John Ferris 2018-2020

Dr. John Ferris completed two successive one-year terms of service as president of Faculty Senate.  Following a distinguished 15-year career in the automotive industry, John Ferris joined the engineering faculty at Virginia Tech in 2005. Dr. Ferris investigates improvements to ground vehicle system performance by studying their interactions with terrain surfaces. He has participated in dozens of sponsored research projects, publishing more than 30 peer reviewed journal papers and more than 40 conference papers. He is founder and director of the Vehicle Terrain Performance Laboratory, where he passes on his knowledge and enthusiasm to bright young minds. In 2019, Student Affairs recognized John with the faculty/staff Aspire! Award for Ut Prosim (That I May Serve).