WATCH: Sesquicentennial Celebration in D.C.

Futureproofing Virginia Tech for our Next 150 Years: Prototyping a workforce readiness model for the future

President Timothy D. Sands joined a panel of guests to explore the future of Virginia Tech. Topics of discussion included the future of work, the transitions and changing requirements faced by organizations and businesses, and Virginia Tech's Innovation Campus.

About the panelists

• Lance Collins is the inaugural vice president and executive director of the Virginia Tech Innovation Campus. In this role, he provides strategic direction, helping to build a campus that will impart a lasting influence on the region’s tech ecosystem. Collins joined Virginia Tech in August 2020 from Cornell University where he served as the Joseph Silbert Dean of Engineering for 10 years. 
• Mehul Sanghani ’98 is the chief executive officer and founder of Octo. Since launching the firm alone at age 30, he has grown Octo around the foundational belief that advancing customer missions matters most. Under his leadership, Octo has won several awards for innovation and has regularly been named a top workplace. 
• Leanne Caret is executive vice president and senior advisor for The Boeing Company and a member of the company’s Executive Council. Most recently, Caret served as president and chief executive officer of Boeing Defense, Space & Security, which provides solutions for defense, government, space, intelligence, and security customers worldwide. 

About Virginia Tech's Sesquicentennial

We are honoring our past and celebrating our present. Our Sesquicentennial Celebration is an opportunity to propel us into the future, charting a course toward greater engagement and positive impact.