August 5 – 11, 2019

Recurring Events:
1. WEEKLY DROP-IN SERVICES

This Week’s Events:
2. GLC CAFÉ – SURPRISE TREAT

Administrative Announcements:
3. GRAD STUDENT AMBASSADOR LEADERSHIP PROGRAM SEEKS PARTICIPANTS – 2nd posting
4. GRAD 5134: REGENERATIVE MEDICINE: SCIENCE AND SOCIETY, FALL 2019 – 2nd posting
5. GRADUATE STUDENTS INVITED TO SUBMIT WRITING – 3rd posting

Jobs:
6. ENGINEERING EDUCATION: I.T./ACADEMIC ADIVISING GRAD ASSISTANT – 1st posting
7. GRA OPPORTUNITY AT VTTI: COMPUTER VISION & DEEP LEARNING – 1st posting
8. GRA OPPORTUNITY AT VTTI: SIGNAL PROCESSING & STATISTICAL MODELING – 1st posting
9. PEACE CORPS CAMPUS RECRUITER GRADUATE ASSISTANTSHIP – 1st posting
10. GRA OPENING: GIS PROGRAMMER/ANALYST – 3rd posting

Volunteers and research participants sought:
11. HEALTHY DOGS NEEDED FOR HEART DISEASE STUDY – 1st posting
12. VOLUNTEERS NEEDED FOR NEW GRADUATE STUDENT ORIENTATION – 1st posting
13. VOLUNTEERS NEEDED @ THE BLACKSBURG FARMERS MARKET – 1st posting

Upcoming events:
–GTA WORKSHOP (8/20 – Registration required)
–LUNCH WITH THE DEAN (8/21 – Registration required)
–HEALTH INSURANCE SIGN-UP (8/22)
–LYRIC THEATER TOUR (8/22 – registration required)
–MAKE YOURSELF AT HOME (8/22 – registration required)

Recurring Events
1. WEEKLY DROP-IN SERVICES:
– Career Advising: On hiatus for summer. See: https://blogs.lt.vt.edu/gradcareeropportunity/
– Cook Counseling: on summer hiatus
– Graduate School summer hours: MTThF 9:00am-4:00pm, W 9:30-4:00
– Immigration advising hours: MWF 1:00-4:00pm, TTh 9:00am-12:00pm, Room 120 GLC
– Writing assistance: reserve appointment at https://www.lib.vt.edu/spaces/writing-center.html

This Week’s Events
2. GLC CAFÉ – SURPRISE TREAT
Thursday, Aug 8, 3:30-5:00pm, GLC Reading Room
GLC café continues every Thursday throughout the summer when the university is open. This week will feature a surprise treat. Stop by for the usual coffee, tea and cookies and the occasional surprises brought to you by the Graduate School! We will not be having Wednesday café during the summer.

Administrative Announcements:
3. GRAD STUDENT AMBASSADOR LEADERSHIP PROGRAM SEEKS PARTICIPANTS – 2nd posting
The Graduate Student Ambassador Leadership (GSAL) Program is a leadership opportunity for graduate students who are dedicated to serving and representing Virginia Tech. Graduate ambassadors volunteer their time to assist with Graduate School orientation, providing campus tours, attending/participating in various recruitment fairs, mentoring new graduate students in their department or college, and promoting the graduate student community. Ambassadors also serve as an important point of contact to graduate student applicants interested in their specific or similar affiliated department. To qualify, students must be currently enrolled as a graduate student at VT; have a cumulative GPA of at least 3.0; be able to make an academic year commitment (Fall-Spring semesters); be willing to travel, demonstrate strong communication and interpersonal skills; and exhibit leadership, initiative, dependability, discipline, and enthusiasm.  If interested, visit the following link to apply by Sep 3 at http://bit.ly/VT_GSAL19. For info contact: Dr. Justin Grimes, Asst. Director Recruitment, Diversity, and Inclusion jgrimes18@vt.edu.

4. GRAD 5134: REGENERATIVE MEDICINE: SCIENCE AND SOCIETY, FALL 2019 – 2nd posting
This interdisciplinary 3-credit course engages students in active discussions designed to explore the world of Regenerative Medicine (RM) and how they can contribute as individuals and as an interdisciplinary group to this exciting, diverse, and rapidly growing field.  Integrates topics such as stem cell biology, biomaterials/bioengineering, social and ethical issues, experimental design, and business and public policy into one cohesive program. Led by members of RM Interdisciplinary Graduate Education Program (IGEP) and uses invited outside speakers, VT faculty speakers, and readings from The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks to investigate key areas surrounding RM, including industry roles and opportunities, government funding, regulation, and public policy (FDA, NIH, NSF), social and ethical issues, and research and evidence-based medicine.  Students from the Colleges of Engineering and Veterinary Medicine and the Department of Science, Society, and Technology form the core of participants, but any interested students are welcome and encouraged to enroll.  Meets Tuesday and Thursdays from 9:30 – 10:45 am in the Veterinary Medicine Instruction Addition (VMIA) Classroom 220.  Active course participation and completion of three individualized written assignments form the axis of grading.

5. GRADUATE STUDENTS INVITED TO SUBMIT WRITING – 3rd posting
The student blog RE: Reflections and Explorations, offered through the VT Institute for Policy and Governance, is a great vehicle to share research ideas and theories with a broader audience. All VT graduate students are eligible to offer essays as long as they address a policy, politics or governance issue or concern. Students in ALCE, ASPECT, GIA, HD, PGG, Natural Resources, PAPP, Political Science, Rhetoric and Writing, Sociology and Urban Affairs and Planning are particularly encouraged to submit essays. To find examples of past topics, read archived essays. Dr. Max Stephenson, Professor of Public and International Affairs, serves as editor and final arbiter of all submissions. Sign up now using this Google Spreadsheet. Slots will be filled on a first-come, first-served basis. Questions? Contact Heather Parrish ((parrish1@vt.edu).

Jobs:
6. ENGINEERING EDUCATION: I.T./ACADEMIC ADIVISING GRAD ASSISTANT – 1st posting
The Department of Engineering Education is seeking an Information Technology (I.T.)/Academic Advising Graduate Assistant. The graduate assistant will be responsible for updating advising I.T. systems and apps, and serving as a backup to the academic advising team.  This position will report to the Director of Advising and Director of Enrollment Management. Complete details are located at: https://enge.vt.edu/content/dam/enge_vt_edu/undergraduate/ga.pdf

7. GRA OPPORTUNITY AT VTTI: SIGNAL PROCESSING & STATISTICAL MODELING – 1st posting
Virginia Tech Transportation Institute is looking for a graduate research assistant for the academic year 2019-2020 starting Fall 2019. This appointment will be 20-hour full time GRA and is open for master’s and doctoral students.  This project addresses the emerging field of behavior-based predictive safety analytics, focusing on the prediction of road crash involvement based on individual driver behavior characteristics. Student with backgrounds and knowledge on statistical modeling and signal processing may apply to amiller@vtti.vt.edu with CV, cover letter and two contacts for references. For more information about the responsibilities and requirements, please visit: https://drive.google.com/open?id=19oXNgYoDKqncWYR6c6uS26yapkuJNYyF.

8. GRA OPPORTUNITY AT VTTI: COMPUTER VISION & DEEP LEARNING – 1st posting
Virginia Tech Transportation Institute is looking for a full-time graduate research assistant who has expertise in computer vision and deep learning.  This is a full academic year GRA position starting Fall 2019 with a possibility of extension to next academic year. The ideal student is a second year PhD or Masters student looking for dissertation topic and willing to work in the field of computer vision and deep learning. The student will closely work with faculties from VTTI and department of ECE. Applicant may contact Dr. Abhijit Sarkar  (asarkar@vtti.vt.edu) with their CV and two contacts for reference indicating “GRA application: Computer Vision for NDS”. For more information about the responsibilities and requirements, please visit: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1O_B0hBlweudwCc65iJyff_Cz_S3kPqm-/view.

9. PEACE CORPS CAMPUS RECRUITER GRADUATE ASSISTANTSHIP – 1st posting
The Center for International Research, Education, and Development (CIRED) is searching for a graduate student who is a Returned Peace Corps Volunteer (RPCV) to serve as the part-time Campus Peace Corps Recruiter (20 hours/week). The recruiter will be the main point of contact at VT and other universities in Southwest Virginia for people interested in joining the Peace Corps. The successful candidate will receive a graduate stipend and tuition remission. For application information go to: https://cired.vt.edu/About/job-opportunities.html

10. GRA OPENING: GIS PROGRAMMER/ANALYST – 3rd posting
Enterprise GIS unit of VT’s central IT organization seeks a grad student with GIS programming, GIS analysis and/or web design skills to support a variety of projects as assigned in a technical team environment, using an evolving set of best-practice tools, libraries and techniques. Position is responsible for a variety of GIS-related technical tasks including developing scripts to automate GIS data management and server administration tasks, performing mapping and analysis tasks, and developing and maintaining GIS-enabled web applications. Requires experience with Python programming, Tools and APIs related to the ESRI ArcGIS platform. Full-time GRA (20 hr/wk) continuing for a full year (Aug 2019 – Aug 2020). Renewal, while possible, cannot be guaranteed upon hiring. Interested students should forward a current resume and cover letter to egisjobs@bev.vt.edu. Position will remain open until filled.

Volunteers and research participants sought:
11. HEALTHY DOGS NEEDED FOR HEART DISEASE STUDY – 1st posting
Healthy dogs needed to compare to a clinical population of dogs affected by mitral valve disease. Dogs’ health status will be determined by owner interview, physical examination, and echocardiography. To enroll, dogs must be 1-5 years of age, weigh 7-55 lbs, and be free of systemic disease, such as diabetes, Cushing’s, kidney disease, and heart disease. Excluding factors include presence of other acquired or congenital cardiovascular diseases; dogs that, because of their temperament, would require sedation for undergoing echocardiographic examination; and/or presence of severe clinical systemic disease that affects the cardiovascular system. Once enrolled in study, the dog will undergo a standard cardiac examination, including echocardiography, at the Veterinary Teaching Hospital in Blacksburg. These procedures are non-invasive, but may require a small area of fur on your dog’s chest to be shaved. All appointments will take place on Saturdays and should take less than 30 minutes. Once the dog is found eligible for the study, the cost of the visit and echocardiographic examination will be free of charge. To schedule study appointment, please call the Small Animal Clinic at the Veterinary Teaching Hospital at 540-231-4621 and mention the 2D3D echo/mitral valve disease study.

12. VOLUNTEERS NEEDED FOR NEW GRADUATE STUDENT ORIENTATION – 1st posting
The Graduate School is seeking graduate student volunteers to help with a variety of events and activities for new students during orientation period Aug 19 – 23. Please complete this survey if you are available to assist us with these events. https://virginiatech.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_3eKrERJUZ3pulNz

13. VOLUNTEERS NEEDED @ THE BLACKSBURG FARMERS MARKET – 1st posting
Sign up for a volunteer shift at the Blacksburg Farmers Market for our annual tomato and salsa tasting! Volunteers are needed to help run the information booth on market days. Saturday, the market is open from 8:00 am to 2:00 pm and the shifts are 8:00 am to 11:00 am and 11:00 am to 2:00 pm. The Farmer’s Market is near Squires and the GLC. More information is on the sign up link https://signup.com/client/invitation2/6775657374/1219389/false#!1219389/false/false. If you have any questions, feel free to email oliviao6@vt.edu.

Upcoming events:
GTA WORKSHOP
Check-in starts at 8am. You must be registered to attend. For more information view the GTA Workshop web page. http://graduateschool.vt.edu/academics/courses-and-scheduling/graduate-school-courses/gta-workshop.html

LUNCH WITH THE DEAN
Wednesday, Aug 21, 12:00-1:00pm, GLC Room C
Meet Graduate School Dean Dr. Karen DePauw and graduate students at a free lunch.  Learn about the latest in graduate education and share your perspectives in a casual setting.  Sign-up here:
https://virginiatech.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_2lgqpt7lPNwxEgZ. Please note that with such a short time to eat and have a discussion, it is important that you arrive on time for this lunch.

HEALTH INSURANCE SIGN-UP
Thursday, 8/22, 2:00-4:30pm and Friday, 8/23, 11:00am-1:00pm, GLC Lobby
Stop by the GLC Lobby to sign up for student health insurance with Aetna and ask representatives any questions you may have.

LYRIC THEATER TOUR
Thursday, Aug 22, Meet at the Lyric at 2:55pm
Registration is required. https://virginiatech.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_aY0ehqgCNTNVj7L

MAKE YOURSELF AT HOME
Thursday, Aug 22, 4:30-6:00pm, GLC Multipurpose Room
Connect with faculty, staff, new and returning graduate students and resources that can help you settle in and succeed in Blacksburg. Light refreshments and many door prizes will be provided! Register at https://virginiatech.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_1HLIpw2kvFoL3xz.