The Dean's Weekly Updates

Dear Graduate and Professional Students,

Happy New Year! I hope you were able to take a bit of a break over the holidays. I had a relaxing time with a short visit with family and friends and then lots of long, contemplative, walks with the dogs. Along the way, I gazed at the stars and enjoyed watching the deer and the rabbits scamper away. I’m refreshed and ready to start the new term.

As usual, at the beginning of a new semester, I suggest that you create a plan for the semester. There are lots of tools and advice for how to do so, but I want to emphasize two of them. First, the National Center for Faculty Development & Diversity (NCFDD) has a useful webinar called “Every Semester Needs a Plan” (1). I recommend you take the time to watch it and go through the exercises. To keep me accountable, I’ve written down my plan (2) and will update you during the semester on my progress. My plan is broken down into: Administrative items, Grants and Research, Teaching, Professional, and Personal. Although you will have different categories in your plan, I encourage you to include personal goals to keep that aspect of your life as a priority.

Another way of prioritizing tasks is the “Eisenhower Decision Matrix” (3) which is a 2x2 matrix crossing urgency and importance. This is helpful in order to avoid what is called “precrastination” (3). Precrastination is defined as “the tendency to attempt to get things done as soon as possible, even if that involves extra effort (3, p. 229).” Although sometimes it can be helpful, in terms of reducing the cognitive load of having to remember to do a bunch of things, it has two major drawbacks: It can lead to “haste makes waste,” as often the task would take less time and be more successful with more thought, and it can also take up all of your effort and you end up not ever having time to do the important, hard tasks. The Eisenhower Matrix helps you understand which tasks need to be tackled right away, and which might need more deliberative planning. 

Finally, I know that recent domestic and world events have been deeply troubling for many people, and I want to acknowledge that members of our community may be feeling a range of emotions right now. Some of you may also be navigating personal stress, worry about loved ones, or uncertainty. Please know that your well‑being matters. If you find yourself needing support—whether academic, personal, or logistical—feel free to reach out (5). Thank you for continuing to support one another and for being part of this community. 

Next week I’ll formally welcome the new students to this space. Until then, enjoy the last weekend before the start of the fall semester. 

As always, take care of yourselves and your loved ones, please reach out if you need anything. We are here to support you. Your problems, your worries, your fears, and above all you matter.

Aimée M. Surprenant, Dean of the Graduate School

Notes:

1 https://members.ncfdd.org/webinars/semesterplan25fall

2 https://drive.google.com/file/d/1bsL8qQeUdskCFe-9dpWJ-CevWquQuh88/view?usp=share_link

3 https://www.productplan.com/glossary/eisenhower-matrix/

4 Rosenbaum, D. A., Fournier, L. R., Levy-Tzedek, S., McBride, D. M., Rosenthal, R., Sauerberger, K., VonderHaar, R. L., Wasserman, E. A., & Zentall, T. R. (2019). Sooner Rather Than Later: Precrastination Rather Than Procrastination. Current Directions in Psychological Science, 28(3), 229-233. https://doi.org/10.1177/0963721419833652

5 Resources:

• TimelyCare: https://ucc.vt.edu/timelycare.html

• Cook Counselling Center: 540-231-6557, phone; https://ucc.vt.edu, website

• Cranwell International Center: 540-231-6527, phone; https://international.vt.edu, website

• Dean of Students Office: 540-231-3787, phone; https://dos.vt.edu, website

• Hokie Wellness: 540-231-2233, phone; https://hokiewellness.vt.edu, website

• Graduate Ombuds: 540-231-9573, phone; https://www.graduate.ombudsman.vt.edu, website

Dear Graduate and Professional Students,

Happy Friday! The new semester starts next Tuesday, and it is exciting to see all the activity on campus and the energy that comes along with the arrival of our new and returning students. Welcome back to all of our returning students and a big welcome to all our new students. I hope you all have a wonderful semester.

We’ve had a week of orientation sessions with various groups, and I’m sure you are all brimming with information. The spring semester orientations in the departments are sometimes overlooked, so those of you who are brand new to graduate education or Virginia Tech will need to be extra assertive in finding the information you need to be successful in your programs. Start with your graduate program coordinator—they usually know where you can find all the information you might need (1). Of course, the Graduate School is always a great place to look for information as well. (2). 

One of the topics I cover in my Future Professoriate class is the hidden curriculum in academia. This hidden curriculum consists of terms and unwritten rules that students and faculty are expected to know, the presumed rules of conduct, and the implicit assumptions and tacit rules that those in higher education expect students to recognize (3). Elliot and colleagues (4) have a nice book (available in the library electronically) outlining the hidden curriculum in doctoral contexts, including in international contexts. But this is general advice and information, some of which is relevant and helpful in our context, but it doesn’t cover institution-specific norms and expectations. For the past few semesters in my class, I’ve been asking the students to work together to crowd source a VT specific document. We’ve distilled the information and it is now available to you all in a shared document (5). 

I intend this to be a living document, so we’ve set up a form for suggested additions that you can find here (6). Feel free to add to the document or to create one for your individual department’s unspoken expectations. If you do so, please share it with me so I can link to those in our larger document. Together, as a community, we can work to make sure that all of us have the information we need to thrive at Virginia Tech.

That’s all from me for now, as always, take care of yourselves and your loved ones. Please reach out if you need anything. We are here to support you. Your problems, your worries, your fears, and above all you matter.

Aimée M. Surprenant

Dean of the Graduate School


1 Graduate Program Directors and Coordinators | Graduate School | Virginia Tech

2 Graduate School | Graduate School | Virginia Tech

3 How the “hidden curriculum” prepares students for post-college life

4 Elliot, D. L., Bengtsen, S. S., Guccione, K., & Kobayashi, S. (2020). The hidden curriculum in doctoral education. Palgrave Macmillan. The hidden curriculum in doctoral education - Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University

5 (Compiled List) The Hidden Curriculum of Academia at Virginia Tech.docx - Google Docs

6 The Hidden Curriculum of Academia at Virginia Tech

Dear Graduate and Professional Students,

Happy Friday! I hope the first week of classes went well for you all. I attended an inspiring breakfast and presentation on Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, and spent the rest of the week on administrative projects and start-of-the-semester tasks as well as struggling with my Canvas courses. You would think after 30+ years in academia, I would be more ready for the start of the semester but, evidently, I never learn. I hope you are all ready for the snow and ice forecast for this weekend. Just dress warmly, take everything slowly, and be careful!

People often talk about the many roles that faculty juggle in their day‑to‑day work, but graduate students also manage multiple roles within the university, often taking different roles in the same domain. They are learners and instructors at the same time—engaging in their own education through coursework while also leading discussions, grading assignments, and teaching classes. Their work in research settings is equally dual in nature: they may serve as lab assistants and trainees one moment and help coordinate or even oversee the daily operations of a research group the next. Beyond academics and research, graduate students need to follow administrative rules and policies, but also frequently take on administrative and service roles, contributing to departmental operations, participating in committees, and engaging in the governance structures that shape university policy. In many ways, you all function as junior colleagues, supporting the university’s teaching, research, and administrative missions all at once.

Balancing all of these roles at the same time as managing family and the everyday demands of life can be difficult and can take a toll on mental and physical health. You can easily find research and advice on how to manage stress as a graduate student, including better sleep (1), emotional intelligence and mindfulness (2), and physical activity (3). All of these are great, evidence-based ways of reducing stress. However, there’s one that is a bit more relevant to our current circumstances: turning away from your phone, tablet, and computer (4). The headline of the story might suggest that it is the devices themselves that are the culprit, but instead, it seems like it is what we do on those devices that keep our nervous systems in a heightened state of arousal (5) and induce us to multitask (6). Added to that, the 24-hour news cycle of worldwide conflict makes it hard to focus. So, my advice is to read a book, listen to a podcast, watch a movie, or do whatever it is you do to relax—using whatever device you wish. But do only that—nothing else. What you’re aiming for is to reduce cognitive and emotional load and putting down your extra devices will help with that. Choose that one thing, sink into it fully, and let your mind remember what calm feels like.

That’s all from me for now, as always, take care of yourselves and your loved ones, please reach out if you need anything. We are here to support you. Your problems, your worries, your fears, and above all you matter.

Aimée M. Surprenant

Dean of the Graduate School

1 Allen HK, Barrall AL, Vincent KB, Arria AM. Stress and Burnout Among Graduate Students: Moderation by Sleep Duration and Quality. Int J Behav Med. 2021 Feb;28(1):21-28. doi: 10.1007/s12529-020-09867-8. PMID: 32124246; PMCID: PMC7483179.

2  Vasudevan V, Hanson B, Gittings L, Minda JP, Irwin JD. A systematic review of stress reduction interventions among graduate students. J Am Coll Health. 2025 May 20:1-22. doi: 10.1080/07448481.2025.2503827. Epub ahead of print. PMID: 40393001.

3 Samantha Donnelly, Kay Penny, Mary Kynn, The effectiveness of physical activity interventions in improving higher education students’ mental health: A systematic review, Health Promotion International, Volume 39, Issue 2, April 2024, daae027, effectiveness of physical activity interventions in improving higher education students’ mental health: A systematic review | Health Promotion International | Oxford Academic

4 Why ‘unwinding’ with screens may be making us more stressed – here’s what to try instead

5 Satani A, Satani KK, Barodia P, Joshi H. Modern Day High: The Neurocognitive Impact of Social Media Usage. Cureus. 2025 Jul 8;17(7):e87496. doi: 10.7759/cureus.87496. PMID: 40777702; PMCID: PMC12329480.

6 Hasan, Md. Kamrul MS. Digital multitasking and hyperactivity: unveiling the hidden costs to brain health. Annals of Medicine & Surgery 86(11):p 6371-6373, November 2024. | DOI: 10.1097/MS9.0000000000002576

Dear Graduate and Professional Students,

Happy Friday! I had an enjoyable “Lunch with the Dean” on Thursday with students from a diverse cross-section of disciplines and interests. An even bigger group of GPSS Senators met with President Sands on Thursday night. The questions raised in both forums were thoughtful and challenging, and I appreciated the candor and insight students brought to the conversation. Our discussion reflected the concerns and fears students are dealing with but also the optimism they have for a better future. I’m grateful for the opportunity to hear your perspectives directly. Although some of the questions didn’t have clear answers, we remain committed to working together as a community to create a constructive path forward.

This brings me to one of the keynote speeches at a conference I attended last year by Dr. Freeman Hrabowski, President Emeritus from the University of Maryland, Baltimore County. He spoke powerfully about some of the key ideas in his new book, The Resilient University: How Purpose and Inclusion Drive Student Success (1. available in our library in electronic form). In the Prologue, Dr. Hrabowski writes: “It’s not about me. It’s about us.” ...A community of colleagues work together for a college or university to thrive.” The book focuses on the lessons learned during the height of the pandemic and how resilient universities managed to survive and grow during that time of crisis via “vision, openness, resilience, courage, passion, and hope (1).”  

I particularly appreciated the chapter on openness and Dr. Hrabowski's mantra of “success is never final.” We can always do more to improve programs and our supports: “To do so, we must remind ourselves of our vision and our long-term goals; we must align our culture and values to support that vision and those goals; we must remain open to new ideas; and we must empower the people in our community to lead and do the work.” By embracing this mindset of continual growth, we ensure that our work—and our community—never stops evolving for the better.

When I asked the lunch bunch what I should write about in my email this week, one response was: the Olympics and Paralympics. This is a challenge for me as I have only a passing familiarity with the sports, but I found a tie-in to graduate education: One of the athletes in the Paralympics is PhD student Sydney Peterson, who is getting her degree in neuroscience from the University of Utah (2). Her story is inspiring and emphasizes how our lived experience can contribute to our research. It also demonstrates how having a passion outside of the lab is not only possible but can also help you, as Sydney says, “shut your brain off from one area and shift it over." 

Finally, we talked about food, and I mentioned that I had made a fantastic batch of Italian Warm Butter Cakes. Here’s the recipe (3). Enjoy!

That’s all from me for now. As always, take care of yourselves and your loved ones, please reach out if you need anything. We are here to support you. Your problems, your worries, your fears, and above all, you matter.

Aimée M. Surprenant

Dean of the Graduate School


1 Freeman A. Hrabowski III with Peter H. Henderson, Lynne C. Schaefer, and Philip J. Ross
Johns Hopkins University Press, 2024, The Resilient University: How Purpose and Inclusion Drive Student Success. ISBN-13:  978-1421448442

2 From the lab to the snow, Sydney Peterson balances double duty on path to Milan Paralympics for Team USA — American Group Management, LLC

3 Italian Warm Butter Cake — Poetry & Pies

Dear Graduate and Professional Students,

Happy Friday! The sun is out, the birds are singing, and the snow is starting to melt. It feels like spring is inching closer. I know I’m probably getting ahead of myself, as we’ll almost certainly get another cold snap, but I’m choosing to enjoy it anyway. I had a productive week with some great planning for Graduate Education Week (list of events coming soon), working on best practices documents for graduate programs, and reading and commenting on resolutions that are working their way through the shared governance system (1). 

With Valentine’s Day falling on Saturday, it seemed like the perfect moment to highlight some recent research on love that has been making headlines. Happiness researchers Sonja Lyubomirsky and Harry Reis recently published a book titled “How to Feel Loved: The Five Mindsets That Get You More of What Matters Most (2).” They argue that although happiness has many components, the factor with the greatest influence is feeling loved. And by “feeling loved,” they don’t mean only romantic love, although that certainly counts. What matters most is feeling appreciated and valued by others. That may sound simple, but how do you actually increase the amount of love you feel? One powerful approach, they suggest, is to show genuine interest in others: listening closely, being curious, and truly hearing what people share. 

Is there evidence to support this? A study published in PLOS One suggests that there is (3). Williams et al. (2025) asked participants to report their levels of both feeling loved and expressing love six times a day for four weeks. They found that people who actively express love, through kind words, thoughtful gestures, or caring actions, tended to feel more loved themselves. Increases in expressed love were followed by increases in felt love over time, suggesting a causal link. The authors argue that anyone can develop this skill: “with regular practice and heightened awareness in daily activities... individuals can become more adept at receiving and expressing love, which in turn can cultivate stronger feelings of love (3).” This, in turn, should result in happiness, to circle back to Lyubomirsky and Reis (2). 

Importantly and stressed by Lyubomirsky and Reis, what this means is that you don’t have to change yourself to become more lovable by “becoming more impressive, more attractive, more successful (2)”; instead, you just need to focus on building deep connections with others. In doing so, you create the conditions for genuine warmth and appreciation to grow naturally around you.

That’s all from me for now. As always, take care of yourselves and your loved ones and please reach out if you need anything. We are here to support you. Your problems, your worries, your fears, and above all, you matter.

Aimée M. Surprenant

Dean of the Graduate School


1 Governance | Under Review Resolutions

2 The secret to happiness? Feeling loved

3 Williams L, Kim SH, Li Y, Heshmati S, Vandekerckhove J, et al. (2025) How much we express love predicts how much we feel loved in daily life. PLOS ONE 20(7): e0323326.

Dear Graduate and Professional Students,

Happy Friday from the Conference of Southern Graduate Schools meeting in Baton Rouge, Louisiana! This conference brings together graduate school professionals from the southern region to share best practices, tools, and information for supporting graduate students and graduate education. Of course, we also get to meet up with others who are working in the same space to share our challenges and triumphs, our hopes and our fears. 

Speaking of fears, one of the speakers talked about fear and hope. Fear motivates us in many ways and, in the short term, can result in increased focus and concentration, heightened alertness and responsiveness, enhanced problem-solving skills, and greater persistence and determination (1). Regina Dugan, VT alum and CEO of Welcome Leap, addressed fear in her 2025 commencement address (2). Her insight is that fear can be helpful in that it is telling us that there’s something important confronting us. I’ll let her say it in her own words: 

“Fear isn’t weakness – it’s a signal. It points to what matters most. And walking toward fear is how you build a life of meaning (2).”

But in the long term, living in a state of constant fear is stressful and debilitating (3). In contrast, psychological literature shows strong links between hope and measures of psychological and emotional well-being (4, 5). So, how do we cultivate hope in these uncertain times? Hope isn’t naive optimism or pretending everything is fine. It’s a way of moving forward that doesn’t let uncertainty and fear paralyze us. As graduate students, you’re living in a place where the future feels both wide‑open and, at the same time, uncertain. That tension can be exhausting. 

I’ve said some of these things before, but I think they are worth reiterating. First, focus on what you can control. Fretting over what lies beyond your influence only drains the energy you need for what truly matters. Second, lean on your community; your support network is a source of strength. Third, take time to think back and reflect on what you’ve already accomplished; you’ve already come farther than you think. Fourth, celebrate the small wins; they are the proof that progress is happening. Finally, help someone else along the way, because acts of generosity don’t just lift others: they elevate your own sense of purpose and happiness (6). 

That’s all from me for now. As always, take care of yourselves and your loved ones and please reach out if you need anything. We are here to support you. Your problems, your worries, your fears, and above all, you matter.

Aimée M. Surprenant

Dean of the Graduate School


1 Brown, J. S., & Jacobs, A. (1949). The role of fear in the motivation and acquisition of responses. Journal of Experimental Psychology, 39(6), 747–759. The role of fear in the motivation and acquisition of responses.

2 #graduation2025 #commencementspeech | Regina Dugan | 42 comments

3 Ropeik D. The consequences of fear. EMBO Rep. 2004 Oct;5 Spec No(Suppl 1):S56-60. doi: 10.1038/sj.embor.7400228. PMID: 15459737; PMCID: PMC1299209.

4 Colla R, Williams P, Oades LG and Camacho-Morles J (2022) “A New Hope” for Positive Psychology: A Dynamic Systems Reconceptualization of Hope Theory. Front. Psychol. 13:809053. doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2022.809053

5 Conversano C, Rotondo A, Lensi E, Della Vista O, Arpone F, Reda MA. Optimism and its impact on mental and physical well-being. Clin Pract Epidemiol Ment Health. 2010 May 14;6:25-9. doi: 10.2174/1745017901006010025. PMID: 20592964; PMCID: PMC2894461

6 Weiss-Sidi M, Riemer H. Help others-be happy? The effect of altruistic behavior on happiness across cultures. Front Psychol. 2023 Jun 23;14:1156661. doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2023.1156661. PMID: 37425146; PMCID: PMC10326385.

Dear Graduate and Professional Students,

Happy Friday, everyone! We’ve made it to the final weekday of February. It has been said that April is the cruelest month (1), but for anyone in academia, it’s March that deserves the title. It’s the month when winter refuses to leave, daylight savings steals the evening light, and the semester’s end feels impossibly far away. After the short month of February, the 31 days in March seem to drag on. Yesterday I told myself, “Just survive today and tomorrow, and then you can spend the weekend catching up on all the things you were supposed to catch up on last weekend.” But, we’ll push through, as we always do, and soon enough April will arrive with the first real glimpse of the semester’s end and all the celebrations that come with it. Hang in there! 

This week I had a productive lunch conversation with our part time graduate students. These are folks who take up a graduate program while working full time and managing the other responsibilities that come with adulting (2). These students usually come with a wealth of transferrable work- and life-skills and are typically highly motivated to succeed. They also have a great deal of knowledge that we can learn from and have the ability to draw interdisciplinary and real-world connections into their courses and research. However, they face many challenges in an environment that was built for full-time students. They sometimes feel unseen, unsupported, dissatisfied, and disconnected from their program and the university (3). Additionally, they sometimes lack knowledge of the “hidden curriculum” of graduate school (4, available electronically in the library), including how to navigate through the processes and procedures required to make progress in their programs, their relationships with their advisors and departments, and what is expected at various milestones such as prelim exams and dissertations. 

Under the best conditions, community building is challenging for graduate students, and those challenges multiply when we are working with part time students. Zhang et al. (3) suggest using technology to help in this area including “the development of a virtual community of practice with an emphasis on e-mentoring...such as communication tools, social media and asynchronous communication with which mentors and students can collaborate and build their virtual community to address salient issues of part-time doctoral students including mentorship, career goals and academic self-efficacy (p. 202).” 

In addition to social and community building, structural issues--including scarcity of online or asynchronous offerings, weekday‑centric scheduling, “age‑limits” on transferable credits, and the need to frequently redo plans of study—can slow progress, increase time‑to‑degree, and erode motivation among part‑time graduate students. 

Tackling these issues will involve collaboration between the Graduate School and academic units. My thanks to those who participated in the discussion and for starting the conversation and bringing these issues to light. 

That’s all from me for now. As always, take care of yourselves and your loved ones and please reach out if you need anything. We are here to support you. Your problems, your worries, your fears, and above all, you matter.

Aimée M. Surprenant, Dean of the Graduate School

1 The Waste Land | The Poetry Foundation

2 Adulting (Sorta Kinda): My Experience Working & Being in Grad School - Student Life

3 Zhang, S., Carroll, M., Li, C., Lin, E. (2021). Supporting Part-Time Students in Doctoral Programs: A Technology-Based Situated Learning Model. Studies in Graduate and Postdoctoral Education .Supporting part-time students in doctoral programs: a technology-based situated learning model | Studies in Graduate and Postdoctoral Education | Emerald Publishing

4 Elliot, Dely Lazarte ORCID logo, Bengsten, Soren S.E., Guccione, Kay, and Kobayashi, Sofie (2020) The Hidden Curriculum in Doctoral Education. Palgrave Macmillan: London. ISBN 9783030414962 (doi: 10.1007/978-3-030-41497-9)

Dear Graduate and Professional Students,

Happy Friday before spring break. The campus is already quieter with many undergraduate students off on trips home or elsewhere. The weather in Blacksburg has become warm and beautiful. Perhaps it is false spring, but I’ll take it for as long as it lasts. Today, along with a group of graduate students, I’m visiting New River Community College and Radford University as part of our re-imagined Global Perspectives Program, now called Higher Ed 360. 

It has been a difficult week in terms of world events. On Thursday, the Provost sent out a letter of support with resources for faculty, staff, graduate, and undergraduate students (1). In her note she asked for patience, empathy, and flexibility for “students who are navigating academic responsibilities while under emotional strain.” I have echoed those words in a message to Graduate Program Directors where I asked faculty to broach the topic of how to incorporate breaks with all of their students; recognizing that students may feel reluctant to do so.

Living in the New River Valley, where the majority but not all of our graduate students are, often feels like you’re in a bubble: Everything is calm and beautiful with sunny skies, no traffic, and very little drama. Somewhat counterintuitively, when the rest of the world is in turmoil, this calmness can be disorienting and even stressful. When you are safe and comfortable, but family, friends, and others are not, it is normal to feel guilt and anxiety (2). You need to give yourself permission to accept your feelings and take some time to process them: Guilt, anxiety, and grief mean that you care deeply. However, from a practical point of view it is helpful to concentrate on those things that are under your control. This is difficult: accepting uncertainty goes against our nature because we are used to planning, anticipating, getting ahead, preventing uncertainty. The best advice I can give is to find community, whether in Blacksburg, the DC campus, or elsewhere, share your thoughts and feelings with others, and realize that you are not alone. 

Finally, realize that the fact that you are safe and comfortable is actually comforting for your friends and family. They can imagine you working on your research and your scholarship and can continue to feel proud of your accomplishments. So, rather than feeling guilty about focusing on your work, use it as a way to feel good about your progress, to think optimistically about the future and to make a positive difference.

I’ll be taking a break from writing my Friday email next week, so have a good week, and I’ll be back the week after. As always, take care of yourselves take care of yourselves and your loved ones and please reach out if you need anything. We are here to support you. Your problems, your worries, your fears, and above all, you matter.


Aimée M. Surprenant

Dean of the Graduate School


1 From Provost Julie Ross: Continued support for those impacted by conflict in Iran, the Middle East | Office of the Executive Vice President and Provost | Virginia Tech

2 How to cope when loved ones are in war zones

Dear Graduate and Professional Students,

Happy Friday! Spring break already feels like a long way in the past, but I hope you were able to take some time to rest or at least to slow down a bit. We’re now in the acceleration phase of the semester with events ramping up to the crescendo at the end. Happy Spring Equinox and Eid Mubarak to those who celebrate!

My email is going to be short this week—I had an early morning meeting, then some meetings that ran long and haven’t had the time to work on my idea for the week. So, you’ll have to wait until next week to hear my musings.

However, I did want to let you know that earlier this week I gave a presentation at VT's Mentoring Forum introducing the Graduate School’s Mentoring Toolbox (1). The toolbox has mentoring expectations, sample letters of understanding and authorship, tools and presentations on managing expectations, student tools, and more. Feel free to take a look and let me know what we can add that would be helpful to you or your faculty. 

Also on Monday, University Council approved a change to the Faculty Handbook (2) to add the possibility for minor sanctions for “failure to meet established professional responsibilities; neglect of duties; inappropriate conduct toward colleagues, students, or staff; disregard of institutional policies or reasonable directives; or ongoing unprofessional behavior or other actions inconsistent with the standards of professional conduct expected of members of the faculty.” Once approved by the President, the Faculty Senate and Faculty Affairs will be working out procedures around that. This change came about in part due to work by graduate students over the past few years—thank you to those who championed this cause. Change is slow, but it does happen!

That’s all from me for now, as always, take care of yourselves and your loved ones and please reach out if you need anything. We are here to support you. Your problems, your worries, your fears, and above all, you matter.


Aimée M. Surprenant

Dean of the Graduate School


1 MentoringToolbox - Graduate School Leadership - Google Drive

2 Governance | Under Review Resolutions

Dear Graduate and Professional Students,

Happy Friday! Yesterday and this morning I've been in Farmville Virginia at the Virginia Council of Graduate School’s spring meeting at Longwood University. It is a nice town with a historic main street, river, and trail. There’s also the Moton Museum (1), and a National Historic Landmark, which is a fascinating place with impactful exhibits, videos, and tours. It is certainly worth the drive to visit. 

On the agenda at the VCGS meeting are such varied items as fraudulent applications, program director resources, and the results of a “secret shopper” activity examining how graduate programs respond to prospective student inquiries. We’ll be sharing high impact or big challenge initiatives and discussing graduate enrollment for next year. It is a diverse group ranging from small colleges to R1s, and I always learn something. 

This week has been filled with Graduate Education Week (GEW) events, starting with donuts on Monday morning and culminating with our Big Barbeque later this afternoon. In between, we held writing retreats, bingo, Hokie hiccups, the GPSS research symposium, awards, and much more. There were also many events in Roanoke and Alexandria and some remote activities. We don’t have the numbers yet, but there was plenty of bustle in the GLC and at our other locations, and I know that we reached a good portion of our community. 

One important aim of GEW is to help build community and belonging. These are vitally important for your success in graduate school. Among the many reasons for this is that they help bolster against the so-called “imposter syndrome” -- the persistent feeling that you are not qualified for your position and sometime soon you will be “unmasked” as an imposter. People often assume that competence and confidence go together, but that is not always true. 

Not surprisingly to those of us in academia, graduate students are quite susceptible to these feelings (2). When it is severe, it can lead to harmful outcomes, including decision paralysis and increased mental and physical illnesses. Sverdlick, et al. (2) conducted surveys of doctoral students from across disciplines and found that “perceived belongingness was found to be a negative predictor of imposter syndrome (and) that, in turn, predicted higher levels of depression, stress, and illness symptoms (2, abstract).” They recommended professional development and events such as those we offer during GEW to help build students’ well-being. So, in essence, that is why, we offer things like GEW and a great many other opportunities throughout the year and I urge you to take advantage of them when you can.

That’s all from me until next week, as always, take care of yourselves and your loved ones and please reach out if you need anything. We are here to support you. Your problems, your worries, your fears, and above all, you matter.


Aimée M. Surprenant, Dean of the Graduate School

NOTES
1 Home - Moton Museum

2 Sverdlik, Anna & Hall, Nathan & McAlpine, Lynn. (2020). PhD Imposter Syndrome: Exploring Antecedents, Consequences, and Implications for Doctoral Well-Being. International Journal of Doctoral Studies. 15. 737-758. 10.28945/4670. 

Dear Graduate and Professional Students,

Happy Friday! Today I am in Richmond with some students in our new Higher Ed 360 program (reimagined from the previous Global Perspectives). HE 360 is designed to expose graduate students to the diversity of US Higher Education Institutions and their connections to education and economy within the United States. We do this through immersive experiences to help grad students understand varied academic cultures, missions, and faculty roles across different types of institutions as well as the US pipeline to Higher Education and its implications for the professoriate. In Richmond we are visiting the Virginia Economic Development Partnership (1), Maggie L Walker Governor’s High School (2), the State Council of Higher Education for Virginia (SCHEV) (3), meeting the Secretary of Education (4), and visiting Virginia Commonwealth University (5). We are also touring the Valentine Museum (6) and getting to know Richmond a bit. It has been a whirlwind couple of days but also interesting and informative. 

Earlier in the semester I was pondering why I was feeling a bit unfulfilled in my day-to-day work and realized that I was missing engaging with the academic side of the university. It is easy to get immersed in administrative tasks and spend all your time doing them. Some of those tasks are fulfilling and interesting (like meeting students and getting to know their research and scholarship), but some are just things that need to be done. Important, but a bit dull if that’s all you do. 

So, I resolved to take advantage of the various seminars, workshops, and other opportunities there are for everyone at Virginia Tech. As part of that effort, I went to a couple of AI and research talks (6, 7), the Student Research Showcase sponsored by the Commonwealth Cyber Initiative (8), and some other lectures and events sponsored by the various colleges and units. I have to say that a few were not what I expected (one was very much into the weeds about course approvals for a college), but most were fascinating and educational. One great place to find interesting events is in the Research and Innovation email, which is a twice-monthly announcement highlighting general interest, research-related events, seminars, and workshops at VT. You can sign up to receive it here (10).

This introspective exercise is one I try to do at least once a year to figure out whether I’m feeling good about where I am and what I am doing. I follow the simple steps in the flow chart found here (11). I recommend that you look around and see what interests you. Again, sometimes it’s not what you want and you can just quietly leave but often it is fascinating and informative.

That’s all from me until next week, as always, take care of yourselves and your loved ones and please reach out if you need anything. We are here to support you. Your problems, your worries, your fears, and above all, you matter.


Aimée M. Surprenant, Dean of the Graduate School
NOTES

1 Virginia Economic Development Partnership

2 Maggie L. Walker Governor's School - Governor's High School for Government and International Studies

3 Virginia State Council Of Higher Education, VA | Home

4 Secretary of Education

5 Virginia Commonwealth University

6 The Valentine Museum

7 2026 ISCE Spring Forum | Institute for Society, Culture and Environment | Virginia Tech

8 Workshop to help researchers unlock AI potential | Virginia Tech News | Virginia Tech

9 Commonwealth Cyber Initiative (CCI) | CCI | Virginia Tech

10 Link no longer valid.

11 Are You Happy flowchart poster | We're So Inspired

Dear Graduate and Professional Students,

Happy Friday! The new semester starts next Tuesday, and it is exciting to see all the activity on campus and the energy that comes along with the arrival of our new and returning students. Welcome back to all of our returning students and a big welcome to all our new students. I hope you all have a wonderful semester.

We’ve had a week of orientation sessions with various groups, and I’m sure you are all brimming with information. The spring semester orientations in the departments are sometimes overlooked, so those of you who are brand new to graduate education or Virginia Tech will need to be extra assertive in finding the information you need to be successful in your programs. Start with your graduate program coordinator—they usually know where you can find all the information you might need (1). Of course, the Graduate School is always a great place to look for information as well. (2). 

One of the topics I cover in my Future Professoriate class is the hidden curriculum in academia. This hidden curriculum consists of terms and unwritten rules that students and faculty are expected to know, the presumed rules of conduct, and the implicit assumptions and tacit rules that those in higher education expect students to recognize (3). Elliot and colleagues (4) have a nice book (available in the library electronically) outlining the hidden curriculum in doctoral contexts, including in international contexts. But this is general advice and information, some of which is relevant and helpful in our context, but it doesn’t cover institution-specific norms and expectations. For the past few semesters in my class, I’ve been asking the students to work together to crowd source a VT specific document. We’ve distilled the information and it is now available to you all in a shared document (5). 

I intend this to be a living document, so we’ve set up a form for suggested additions that you can find here (6). Feel free to add to the document or to create one for your individual department’s unspoken expectations. If you do so, please share it with me so I can link to those in our larger document. Together, as a community, we can work to make sure that all of us have the information we need to thrive at Virginia Tech.

That’s all from me for now, as always, take care of yourselves and your loved ones. Please reach out if you need anything. We are here to support you. Your problems, your worries, your fears, and above all you matter.

Aimée M. Surprenant

Dean of the Graduate School


1 Graduate Program Directors and Coordinators | Graduate School | Virginia Tech

2 Graduate School | Graduate School | Virginia Tech

3 How the “hidden curriculum” prepares students for post-college life

4 Elliot, D. L., Bengtsen, S. S., Guccione, K., & Kobayashi, S. (2020). The hidden curriculum in doctoral education. Palgrave Macmillan. The hidden curriculum in doctoral education - Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University

5 (Compiled List) The Hidden Curriculum of Academia at Virginia Tech.docx - Google Docs

6 The Hidden Curriculum of Academia at Virginia Tech

Dear Graduate and Professional Students,

Happy Friday! It has been a busy week with lots of year end events, ceremonies, receptions, and dinners--culminating in our Ut Prosim Society weekend starting today (1). The weekend is an opportunity for us to show our alums and donors the amazing things that are happening at VT. It will include campus tours, the Dennis Dean Undergraduate Research and Creative Scholarship Conference, tours of research labs, Nutshell talks, and a visit to The Market, Virginia Tech’s food pantry. The Market tour will be an opportunity for attendees to hear about food security, coalition building, and areas for growth (i.e., donations!). At the same time, the International Street Fair (2), a yearly celebration of cultures from across the world, will be taking place on Alumni Mall. Folks from across the country and around the world will be on campus this weekend. I hope you have the opportunity to experience the fair—it is a lot of fun with good food and music. 

I’ve been thinking a lot lately about what advice to offer folks who are coping with hard experiences. There’s a tendency for us as a society to talk about “building resilience” and to reinforce the myth that “grit” or “being tough” is important or even that “what doesn’t kill us makes us stronger.” Those messages implicitly encourage us to pretend that we are strong and that we can push through difficult times alone. This strategy is quite counterproductive and can lead to poor mental health outcomes (3). In contrast, recent research shows that distress and resilience often go together (4). Kevin Bellizzi, Professor of Human Development and Family Sciences, University of Connecticut wrote in his article entitled “‘Bouncing back’ is a myth – resilience means integrating hard experiences into your life story, not ignoring them (5)”: “Resilience, in other words, is not about erasing pain and suffering. It is about learning how to integrate difficult experiences into a life that continues forward.” This framework gives us the permission to grieve when necessary and to acknowledge that the challenges we experience change us forever: we will never be the same person we were, we will not “bounce back” without scars. Processing our experiences, both good and bad, takes time and is an ongoing journey. Like any journey, there are places where we move forward and others where we slide back. Ultimately, resilience is less about bouncing back than about finding ways to carry our experiences with honesty and compassion as we continue to move forward (5).

That’s all from me until next week, as always, take care of yourselves and your loved ones and please reach out if you need anything. We are here to support you. Your problems, your worries, your fears, and above all, you matter.

Aimée M. Surprenant

Dean of the Graduate School

1 Ut Prosim Society Weekend | Giving to Virginia Tech | Virginia Tech

2 International Street Fair | Cranwell International Center | Virginia Tech

3 Goel, Vishwam, "Tough It Out": An Investigation on the Societal Pressure to Persevere (December 27, 2023). Available at SSRN: "Tough It Out": An Investigation on the Societal Pressure to Persevere by Vishwam Goel :: SSRN

4 Bellizzi, K.M., Smith, A., Schmidt, S., Keegan, T.H.M., Zebrack, B., Lynch, C.F., Deapen, D., Shnorhavorian, M., Tompkins, B.J., Simon, M. and and the Adolescent and Young Adult Health Outcomes and Patient Experience (AYA HOPE) Study Collaborative Group (2012), Positive and negative psychosocial impact of being diagnosed with cancer as an adolescent or young adult. Cancer, 118: 5155-5162. Positive and negative psychosocial impact of being diagnosed with cancer as an adolescent or young adult - Bellizzi - 2012 - Cancer - Wiley Online Library

5 ‘Bouncing back’ is a myth – resilience means integrating hard experiences into your life story, not ignoring them

5 Bellizzi, K. M. (2025). Falling forward : the new science of resilience and personal transformation (First edition). Thrive Press.

Dear Graduate and Professional Students,

Happy May Day! This spring holiday can be traced back to the ancient Romans, who honored Flora, the goddess of flowers (1). It’s also International Workers’ Day, celebrated in many countries (2). In the United States and Canada, for historical and political reasons (3), these celebrations take place on Labor Day in September. Across all versions of the holiday, we recognize major labor innovations such as the eight‑hour workday, the weekend, and safer working conditions.

In my class a few weeks ago I had a panel of successful academics who talked about their career trajectories. One of the panelists, Dr. Ashleigh Maxcey, is a research assistant professor and senior lecturer in Psychology at Vanderbilt. She teaches Positive Psychology and recorded a TEDx talk called “What happens when you teach joy (4)?” It is an insightful, evidence-based discussion with advice and techniques on how you can incorporate joy into your everyday life. She tested those techniques in her class via a series of required exercises. And it worked, it really did—students loved it and they found habits that worked for them. However, in the end, even though they found that the techniques increased their happiness, the students stopped doing them once they were no longer required for the class. One student said, “happiness doesn’t count on a resume, I’d rather spend my time doing something I know will pay off later”.  

Along with Ashleigh, I understand why you would postpone joy, thinking that it will come later; once you finish grad school, once you get your dream job, or have a family. I think her diagnosis about why we do this is spot on: our structures and rewards do not include prioritizing happiness, nor do they support taking time for yourself. We look around and see how everyone is busy all the time working endless hours and we think that is what success looks like. But I can tell you that appearances can be deceiving. My observation is that most people who work devastatingly long hours are not being productive during those hours and would actually get more done if they took a break. This observation is not mine alone. Dr. Exequiel Hernandez from Harvard Business School wrote: “The scarcest resource in academia is insight, not time (5).” You don’t get insight by sitting at your desk for 15 hours a day. You don’t get it by losing sleep and sacrificing your family time and health. Like Dr. Hernandez, I’ve found that most tasks take as long as you give them. If I start working on my weekly email on Monday, it takes until Friday to finish it. If I start it on Friday morning, I still get it done in time to send it off by Friday afternoon. I’m not suggesting that you procrastinate, rather, that you assign time for a task where you can focus exclusively on that task. I can tell you that many extraordinarily successful people “maximize insight instead of maximizing time (5).” Taking time for joy isn’t indulgent; it’s the very thing that allows your insight, energy, and purpose to prosper.

That’s all from me until next week, as always, take care of yourselves and your loved ones and please reach out if you need anything. We are here to support you. Your problems, your worries, your fears, and above all, you matter.


Aimée M. Surprenant

Dean of the Graduate School


1 May Day - Wikipedia

2 May Day | Holiday, Meaning, History, & Origins | Britannica

3 Is Labor Day the Same as May Day? | Meaning, Difference, Origin, United States, & Date | Britannica

4 How to start putting your happiness first | Ashleigh Maxcey | TEDxNashville

5 Yes, You Can Succeed in Academia and Still Have a Personal Life | Harvard Business Impact Education

• Dear Graduate and Professional Students,
  Happy Friday. I want to start by saying that I spent quite a bit of time yesterday working on an inspirational message to share with you today. Given the Canvas disruption, however, I’m going to hold that for a later date. You can expect to see it in the next few weeks, assuming events allow.
  
  We’ve been working hard to communicate quickly, which means information may be scattered across multiple channels. For your convenience, I’ve reproduced the message that went out to faculty this morning below my sign-off. We know there are still unanswered questions, and we’re keeping a running list: updates will continue to be added to the status page (1).
  
  Regarding the Canvas outage: service now appears to be restored (1), and the company that owns Canvas has released a FAQ with additional information (2). Even with systems back online, all exams originally scheduled for Friday have been moved to Sunday. Faculty may still offer their exams today, but only if they are also available on Sunday. I recognize this is far from ideal and that it creates additional work for faculty and GTAs, not to mention students who are quite stressed, to say the least. 
  
  Blacksburg Transit is working on beefing up Sunday bus routes and will be posting an update by 5 pm today (3). Of course, they rely on students as drivers so they may not be able to staff all the routes to full weekday levels. They are amazing partners and I’m impressed with their responsiveness. 
  
  Sunday is not only a day with religious and other commitments for many—it is also Mother’s Day. Because of that, I know that some of you already have plans that do not involve coming to campus to administer or take an exam. If you are a GTA or a student taking an exam and need an accommodation, please reach out to the instructor for your course to discuss what is needed. If you are unable to adjust your schedule, please work with the course instructor, graduate program director, department head, chair, or school director so they can help navigate your individual circumstances. Everyone has been asked to be as flexible and understanding as possible. 
  
  I know these disruptions are not insignificant, particularly at the close of an already demanding semester. Crises are, by nature, unexpected and disruptive—but by supporting one another, communicating openly, and extending grace where we can, we will get through this together.
  
  That’s all from me until next week, as always, take care of yourselves and your loved ones and please reach out if you need anything. We are here to support you. Your problems, your worries, your fears, and above all, you matter.
  
  Aimée M. Surprenant
  
  Dean of the Graduate School
   
  
  1 University Status | Virginia Tech
  
  2 Security Incident Update & FAQs | Instructure
  
  3 Routes & Schedules
  
  *** Please forward to all instructional faculty and graduate student instructors of record ***
  
  Message to Dear Colleagues,
  As announced last night, due to the Canvas outage, all final exams scheduled for today (Friday, May 8th) have been moved to Sunday.  Faculty do not have the authority to override this decision and hold finals today unless today’s exam is optional and the exam will also be offered as scheduled on Sunday.  Any optional exam today should be given in the same location and at the time originally scheduled to avoid any schedule conflicts.  Remember, classrooms are being used today for more than just exams, and students may have other commitments, so please don't assume availability.
  
  As we work through this situation, the Provost’s Office encourages instructional faculty and graduate student instructors of record to exercise appropriate flexibility with exams and other end-of-semester assignments where circumstances warrant.  Faculty should work with their department heads, chairs, school directors, and departmental directors of undergraduate and graduate programs regarding individual circumstances and/or unique situations as they arise.
  
  We recognize that this disruption comes at an especially demanding point in the semester and has created significant challenges for students, faculty, and staff alike.  As always, we have confidence in your judgment, your commitment to your students, and your ability to navigate these challenges while maintaining the integrity of your courses and academic expectations.
  
  Along with the associate deans for undergraduate and graduate affairs, we are available to answer questions and provide assistance as needed.  We will share additional information as it becomes available.
  
  Sincerely,
  
  Ron Fricker, Jill Sible, and Aimee Surprenant
  
  P.S. Note that faculty who have been relying on Canvas to communicate with students may access student email addresses through HokieSPA as follows:
  
  Login to Main Menu for HokieSpa
  
  From the main menu, select Faculty Access
  Select Summary Class List
  Enter your ID number
  IMPORTANT STEP - DO NOT CLICK THROUGH QUICKLY - Select Spring 2026
  Select CRN from dropdown

Dear Graduate and Professional Students,

Happy Friday! Exams have wrapped up, and the campus already feels quiet with so many people heading out. It has been a fun week with our PhD commencement and college and university commencement ceremonies, wrapping up with our Sunday ceremony in the DC area. I’m especially excited to be attending a ceremony on Saturday for one of my brothers, who is receiving his master’s degree from the University of Maryland Global Campus. He finished his bachelor’s degree during the pandemic, so we never had the chance to celebrate that milestone in person. This time, the whole family is going all in, and we fully intend to embarrass him in the best way. I’m incredibly proud of his perseverance, and I would like to extend that same pride to all of you who have completed your graduate degrees, no matter what stage of life you’re in. Congratulations!

(As an aside, if you are graduating, please fill out our exit survey (1)—it helps us make arguments for meaningful change.) 

A few weeks ago in this forum, I talked about imposter syndrome and how it can paralyze us with self‑doubt. However, feeling like we don’t know everything isn't always a bad thing. I’d argue that certain elements of imposter syndrome—specifically something called “confident humility”—can actually be beneficial. As Adam Grant notes in his book “Think Again: The Power of Knowing What You Don’t Know”, we need a healthy measure of both factors: “confidence without humility breeds blind arrogance, and humility without confidence yields debilitating doubt.” Confident humility allows us to believe in ourselves while still questioning our strategies and staying open to other ideas. Ultimately, we can reframe uncertainty not as a weakness but as a powerful driver of growth.

On the same theme, I’ve just finished reading a memoir by Jacinda Arden, the former Prime Minister of New Zealand. Ms. Arden was Prime Minister through a series of crises. First, there was a mass shooting in 2019 where 51 people were killed and many others injured. Second, a volcano erupted unexpectedly in a popular tourist location. Finally, she was Prime Minister during the COVID pandemic. Oh, and she also had a baby in the first year of her term! During all of those crises she was famously empathetic and human. Surprisingly, she was beset by doubts about her abilities but used her imposter syndrome to her advantage. Her advice on this was: 

“If you have impostor syndrome, or question yourself, channel that. It will help you. You will read more, seek out advice, and humble yourself to situations that require humility to be conquered. If you’re anxious, and overthink everything, if you can imagine the worst-case scenario always, channel that too. It will mean you are ready when the most challenging days arrive. And if you are thin-skinned and sensitive, if criticism cuts you in two, that is not weakness; it’s empathy. In fact, all of the traits that you believe are your flaws will come to be your strengths. The things you thought would cripple you will in fact make you stronger, make you better. They will give you a different kind of power, and make you a leader that this world, with all its turmoil, might just need (3).”

For those of you navigating the uncertainty of graduate school, her words affirm that doubt isn’t a disqualifier — it’s often the sign that you’re growing into the work you’re meant to do.

Please note: I’ll be cutting back to one email a month over the summer months unless something comes up that I think you need to know about. As always, take care of yourselves and your loved ones and please reach out if you need anything. We are here to support you. Your problems, your worries, your fears, and above all, you matter.


Aimée M. Surprenant

Dean of the Graduate School


1 Graduate School Exit Surveys | Graduate School | Virginia Tech

2 Grant, A. (2021). Think Again: The Power of Knowing What You Don't Know. Ebury Publishing. (this is in the library in hard copy but I have it checked out—will bring it back soon)

3 Ardern, J. (2025). A Different Kind of Power: A Memoir. Crown Publishing Group. 9780593728703