Virginia Tech hosts State of the University, prepares for students to return Thousands of Hokies will return to Blacksburg next week Tags: BLACKSBURG, Va – With the start of the spring semester just days away, Virginia Tech President Tim Sands says employees are working around the clock to welcome students back to Blacksburg. “We are building on what we learned in the fall as a ramp-up of our testing for the spring with an emphasis on mandatory random prevalence testing of students and surveillance testing of high contact employees,” Virginia Tech President Tim Sands said. During his state of the university speech Wednesday, Sands explained that Virginia Tech is facing a $60 million dollar loss stemming from the pandemic. (Copyright 2020 by WSLS 10 - All rights reserved.)