{"id":18084,"date":"2026-04-24T10:10:49","date_gmt":"2026-04-24T14:10:49","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.virginiawestern.edu\/news\/?p=18084"},"modified":"2026-04-24T10:18:15","modified_gmt":"2026-04-24T14:18:15","slug":"2-virginia-western-faculty-members-receive-new-horizons-honors","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.virginiawestern.edu\/news\/2026\/04\/24\/2-virginia-western-faculty-members-receive-new-horizons-honors\/","title":{"rendered":"2 Virginia Western faculty members receive New Horizons honors"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\"Two
Two Virginia Western faculty members received awards at the New Horizons Conference. Pictured are (from left): Dr. Elizabeth Wilmer, Vice President of Academic Affairs and Workforce Solutions; Yvonne Campbell, Dean, School of Business, Technology and Trades; Robert Leonard, Adjunct Faculty in Business, Technology and Trades; Dr. Laura Treanor, President; Dr. Heather Lindberg, Biotechnology Program Head; and Amy White, Dean of STEM and Workforce Solutions. Photo by Clem Britt, Virginia Community College System.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Two faculty members of Virginia Western Community College received awards at the New Horizons Conference awards celebration on Friday, April 17, at The Hotel Roanoke & Conference Center.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Dr. Heather Lindberg<\/strong> received the Susan S. Wood Professorship for Teaching Excellence. This award honors outstanding faculty within the Virginia Community College System. This prestigious award, established by the Virginia Foundation for Community College Education in 2013, recognizes a VCCS faculty member who exemplifies the highest standards of faculty excellence and dedication to students.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Lindberg, who joined Virginia Western’s faculty in 2015, serves as Biotechnology Program Head. During her time in that role, she has participated in collaborative grant writing as co-principal investigator for three funded grants. She has helped fulfill Virginia Western’s role in the state-funded Roanoke Blacksburg Biotechnology project, developing a talent pipeline to support this industry’s expansion regionally. As part of this, she led the development of a two-year associate degree program designed to train students for the local biotechnology industry and has initiated opportunities for students to receive nationally recognized credentialing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Robert Leonard<\/strong> received the George B. Vaughan Leadership Award for Outstanding Adjunct Faculty. This is the premier award recognizing the dedication and impact of adjunct faculty across the VCCS. Established in 2014, this award is made possible by the George B. Vaughan Leadership Endowment Fund through the VFCCE.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At Virginia Western, Leonard teaches Construction Management and Construction Safety courses with a focus on professionalism and high-performance building practices. He brings more than four decades of experience in the construction industry to the classroom and Curriculum Advisory Committees. He supported implementation of Virginia Western’s Plumbing Career Studies Certificate, and he delivers training within Virginia Western’s School of Career and Corporate Training, working closely to strengthen pathways between noncredit training, credit-bearing programs and employment. His teaching emphasizes critical thinking, communication and problem-solving, preparing students not only for their first job but for long-term careers in the trades and construction management.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The\u202fNew Horizons Conference\u202ffor community college educators and leaders is hosted by Virginia’s Community Colleges Student Success Center. The April 15-17 conference focused on\u202f”Ignite: Lighting the Path for Future-Ready Education,” aligning with the VCCS strategic plan,\u202fAccelerate Opportunity<\/a>. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Two faculty members of Virginia Western Community College\u00a0received awards at the New Horizons Conference awards celebration on Friday, April 17, at The Hotel Roanoke & Conference Center. Dr. Heather Lindberg received the Susan S. Wood Professorship for Teaching Excellence, and Robert Leonard received the George B. Vaughan Leadership Award for Outstanding Adjunct Faculty. Continue Reading 2 Virginia Western faculty members receive New Horizons honors<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":81,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[17],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-18084","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-campus-news"],"featured_image_src":null,"author_info":{"display_name":"Erica Myatt","author_link":"https:\/\/www.virginiawestern.edu\/news\/author\/emyatt\/"},"yoast_head":"\n2 Virginia Western faculty members receive New Horizons honors - News from Virginia Western<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Article about 2 Virginia Western faculty members receive New Horizons honors\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.virginiawestern.edu\/news\/2026\/04\/24\/2-virginia-western-faculty-members-receive-new-horizons-honors\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"2 Virginia Western faculty members receive New Horizons honors - 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