Determined and strong of character are two descriptors of a successful cadet at VMI, so when Andrew Kiddie ’29, who was diagnosed with deafness just before his second birthday, chose to come to arguably the hardest senior military college in the country. He used his disability as a motivator.

Eighteen Virginia Military Institute cadets joined approximately 5,000 participants at the National Conference on Undergraduate Research (NCUR) held at the Greater Richmond Convention Center in Richmond April 13-15.

Two Virginia Military Institute alumni, Allen Xu ’21 and Thaddeus Wegrzyn ’22, returned to the Institute in late March for two weeks as part of their medical education with a family medicine rotation at the VMI Infirmary.

Anthony Wilkerson ’28 was looking for connection when he came to Virginia Military Institute. Initially, it was a mix of track and field and a scholarship through the U.S. Army that got him through the door, but it was the bonds he formed with his brother rats that made him want to stay.

Over 570 representatives from state and local governments, nonprofit organizations, higher education, and the private sector converged at Virginia Military Institute for the 36th annual Environment Virginia Symposium March 24-26.

From long hours in the pool to the demands of the Corps, Sydney Smith ’26 has built a second family, taken on leadership roles, and pushed herself to grow in every arena.

Maj. Alison Burke, assistant professor and health professions advisor in the Department of Biology at Virginia Military Institute, recently had a research article published in PLOS One, a peer-reviewed scientific journal.

Fireball, a five-year-old miniature donkey owned by Slone and her family, was brought to class for a demonstration using the Henneke Body Condition Scoring System (BCS), a method for evaluating equine nutritional status and body fat percentage.

A scholarly article addressing soybean research spanning seven years was published in the September 2025 issue of Agrosystems, Geosciences & Environment, a joint publication of American Society of Agronomy and Crop Science Society of America.

Barrett Callejo ’27 has found her place at Virginia Military Institute — on the soccer field, in the classroom, and as a mentor within cadre. Inspired by the strong women she met years before as a visitor, she now works to set that same example for the next generation of cadets.