Virginia Tech will recognize five alumni this week for their contributions to the university and community.
The Ut Prosim medal, University Achievement Award, and Alumni Achievement Award will be presented during the commencement exercises.
The Uto Prosim Medal is the university's highest honor and is awarded for noteworthy and outstanding contributions to the university. This year, the medal will be awarded to Mary and Willis Blackwood.
The University Achievement Award is presented to an individual who has achieved national distinction, whether personal or professional, in any field or endeavor of lasting significance and value to society. This year's award goes to Gladys West.
The Alumni Achievement Award recognizes alumni for outstanding contributions to the university, community, and profession. This year's award goes to Greta Harris and Jim Pearman.
The university's commencement ceremony will be held at 8:30 a.m. Friday at Lane Stadium. To watch the ceremony or learn more, visit comment.vt.edu.
About the recipient
Mary Nolen Blackwood '73 and Willis P. Blackwood '72
The Blackwoods met at Virginia Tech. They continued to generously support their alma mater, sending her two children, Morgan Blackwood Patel, a 2003 engineering graduate, and Nolen, a Pamplin College of Business graduate, to Virginia Tech.
Both members of the Blackwood family serve on the Virginia Tech Foundation Board, and the Blackwood Real Estate Agency is named for them.
Mary Nolen Blackwood earned a degree in psychology from Virginia Tech and a master's degree in hospital and health administration from the Medical College of Virginia (now Virginia Commonwealth University) in 1979.
She will continue her career in the Commonwealth of Virginia. She worked as a health planner for the Office on Aging and as chief of staff for the Division of Mental Health, Mental Retardation, and Substance Abuse Services.
She has served on the Faculty of Science Roundtable since its creation in 1986, becoming its second chair and the first woman to chair the position. She was also the first recipient of the College of Science Hall of Fame and received the university's Distinguished Alumni Award in 2019.
Willis Blackwood earned a bachelor's degree in business administration from Virginia Tech and then served in the Navy. After he was honorably discharged from the Navy, he worked in the real estate department of Safeway's Richmond Division of Stores.
It was there that he discovered his passion for real estate, which led him to pursue an MBA from Virginia Commonwealth University. In 1981, he opened his Richmond office in Norfolk-based regional real estate firm SL Nusbaum Realty and became a partner in the firm.
In 1988, he founded Blackwood Development Company to develop and redevelop shopping centers throughout the state.
The Blackwoods divided their time between Richmond and Bonita Springs, Florida. Willis Blackwood has served on the boards of the Metro Richmond Chamber of Commerce, Chesterfield Business Council, Richmond Real Estate Group, several country clubs, Virginia Tech, and the Pamplin Advisory Council. I did.
The Blackwoods generously supports the Pamplin College of Business, the College of Science, and Virginia Tech's athletics department, to name a few. They are members of the University's Ut Prosim Society at the President's Circle level and members of the Legacy and 1872 Society. They are also honored as Most Important Patrons. They live the Virginia Tech motto. Ut Prosim (that I can serve), in their daily lives.
James E. “Jim” Pearman Jr. '70
Pearman is a proud graduate of Virginia Tech and founder of Partners in Financial Planning in Salem.
He earned a bachelor's degree in accounting from the Pamplin College of Business and currently serves on the boards of the Virginia Tech Real Estate Industry Advisory Board, the Pamplin Accounting Information Systems Advisory Board, and the Virginia Tech Athletic Fund. He is an honorary member of the Pamplin Advisory Council.
In addition to his contributions to Virginia Tech, Pearman serves on several regional committees and is active in the financial planning community.
He is chairman of the boards of Feeding Southwest Virginia and Alta Mons Inc., treasurer and director of The Hokie Way, and is a member of the Virginia United Methodist Pension Fund, the Shenandoah Valley Battlefield Foundation, and the Eastmont Community Foundation. He also serves as a board member.
Pearman has been in the financial services industry for more than 50 years.
He is active in the National Association of Personal Financial Advisors (NAPFA) and previously served on the board of the NAPFA Consumer Education Foundation. Pearman also served as an industry expert for the North American Securities Administrators Association Examination Advisory Project Group.
Additionally, he is the author of the book “Financial Planning for Elderly Clients” and has been quoted on financial planning topics in various local and national publications.
Pearman and his wife, Brenda, live in Salem and are generous supporters of many areas at Virginia Tech, including athletics, WVTF, and Pamplin College of Business. They are members of the Ut Prosim Society President's Circle and the 1872 and Legacy Society.
Greta J. Harris '83
Greta J. Harris is a member of the Virginia Tech Board of Visitors and president and CEO of the Better Housing Coalition, the Richmond region's largest nonprofit community development corporation. During her career, she has been involved in investing more than $750 million in affordable housing, providing more than 20,000 low-income individuals with a great place to call home.
Prior to leading the Better Housing Coalition, he served as vice president of the Local Initiative Support Corporation, a national nonprofit community and economic development organization, where he led regional offices in the South and Midwest regions.
She earned a bachelor's degree in architecture from Virginia Tech and a master's degree in architecture and urban design from Columbia University.
In addition to his role as a member of his alma mater's Board of Visitors, Harris is a member of the Dean's Advisory Council for the College of Architecture, Art, and Design and a former member of the Virginia Tech Foundation Board of Directors. In 2016, she was named Virginia Tech Black Alumni Philanthropist of the Year.
Harris is active in the community, serving on the boards of the Markel Group, Greater Washington Partnership, Housing Partnership Network, ChamberRVA, and co-chair of the Virginia Redistricting Commission.
Ms. Harris has received numerous awards and was the recipient of the 2023 Virginia Business Magazine Women in Leadership Award. She is the recipient of the National NeighborWorks Association's 2021 Practitioner of the Year Award, the Ruth Coles Harris Leadership Institute's 2021 Leadership Award, and Richmond Magazine's 2020 Bold Women Award Winner, 2019 2019 YWCA Outstanding Women in Business Award Winner and 2019 Style Weekly Executive Woman in Business Award Winner. She is an award winner and she is also the recipient of the 2018 Richmond Times Dispatch Person of the Year. She was also recognized by Equality Virginia as her 2014 Outstanding Virginian of the Year.
Mr. Harris generously supports Virginia Tech's diversity and inclusion efforts, including the InclusiveVT Scholarship Fund. She is a member of the 1872 Society and the Legacy Society.
Gladys West '00
West is a pioneer in mathematics and the “hidden figure” who paved the way for the Global Positioning System, which revolutionized navigation around the world.
West was a pioneer and lifelong learner who spent his childhood on a farm in rural Virginia, was inducted into the U.S. Air Force Hall of Fame, and earned a doctorate from Virginia Tech. He is 70 years old.
She graduated top of her high school class and attended Virginia State University, later renamed Virginia State University, where she earned a bachelor's degree in mathematics in 1952.
She worked as a public school teacher and earned a master's degree in Virginia in 1955. She proceeded to the Naval Surface Warfare Center, where she was the second African American woman hired and only four African American employees total.
West was an integral part of the team that developed the modern global positioning system. She later served as project manager for Seasat, the first satellite designed for remote sensing of Earth's oceans.
West retired in 1998, but continued his education throughout his career and after his retirement. He received his PhD in Public Administration and Policy from Virginia Tech in 2000. In 2018, the Virginia General Assembly passed a joint resolution honoring her.
