VIU Technology Center Opens at Pender Drive Campus

Virginia International University has been busily expanding its campus technology facilities this summer with the creation of the VIU Technology Center (VTC). The new center, located in the Pender Drive campus building, is slated to open to students and faculty with the start of the 2007-2008 academic year. According to Necmi Mutlu, Ph.D., chair of VIU's Computer Programs Department and the director of VTC, “There are huge advantages to this new facility, both to those of us at VIU and to the business community around us.”

The VTC will make available to VIU students the latest computers, equipment, and software and serve as both a teaching and lab space. The VTC, which houses 12 new computer workstations, will also be available to VIU faculty to support them in their academic research projects. Mutlu explains, “The VTC will be a place on the VIU campus where students can go to work on projects with support. It's also a place where our faculty can go to work on their own research.” Everyone who uses this facility will have access to really wonderful materials, enjoy on-site support, and “gain fantastic hands-on experience,” Mutlu adds.

The VIU Technology Center (VTC) opened this month at the Pender Drive campus building. Computer Programs Department Chair Dr. Necmi Mutlu (standing, left) and Computer Programs Professor Serdar Angun (standing, in rear) provide on-site guidance to VIU students in the new center.

The VTC plans to make connections to local Northern Virginia industry to provide opportunities for students to “tangle with real problems,” Mutlu says. Outreach efforts will create a win-win situation for everyone because companies in Northern Virginia will have a convenient and economical resource to help them solve their problems and grow their businesses. “We hope that industry in our community will take advantage of our students' brain power, know-how, and hard work,” Mutlu says.

In return, VIU hopes that students get a taste of real market problems and benefit from authentic learning experiences. The VTC was designed first and foremost to give students confidence and marketable experience. According to Mutlu, “We believe that our students will benefit tremendously by knowing that what they produce is not simply an academic exercise, but that their work will be put into actual use.” However, a secondary goal of the VTC is to help VIU students form relationships with professionals nearby who are already in the marketplace. “Our greatest hope is that the VTC ultimately leads our students to mentorships, internships, and employment in Northern Virginia ,” Mutlu adds. Furthermore, the VTC hopes to bring both human and financial resource to the VIU campus as it draws interest from the local business community. As Mutlu explains, “We'd be thrilled if the VTC ultimately becomes eligible for grant monies. The VTC would also love to attract guest lecturers and adjunct professors from members of the local business community.”

The VTC will be open to students and faculty starting in September 2007 during regular Pender Drive Campus hours. Virginia International University would like to extend a special thank you to the Pakistan American Business Association for donating computer hardware equipment to the new center. For more information about the VIU Technology Center , call Dr. Necmi Mutlu at 703-591-7042, ext. 306, or email him at This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it .