Virginia Commonwealth University

When she was 8, Roqia Ali and her family moved to the United States from their native Afghanistan, a country then riven by a decade of post 9/11 war.

“I see everything as a privilege: being able to be in college, worrying about an exam tomorrow or [holding events] and being so busy,” said the rising senior at VCU. “I find that all very fulfilling because it’s an opportunity that so many dream of, and so the fact that I’m able to live it is something I don’t take for granted.”

Read more: https://news.vcu.edu/article/family-journey-inspires-roqia-alis-passion-for-civic-engagement

When the Ender brothers — twins Kenneth and Steven — enrolled at VCU in 1968, they didn’t have their future careers mapped out.

They certainly didn’t think, when they majored in management in the VCU School of Business, that they would one day become college presidents.

But they did, crediting their VCU experience for their later success. Now in the past few months, both have established endowed scholarships in the School of Business to help future students. The Steven C. Ender and Karen L. Gislason-Ender Endowed Scholarship is intended to provide support for first-generation students in the School of Business, with preference to students majoring in business management. The Kenneth and Catherine Ender Endowed Scholarship is for students who have transferred from a community college into the VCU School of Business, with a preference given to first-generation college students.

Read more: https://news.vcu.edu/article/double-vision-twin-alums-kenneth-and-steven-ender-both-rose-to-college-presidencies

Highlighting educators, students and community partners who make an impact inside and outside the classroom, VCU hosted its annual Excellence in Community Engagement Awards ceremony on May 14 to recognize service that stretches beyond campus.

VCU’s Division of Community Engagement directs the recognition program, and here are this year’s honorees in five categories:

⭐️ Excellence in Community Engaged Research, Katherine Tossas
⭐️ Excellence in Community Engaged Teaching, Emily Smith
⭐️ Excellence in Community Engagement (Faculty or Staff), Emily Zimmerman
⭐️ Excellence in Community Engagement (Students or Postdoctoral Fellows), Nina Dashti-Gibson
⭐️ Outstanding University Community Partner, Richmond Public Schools: Multilingual Student Success team and Katrina Jackson

Would you like to win prizes for sharing your post-graduation plans? Here’s your chance to win big! Fill out the First Destination Survey and be entered to win a variety of prizes! https://tiny.cc/VCUFDS26

Congratulations to on last month’s SYNERGY: Fashion Runway 2026 at . ✨ We’re so blown away by the undeniable talent that was on display at this breathtaking showcase.

📸: Jonathan Haff, VCU Enterprise Marketing & Communications

The state’s first undergraduate degree in robotics and autonomous systems engineering will be offered beginning this fall in VCU College of Engineering.

Advances in artificial intelligence and automation are driving demand for engineers who can design, integrate and deploy robotic and autonomous systems across industries such as manufacturing, healthcare, defense and transportation. The global robotics market is projected to grow from $11.5 billion to $78.8 billion by 2033, and over the next decade, Virginia alone is projected to add more than 10,000 jobs in aerospace and unmanned systems.

Read more: https://news.vcu.edu/article/vcu-to-offer-new-undergraduate-degree-in-robotics-and-autonomous-systems-engineering

Philanthropist Inger Rice, whose generosity left a lasting mark on VCU and the Richmond community, died May 10 at age 96 in her home at Westminster Canterbury Richmond.

Among Rice’s major contributions to the university was the gift of 342 acres of land along the James River, midway between Richmond and Williamsburg. Donated in 2000, the site in Charles City County is now home to the VCU Rice Rivers Center, an environmental field station that supports scholarship and student instruction across disciplines including water resources, climate science, wildlife conservation and wetlands restoration.

“It gives me great pleasure to make this gift to VCU, an institution with an excellent reputation for teaching, research and service,” Rice told VCU News at the time. “My hope is that this contribution helps further the study of the life sciences, improving the quality of life for Virginians.”

Read more: https://news.vcu.edu/article/inger-rice-whose-vision-and-support-helped-establish-the-vcu-rice-rivers-center-dies-at-96

Behind every disease outbreak investigation, every newborn screening and every environmental safety test, there’s a laboratory – and a workforce many people never see.

That’s exactly what Michael Lacy, Ph.D., wants to change.

This summer, Lacy and colleagues at VCU are launching the Applied Public Health Laboratories Summer Program, a hands-on, immersive experience designed to introduce students to careers in public health laboratories.

“Most students have heard of public health, maybe epidemiology,” said Lacy, an assistant professor in the Department of Medical Laboratory Sciences who specializes in immunology. “But they don’t realize there’s a whole laboratory side to it.”

Read more: https://news.vcu.edu/article/new-public-health-summer-program-introduces-students-to-critical-but-invisible-career

VCU will be closed on Memorial Day in honor of those in the U.S. military who made the ultimate sacrifice for our freedoms. 🇺🇸

👏💛🎓 One more time for our unstoppable May 2026 VCU Grads!