Geography Department

 

Important Events and Achievements
  • Add your name to the waiting list for fall 2009 classes here
  • Congratulations to Arvind Bhuta and his advisor Lisa Kennedy, who received an NSF Doctoral Dissertation Improvement grant for his proposal "A Multi-Scale Analysis of Disturbance, Dynamics, and Climate-Growth Relationships in Mountain Longleaf Pine Forests, USA."
  • Lynn Resler has just learned that she will attending the ACSUS/UQAM Northern Quebec (James Bay and Nunavik) Faculty Development Institute & Study Tour this August.

  • Larry Grossman and undergraduate Barry Ewell were inducted into Phi Beta Delta, the Honor Society for International Scholars at Virginia Tech, on April 13th.

  • Graduate Student Emily Smith won the Mauna Kea Student Presentation Award from the Mountain Geography Specialty Group at the recent AAG meeting in Las Vegas, NV. The judges stated that her presentation was extremely thorough, visually appealing, and that she handled the questions extremely well. 

  • Lawrence Grossman has received a Library Travel Research Grant from the University of Florida Center for Latin American Studies to conduct research on his project "Peasant Small Holder Prize Competitions and Landscape Change in the British Caribbean in the Early 1900s"

  • Undergraduate student Anthony Phillips has received a McNair Scholarship. The McNair scholarship is named for Dr. Ronald McNair who recieved his PhD. in Physics at the Massachusetts Intitute of technology and lost his life as an astronaut in the Challenger tragedy. The program focuses on serving first-generation college students from low income backgrounds, or students from groups underrepresented in graduate education.

  • Graduate Student Arvind Bhuta has been chosen as the recipient of the 2009 Chimborazo Student Research Grant Award, given by the AAG Mountain Geography Specialty Group (MGSG). His proposal was titled “A Multi-Scale Analysis of Disturbance, Dynamics, and Climate-Growth Relationships in Mountain Longleaf Pine Forests in the Southeastern Ridge and Valley, AL”.

  • John Boyer has been named favorite professor at Virginia Tech for the 5th straight year!
  • Lynn Resler is a collaborator on a grant from START with Bob Nakileza, from the Department of Geography and the director of the Mountain Center in Kampala. the grant is entitled Impact of climatic change on Alpine plant species distribution, land cover and edaphic system in the Rwenzori Mountains in Uganda.
  • Kirsten deBeurs (PI) along with Geoffrey Henebry of South Dakota State University and Grigory Ioffe of Radford University recevied word of a major grant from NASA to study "Land Abandonment in Russia: Understanding Recent Trends and Assessing Future Vulnerability and Adaptation to Changing Climate and Population Dynamics"
  • Six Geography Students and 22 others from Virginia Tech and the University of Montana travelled the south island of New Zealand studying Sustaining Human Societies and the Natural Environment with Bill Carstensen and Bob Morrill. Movie by Ryan and Jenna Sloane (Large file but worth the wait) The next trip will led by Lynn Resler in May/June 2009, and another southern summer trip is coming up in December and January, again led by Bill and Bob. Contact Bill Carstensen if interested in the December trip.

Remember to let us hear from you via our Alumni Survey -- a fast and easy way to stay connected and get your news into the VT Geographer next time around!

Geography Alumni - For all who attended, the faculty all had a wonderful time getting back together with you in D.C. For those who were unable to come, we offer a few pictures from the events to entice you to join us next time.

 

 

 

Who are We?

Founded in 1975, the Geography Department at Virginia Tech is part of the College of Natural Resources. Department offices, labs, and facilities are located in Major Williams Hall in the Upper Quad area of the Virginia Tech Campus (building #7 grid 3M).

The Department offers both B.A. and M.S. degrees. We participate in the College of Natural Resources doctoral program in Geospatial and Environmental Analysis. At the undergraduate level, our basic goals are to foster a liberal education in Geography balanced with preparation for more advanced study and the increasing variety of careers the discipline offers. At the graduate level, the M.S. program in geography emphasizes developing professional confidence in the tools, substance, methodology, and theory of the discipline. Thesis and non-thesis options in a 30 semester-hour program prepare students for a variety of careers in teaching, research, planning organizations, business, and government.

What do we do?

We work in a wide variety of careers in teaching, research, planning organizations, business, Information Technology,and government. To explore further, look at the Association of American Geographers (AAG) website on careers.