The Family Research Unit (FRU) provides research, technical expertise and human capacity to Fairfax County’s Department of Family Services Child Protective Services (CPS), Foster Care and Adoptions (FC&A), and the Fairfax/Falls Church Children's Services Act (CSA) Programs. The FRU team, with a 23+ year history, is comprised of research faculty and staff, with vast expertise in revenue maximization for children and youth being served by the above-mentioned programs.

The Institute is working with the Roanoke City and Alleghany Health Districts (RCAHD) on a three-year process to improve the health department's community engagement strategies and data collection, and to make these strategies part of ongoing operations with the goal of continually assessing and refining service delivery.

The SAMHSA Evaluation Team has provided grant performance evaluation, needs and outcome assessments for several Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) grants for two southwest Virginia community services boards: Mount Rogers Community Services and New River Valley Community Services. The purpose of these grants is to expand services to un- and under-insured adults and youth with serious mental illness, substance use disorders, or co-occurring disorders.

VTIPG faculty and students produce annual reports directed to Albemarle County’s Board of Supervisors along with two periodic monitoring reports each calendar year directed to the County’s internal staff.

The behavioral health interpreter training program aims to equip individuals with the necessary skills and knowledge to effectively interpret in mental health and substance use disorder (SUD) settings.

CONNECT is a transformative cohort program designed to strengthen organizational culture and enhance high-performing teams! In today’s dynamic work environment, fostering a culture of collaboration, openness, and engagement is essential for organizational success. This program aims to provide participants with the tools, insights, and strategies needed to advance a cohesive and energized workplace.

VTIPG has partnered with the Community Design Assistance Center (CDAC) to conduct community engagement to inform conceptual redesigns for the former Donkenny property in Floyd, VA, with funding from the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ).

VTIPG and the City of Roanoke will provide nonprofit and local government capacity-building training programs in order to help create a thriving community where collaborative efforts lead to more effective programming and enhanced democratic processes.

The LAMPP program focuses on facility, office, department, or shift group training needs for front line staff and new managers, with funding from the Virginia Center for Behavioral Rehabilitation (VCBR).

The Octagon House Foundation contracted with Virginia Tech from June 1 – September 30, 2025, to conduct an executive feasibility study including a market scan, a SWOT analysis based on key findings from stakeholder and case study interviews, a projection of the economic impact of visitation using IMPLAN, and recommendations.

Virginia Tech’s Peer Mentor Champion Training is designed to build capacity in public organizations by providing the tools and training employees need to create customized peer mentoring programs that are meaningful for their specific environments.

This project is a response to two of the most troubling trends in recent years: the alarming global rise in mental health illness and the erosion of trust in our societal institutions. It brings together behavioral health professionals and spiritual leaders in a cohort-based training experience to equip them for providing deeper healing and growth opportunities to those they serve, while increasing access for communities that are currently underserved.

This inquiry explores a range of challenges faced by, and opportunities available to, Syrian refugees with disabilities in Jordan that shape their capacity to engage in their communities. This study seeks to chart a share of Jordan’s efforts to comply with its international obligations under the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, drawing on the lived experiences and insights of Syrian refugees with disabilities currently living in Jordan and staff members of relevant civil society service and support organizations.

VTIPG has been working with alumni of St. Paul's College (SPC) in Lawrenceville, VA, to re-envision the role of this historically Black college and university (HBCU) that closed in 2013. The team has assisted with strategic planning and board governance.

VTIPG has had the privilege of learning about the work occurring at the Calfee Cultural & Community Center (CCCC) in Pulaski, Virginia. The original Calfee Training School in which the CCCC is located was a Black elementary and middle school, which closed with desegregation in 1966 and has been vacant for some years. A group of school alumni and Pulaski residents has mobilized to reimagine the physical space as well as preserve the important and too-little-known history of the school.

The Virginia Tech Institute for Policy and Governance (VTIPG) conducted a limited review of the housing start assumptions used for the proposed Greene County Water and Sewer Financial Model.

This project will include a thorough review, expansion, and updating of the Blueprint for Action previously written in 2020, within the given timeframe in four phases: orientation, data gathering, analysis and planning, and reporting.

TAP's Pathway Home program helps people in jails, prisons and Community Corrections Facilities (CCFs) return to their communities, find jobs, and avoid re-incarceration. Pathway Home supports participants every step of the way, from before release to a year of follow-up.

This research project aims to enhance language access within the Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Services (DBHDS) and Community Services Boards (CSBs) for Limited English Proficient (LEP) individuals across Virginia.

Mount Rogers Community Services (MRCS) received USDA Emergency Rural Health Care grant funding to expand and optimize their Smyth County mental health and recovery campus. A team of VT faculty and graduate students is evaluating health outcomes, the construction process, health economics, the partnership network, and the trauma-informed design components of the project.

Violent Infrastructure: Ecologies of Decay and Displacement is the name of a traveling Photovoice exhibition based on a multi-year, feminist visual ethnography project led by Ariel Otruba. The research project examines the emotional impact of abject housing infrastructure conditions on internally displaced persons (IDPs) forced to flee the 1992-1993 Georgian-Abkhaz war.

The VMF program launched in 2017 and is a nationally recognized management and leadership succession pipeline program that equips college graduates who are interested in state public service with the knowledge and capacities to lead successfully in today's complex governing environment.

VPSL is a dynamic leadership development certificate program offered by Virginia Tech that is tailored to professionals at all levels within the public sector. This comprehensive program is designed to enhance leadership skills and address the evolving needs of state agencies.