Stop the region’s brain drain.

Build a hub for blockchain technology.

These are two initiatives that Virginia Tech is launching in the next year. Grants from the Growth and Opportunity for Virginia funding program will help make them happen.

Recently, the university received a total of $546,800 in grants to spearhead two separate programs aimed at helping students land internships, boost the Roanoke and New River valley economies, and establish Blacksburg as a blockchain hub. The mission of the bi-partisan GO Virginia program is to create high-paying jobs through incentives that encourage collaboration between businesses, education, and government to strengthen the state’s economy.

One of the GO Virginia grants will fund the start of a blockchain hub in Blacksburg, called the Blockchain Ecosystem Catalyst. It would focus on expanding the use and understanding of blockchain technology, including teaching professionals in the region about it and, in general, attracting more blockchain companies to the Roanoke and New River valleys.

To learn more, check out the whole article below.

https://vtnews.vt.edu/articles/2019/11/unirel-govagrants.html