Rosemary Goss, the Residential Property Management Advisory Board Professor in the College of Liberal Arts and Human Sciences at Virginia Tech, has received the university's 2014 Alumni Award for Excellence in Undergraduate Academic Advising.

Established by the Virginia Tech Alumni Association, the Alumni Award for Excellence in Undergraduate Academic Advising is presented annually by the Office of the Provost to a faculty member who has been particularly dedicated to and effective at advising undergraduate students. Recipients may be nominated by university colleagues or students, are selected by a committee of former award winners, receive a $2,000 prize, and are inducted into the university’s Academy of Advising Excellence.

A member of the Virginia Tech community since 1976, Goss is the career advisor for the Residential Property Management program, the first program of its kind in the nation that she helped develop in the Department of Apparel, Housing, and Resource Management.

“Dr. Goss has impacted the lives of hundreds of students attending Virginia Tech through her advising and mentoring,” wrote Julia O. Beamish, professor and head of the Department of Apparel, Housing, and Resource Management, in her letter of nomination. “Current and former students recognize her ability to push them to be the best they can be, encouraging them to excel academically, to pursue extracurricular activities, and to take advantage of every opportunity that is offered to them.”

Goss regularly advises 30 to 50 students each semester. Many of these students come to her as transfers from other majors or from University Studies. She also advises the Student Association of Residential Property Management which works with Goss to host an annual career fair.

“What I value and admire most about Dr. Goss is her ability to go beyond doing her job as an advisor,”  wrote Dan Nguyen, a senior majoring in apparel, housing, and resource management. “She always puts in the extra effort to learn about each of us, about our personalities, work ethics, backgrounds, interest, strengths, and weaknesses. By doing that, she is able to provide each of her students the kind of guidance and support that is customized to our needs.”

Goss was recently honored with the Housing Education and Research Association’s Housing Impact Award for dedicating her professional career to the better understanding of housing and the development of the residential property management program of study for undergraduates.

She is a charter member of the National Apartment Association Education Institute’s board of directors and received the first Apartment Career and Education Award in recognition of her contributions to educational programming for the property management industry.

She has made numerous presentations to both academic and industry-based audiences on housing options for an aging society, barriers and incentives to quality housing alternatives, and property management issues. She teaches undergraduate courses in housing and residential property management and is an active university citizen who serves in several positions in university governance.

Goss received her bachelor’s degree from Concord University, a master’s degree from Virginia Tech, and a Ph.D. from Florida State University.

Dedicated to its motto, Ut Prosim (That I May Serve), Virginia Tech takes a hands-on, engaging approach to education, preparing scholars to be leaders in their fields and communities. As the commonwealth’s most comprehensive university and its leading research institution, Virginia Tech offers 240 undergraduate and graduate degree programs to more than 31,000 students and manages a research portfolio of $513 million. The university fulfills its land-grant mission of transforming knowledge to practice through technological leadership and by fueling economic growth and job creation locally, regionally, and across Virginia.

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