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Your Alumni Association & History

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Brief History of the Alumni Association

The Virginia Tech Alumni Association is a nonprofit, 501c3 corporation founded in 1875.

  • 1875: The twelve members of the first graduating class organize an alumni association and elect officers.
  • 1891: The association reorganizes, draws up a constitution, and publishes an Alumni Register (precursor to the Virginia Tech Magazine).
  • 1924: The association is incorporated.
  • 1964: New bylaws are adopted as the association becomes an operating unit of the university.
  • 1991: The association formally aligns administratively with the university, and a vice president for alumni relations and a director of alumni relations are appointed. While the Alumni Association remains a private nonprofit corporation, its staff becomes employees of the Commonwealth of Virginia.
  • 2015: The university implements a traditional advancement model formed by the merger of alumni relations, development, and university relations. A vice president for advancement is named in July 2015. The vice president and senior leadership team work to develop strategies to advance the university in the areas of financial support, alumni engagement, marketing, and communications.
  • 2019: The vice president for advancement assumes oversight of the strategic direction of the Alumni Association and takes on the additional role of executive vice president of the Alumni Association, along with the senior associate vice president for advancement and COO being named secretary-treasurer and COO.
  • Office locations have been in War Memorial Gym, Burruss Hall, Alumni Hall (Graduate Life Center), and Holtzman Alumni Center (2005).

image of the history and traditions booklet cover

History and Traditions Booklet (PDF)