Amid global concerns about food security, the U.S. Agency for International Development has awarded a $1 million grant to Virginia Tech’s Office of International Research, Education, and Development to improve agricultural productivity and ease trade barriers in Africa.

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Matthew McMullen of Christiansburg, Va., formerly a Presidential Management Fellow at the United States Department of Health and Human Services in Washington D.C., has been named program director for the Office of Education Abroad at Virginia Tech.

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The 14th annual Educational Technology Leadership Conference, aimed at demonstrating the most up-to-date and successful techniques for integrating technology into classrooms, will be held Dec. 10-12 at the Hotel Roanoke and Conference Center in Roanoke, Va.

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A $525,000 grant awarded by the U.S. Economic Development Administration will support the efforts of the Virginia Tech Outreach and International Affairs’ Office of Economic Development to foster new higher-skill, higher-wage, and private-sector employment and investment in Southwest and Southside Virginia.

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Thanks to efforts by scientists in a Virginia Tech-led program, the papaya mealybug — an emerging threat from India to Indonesia –is being identified and contained.

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