The first phase of Virginia’s Tech’s $1 billion Innovation Campus at Potomac Yard in Alexandria is ready for its first students.
Come January, about 450 Master of Engineering students, along with researchers and faculty, will move into Academic Building One. The 11-story, 300,000-square-foot building is in the final stages of construction, and will be home to graduate students in computer science and applications, and computer engineering.
Graduate programs with the Pamplin School of Business, as well as additional programs with the College of Engineering will also relocate to the building after the closure of the Northern Virginia Center in Falls Church.
Qualcomm is also opening a research program in the building. Its Thinkabit Lab program will partner with area schools to create learning opportunities for future technology workers.
The Innovation Campus was listed by Amazon as a major factor in its decision to open its second headquarters in Arlington County when it was announced in 2018. Construction began in 2021, after Boeing contributed $50 million to the project.
Virginia Tech has said the campus, when completed, will be the most diverse graduate technology campus in the country.
“The relocation and repositioning of academic programs and student support services in Northern Virginia is an important step toward enabling Virginia Tech’s long-range vision for the region,” said Executive Vice President and Provost Cyril Clarke.
“This transition will offer more opportunities for collaboration at both the programmatic and research levels and furthers our commitment to support innovation and interdisciplinary scholarship.”
Potomac Yard was briefly touted as a potential future home for Monumental Sports and Entertainment’s Washington Capitals and Washington Wizards. That $2 billion plan faced opposition from Virginia lawmakers and city leaders in Alexandria, and the District struck a deal this spring to keep the teams in town.
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