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Strategic Research Alliances

Steve McKnight in a casual meeting with partners around a table.

Strengthening the relevance and impact of Virginia Tech research and innovation to federal partners and sponsors, the Office of Strategic Research Alliances provides advice to university researchers on agency priorities and conducts collaborative strategic program planning aligned with agency needs.

Serving as a bridge between federal partners and researchers, the office advances collaboration, tracks research trends, and cooperatively maps Virginia Tech expertise to agency needs and priorities. 

Goals of the Office of Strategic Research Alliances:

  • Establish, strengthen, and maintain relationships between Virginia Tech and  federal research sponsors
  • Track, analyze, and disseminate research priorities of federal agencies, while elevating Virginia Tech’s participation in national research agenda-setting activities 
  • Convene the research community to shape innovative solutions to national priorities and build collaborative teams to advance those solutions  

The office offers an informed portal to Virginia Tech researchers and technologies that benefit the mission of federal partners. Existing partners widen their engagement to solve ever complex research questions, and prospective partners can focus their engagement with Virginia Tech researchers who can best be aligned to mission-specific research and innovation needs. 

The office hosts strategic engagement discussions with prospective partners to lower barriers to collaboration and accelerate the formation of partnerships with agencies and laboratories. Whether partners are seeking individual faculty or need a multifaceted university team to solve their most challenging problems, the Office of Strategic Research Alliances makes it happen.