Hello again. Senior editor signing off, and I am here to give you all a list of organizations that have given me amazing experiences during my four years of undergrad at Virginia Tech. They have made Blacksburg home to me and introduced me to some of the best people and places around campus. If you’re looking to make your four years magical in this mountain town by meeting new friends, discovering new music, or trying something new, these clubs are for you.
- SOHHL
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SOHHL, which stands for Students of Hip-Hop Legacy, is a music organization here at Virginia Tech. The president, James Albritton, states, “It is a collective of hip-hop-loving, creative go-getters who work towards expanding and diversifying the reaches of hip-hop. We emphasize community through general body meetings and events. The biggest event we host is an annual cultural concert where we showcase up-and-coming artists.”
This club thrives on community, hip-hop, and creativity, and if that is calling you check out SOHHL next year in their first general body meeting or at their debut fall cultural concert event. Check them out at next year’s Gobblerfest, or on their IG @SOHHL.
- WUVT OR “WOOVE IT” RADIO
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WUVT-FM 90.7 is Virginia Tech’s non-commercial university FM radio station in Blacksburg, Virginia. Serving the local Montgomery County and New River Valley region of Virginia, it is student-run and broadcasts a free format to tune in. The mission of WUVT is to “promote education, understanding, and diversity of music while serving the community as an independent, not-for-profit, student-run radio station. Our goal to provide diverse, eclectic, and educational programming makes us a truly unique organization. The vast majority of music played on WUVT cannot be heard anywhere else on your radio dial,” their website states. One of my best friends introduced me to this organization and I trained to become a host in their AM/FM training program. I spent quarantine during my sophomore year on campus growing closer to music and creativity. You can find them on the third floor of Squires or on their Instagram @WUVT.Â
- VIRGINIA TECH OFFICE OF SUSTAINABILITY – INTERNSHIP PROGRAM
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The Office of Sustainability works to educate the Virginia Tech community about how to live a more sustainable and low-impact lifestyle through behavior change and an understanding of the impacts one’s personal actions can have on a global scale. For a large campus like Virginia Tech, even the smallest behavior changes can create a more sustainable world. The Office of Sustainability acts as a central hub to connect the many sustainability champions and efforts taking place all across campus.Â
If you aim to create positive change on campus by driving the input and cooperation of the entire university community, this organization is for you. The intern cohorts are broken into teams based on topic areas of interest, including energy, water, waste, and food. I worked as an intern on the waste team to bring about sustainable change. Some of our projects included executing outreach events dedicated to promoting VT’s Waste Zero 2030 campus goals, hosting a fashion show for large-scale campus-wide events like Sustainability Week, and an environmental education booth for Earth Week. If you’re interested, check out their webpage or Instagram @VTSustainable for more information to apply next year.Â
- VIRGINIA TECH ENGAGE
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Virginia Tech Engage is our university’s center for service learning, civic engagement, and leadership development and education here in the New River Valley. They aim to contribute to student development and embody Ut Prosim, Virginia Tech’s infamous “That I May Serve” motto. I first got involved with them in my freshman year and participated in one of the winter break alternative service trips.
On the alternative break, we went to New Orleans, Louisiana (NOLA) which is world-renowned for its distinctive music, Creole cuisine, unique language dialects, and annual celebrations and festivals, most notably Mardi Gras. A melting pot of French, African, and American cultures, NOLA is home to the most historic districts of any U.S. city. The once lively and prosperous city was changed forever as Hurricane Katrina struck the Gulf Coast in 2005, destroying and displacing the city itself and the livelihoods of millions. The alternative break trip connected me and my peers on the trip with community members through engaging, experiential service and learning opportunities.Â
My group and I gained hands-on experience in service partnering with the United Saints Recovery Project, a local non-profit in the city that works towards rehabilitating and inspiring commitment to disaster recovery driving actionable change for residents in NOLA. We worked on home beautification and painting, neighborhood clean-up in the Lower Ninth Ward, and other projects to address the inequality remaining post-Katrina. I had the time of my life on this trip, and it was one of my first experiences traveling on my own in college. Aside from trip membership, you can become an alternative break student leader if you aim to gain new skills or lead service opportunities driven by community-based needs. If you’re aiming to get out of your comfort zone, meet new people and new cultures, or get involved in a community outside of familiar ones, VT Engage’s alternative breaks or other local service volunteer programs are for you.
- HER CAMPUS AT VIRGINIA TECH
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Her Campus at Virginia Tech is an online women’s magazine dedicated to developing content for the women of Virginia Tech to get personalized and relevant information about what’s happening on our campus daily. Specifically, Her Campus is a publication that reflects the interests of our community, while maintaining a national presence under the Her Campus brand. The specialized content we produce includes topics like style, wellness, beauty, love, lifestyle, and career. Additionally, we offer a source for finding upcoming events, while promoting greater connectivity among other organizations on campus. Ultimately, as an organization we want to deliver engaging content to you, and our readers while serving as a platform to further opportunities in journalism, marketing, and editorial work.Â
New Line Cinema In my final year, I can say HCVT has my heart forever and our sisterhood emphasizes the connection I gained for a community during my time here in Blacksburg. I will be eternally grateful for the friends, memories, events, and editorial experience Her Campus gave me; I felt like a mini Carrie Bradshaw with my own publication. If any of this resonates with you, or you enjoy our content regularly I encourage any of you passionate readers to join our team next year.
