetary gift accompanies each award and will be mailed to the recipient. All award winners will be featured in a news story

Contact Stacey Wilkerson for additional information at stacey9@vt.edu.

Eligibility Information

Virginia Tech faculty, staff, students, groups, and departments are eligible for nomination. Previous award recipients are not eligible for re-nomination until five years have passed.
No minimum length of Virginia Tech service is required.

Nomination Information

Complete nomination packets should include:

The nominee’s name, contact information, and affiliation with the university.
A one-page statement (500 words) from the nominator describing the nominee’s active commitment to the Principles of Community at Virginia Tech.
Examples exemplifying commitment to the Principles of Community could include programs, activities, expert contributions, scholarly activities, leadership experiences, service opportunities, etc.
A one-page statement of endorsement (500 words) from a person familiar with the nominee’s work (as described above).

Completed nomination packets should be emailed to Stacey Wilkerson at stacey9@vt.edu.

2024 Winners

Tamara Cherry-Clarke (Individual Award)
Roberto Silva (Individual Award)
Career Outfitters (Group Award)
Members of the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Committee in the Grado Department of Industrial and Systems Engineering (Group Award)

Pre-2024 Winners

2014 - Jean Elliott
2015 - Karen DePauw
2016 (Faculty award) - Bev Watford
2016 (Staff award) - Linda Greene
2017 (Faculty award) - Randy Grayson
2017 (Staff award) - Betty Watts
2018 (Teaching/Research Faculty award) - María del Carmen Caña Jiménez
2018 (Teaching/Research Faculty award) - Amanda Morris
2018 (AP Faculty and Staff award) - Latanya Walker
2018 (AP Faculty and Staff award) - John Gray Williams
2019 (Recent Individual award) - Chris Tysor
2019 (Long term Individual award) - Sam Cook
2019 (Department award) - Department of Religion and Culture
2019 (Group award) - Virginia Dares Team
2020 (Recent Individual Award) - Mae Hey
2020 (Long Term Individual Award) - Carlos Evia
2020 (Group Award) - Latin Link
2021 (Recent Individual Award) - Edward Polanco
2021 (Long Term Individual Award) - Brandy Faulkner
2021 (Group Award) - Graduate Student Success in Multicultural Environments (GSSME)
2021 (Department Award) - Translational Biology, Medicine, and Health Graduate Program
2022 (Group Award) - Black Caucus
2022 (Long Term Individual Award) - Tamara Smith
2022 (Recent Individual Award) - Eric Glenn
2022 (Recent Individual Award) - Melissa Faircloth
2023 (Long Term Individual Award) - Alicia Cohen
2023 (Group Award) - Shernita Lee
2023 (Long Term Individual Award) - Rebecca Hester
2023 (Long Term Individual Award) - Ellen Banks
2023 (Recent Contributions Individual Award) - Dr. Bing
2023 (Long Term Individual Award) - Homero Murzi