Leaders and Volunteers

Meet the people leading the campaign

The Campaign for Virginia Tech: Invent the Future is certain to transform the university and provide a foundation for inventing a future we are only beginning to imagine. The beginnings of the campaign were bold yet quiet, led by a group of volunteers whose commitment has been solid and unwavering. The Campaign Steering Committee provided invaluable guidance that has both informed our fundraising efforts and kept the campaign's focus squarely on the principles that are most important to our community. Now, as we enter the public phase, the solid foundation they laid down will be built upon by our National Campaign Steering Committee, led by two prominent and committed Hokies, John Lawson and Dave Calhoun.

National Campaign Steering Committee

Dave L. Calhoun

Dave Calhoun is not the first member of his family to attend Virginia Tech. His great-uncle, William Slater Cowart, graduated in 1910 with a degree in civil engineering, and several other family members also attended Virginia Tech. Calhoun was a member of Delta Kappa Epsilon fraternity and was active in intramural athletics. He graduated in 1979 with a degree in business. Upon graduating from Virginia Tech, Calhoun joined General Electric (GE). Calhoun completed the company's Financial Management Program and in 1981 joined the GE corporate audit staff. He made his way up the corporate ladder and in 2005, was made vice chairman of infrastructure for GE. In 2006, Calhoun left GE to serve as chairman and CEO of The Nielsen Company.

John R. Lawson II

John Lawson graduated from Virginia Tech in 1975 with a degree in geophysics. As a student, he was a member of Sigma Phi Epsilon fraternity. He is currently CEO and president of one of the Southeast's largest building contractors, W. M. Jordan Company, where he has worked since his graduation. Both John and his father, Robert, have endowed scholarships in the College of Engineering, the College of Science, and the athletics department. Lawson currently serves as rector of the Virginia Tech Board of Visitors and is a former member of the Board of Directors for the Virginia Tech Foundation. His career in building and construction also made him a perfect fit for the advisory board in the Department of Building Construction in the College of Architecture and Urban Studies. He was instrumental in the expansion of Lane Stadium and has pledged a significant gift to begin the Myers-Lawson School of Construction here at Virginia Tech.

• Mary N. Blackwood ' 73 (College of Science)
• David L. Calhoun ' 79 (Co-chair)
• Ben J. Davenport Jr. ' 64 (Multicultural Affairs)
• Sandra C. Davis (At-Large)
• William C. Davis (At-Large)
• Shelley L. Duke (Equine)
• Robert L. Freeman Jr. ' 75 (Arts Center)
• James H. Hatch ' 72 (Pamplin College of Business)
• William B. Holtzman ' 59 (At-Large)
• Jerry L. Hulick ' 73 (College of Liberal and Human Sciences)
• Elizabeth H. Latham (College of Agriculture and Life Sciences)
• William C. Latham ' 55 (College of Agriculture and Life Sciences)
• John R. Lawson II ' 75 (Co-chair)
• Samuel L. Lionberger ' 62 (Skelton 4-H Center)
• C. Bruce McDaniel ' 77 (University Honors)
• Floyd W. Merryman III ' 81 (Athletics)
• Charles W. Pryor Jr. ' 66 (College of Engineering)
• F. Richard Quible ' 53 (Libraries)
• Jean R. Quible (Libraries)
• G. Robert Quisenberry ' 62 (Corps of Cadets)
• John G. Rocovich Jr. ' 66 (At-Large)
• Marvin H. "Skip" Schuelke Jr. ' 69 (VetMed)
• Margaret G. Skelton (At-Large)
• Garnett E. Smith (At-Large)
• John A. Stegeman ' 84 (College of Natural Resources)
• Fay H. Street ' 77 (At-Large)
• Preston M. White Jr. '62 (College of Architecture and Urban Studies)
• Ronald L. Willard (At-Large)

Honorary Campaign Committee

• Eugene V. Fife ' 62
• Clifton C. Garvin Jr.' 43
• T. Marshall Hahn Jr.
• Claude S. Hornsby III ' 78
• Floyd W. Merryman Jr. ' 46
• Robert B. Pamplin Jr. ' 64
• William E. Skelton '40 (deceased)

Regional Campaign Committee Chairs

Roanoke Valley Regional Committee
Beverly Harris
Leon P. Harris '64

Atlanta Regional Committee
Mitchell A Katz '84

Hampton Roads Committee
John W. Failes '67

Tampa Bay/Orlando Committee
Russell S. Thomas '85

Charlotte Committee
Jubal A. Early '82
George H. Edmiston Jr. '74
John F. Fitzhugh '88
W. Thomas Robertson Jr. '52 (Honorary)

Northern Virginia Committee
Constance T. DeBell
John T. DeBell Sr. '68
George Nolen '78 (Honorary)
Michele C. Nolen '78 (Honorary)

Raleigh/Durham Committee
Joseph H. Collie '50
Sidney C. Smith '63

Greensboro/Winston-Salem Committee
Charles O. Gordon '69
Elizabeth H. Gordon

Bay Area Committee
John T. Thompson '70
Phyllis N. Thompson '73

Richmond Committee
Beverly Bates
John W. Bates III '63

Quiet Phase Campaign Steering Committee

Eugene V. Fife '62 (Chair)

Gene Fife graduated from Virginia Tech in 1962 with a degree in business and earned his M.B.A. from University of Southern California in 1968. As founding partner of two venture capital firms, an active board member of several corporations and colleges, and a committed father and husband, the former chairman of Goldman Sachs International had little time to spare. But in the end, the chance to helm a committee charged with providing direction and inspiration to a campaign that would secure his alma mater's future proved to be an offer that Fife simply could not refuse. Today, the evidence is clear that both the university and the campaign have benefited immensely from his wisdom and guidance. Fife believes in Virginia Tech's potential and wants to show it off to the whole world. Like many of us, Fife believes that Virginia Tech is an innovative university with ambitious goals and a bold vision, and he is passionate about sharing that enthusiasm through the campaign. The initial, "quiet" phase of any campaign is crucial. What happens in the months prior to the public launch sets the standard and tone for the culminating phases. For that reason, the university can be ever thankful for the tone set by the sound leadership of Gene Fife.

William B. Holtzman '59 (Vice Chair)

William Holtzman graduated from Virginia Tech in 1959 with a degree in horticulture and earned his master's degree from Cornell in 1961. He has been a longtime supporter of many university initiatives, including the Virginia Tech Corps of Cadets, the Virginia Tech Athletic Fund, and the Virginia Center for Civil War Studies. The most visible sign of his commitment to Virginia Tech is his support of the Holtzman Alumni Center. For the past three years, Holtzman has served as vice-chairman of the quiet phase campaign steering committee (CSC). He also serves on the Virginia Tech Foundation Board of Directors. Virginia Tech President Charles W. Steger has praised Holtzman as a diehard Hokie who lives by the university's motto of Ut Prosim (That I May Serve).

Holtzman started Holtzman Oil Corporation in 1972. The company now owns 65 convenience stores and service stations and supplies an additional 40 locations. Other divisions of the Holtzman Corporation include a bulk and package lubricant business, Holtzman Propane, a construction division, and a fast-food division, which includes Burger King, Denny's, and Blimpie's franchises. The newest division, Valley Ice, was added in 2005.

• Michael G. Anzilotti ' 71
• Richard D. Bishop ' 67
• Patricia A. Caldwell ' 71
• Sandra C. Davis
• Shelley L. Duke
• Eugene V. Fife ' 62, (Chair)
• Robert L. Freeman Jr. ' 75
• Ronald B. Gridley ' 84
• William B. Holtzman ' 59, (Vice Chair)
• Gene A. James ' 53
• Mary F. McVay ' 78
• Floyd W. Merryman III ' 81
• Stephen W. Michael ' 73
• James D. Nyfeler Sr.
• Jay S. Poole ' 78
• R. Gregory Porter III ' 62
• Rebecca G. Porter
• F. Richard Quible ' 53
• G. Robert Quisenberry ' 62
• John G. Rocovich Jr. ' 66
• Marvin H. Schuelke Jr. ' 69
• Margaret G. Skelton
• William E. Skelton ' 40
• Garnett E. Smith
• Regina A. Steeneck ' 70
• Douglas G. Stewart ' 83
• Fay H. Street ' 77
• W. S. White Jr. ' 47

Quiet Phase Emeritus Campaign Council

• Clifton C. Garvin Jr. ' 43
• Charles O. Gordon Sr. ' 42 (deceased)
• T. Marshall Hahn Jr.
• William C. Latham ' 55
• William E. Lavery
• Floyd W. Merryman Jr. ' 46
• Robert B. Pamplin ' 33
• William T. Rice ' 34 (deceased)
• Paul E. Torgersen