Dates

• Existence: 1926 - 2016

Biographical Note

Being selected as VPI's eleventh president at the age of 35 made Hahn the youngest man to ever hold the position. During his administration, which began 2 July 1962, VPI became known as "Virginia's Land-Grant University." There was a shift from traditional technically-oriented education to a more comprehensive University-oriented education, with programs being expanded through the doctoral level in many non-science areas. The culmination of this shift and expansion in mission came in 1970 when the Legislature approved a name change reflective of VPI's growth: Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University.

Major events of the Hahn administration included abolishment of the VPI-Radford merger, causing a large increase in the number of women students at Tech, and a decision by the Board of Visitors to make participation in the military program optional, which resulted in a decline in Corps of Cadets membership but an increase in male Virginians choosing to attend the University. There were also numerous organizational and academic changes and improvements, including the establishment of a University-wide Research Division and a University-wide Extension Division, both in 1966. Also the physical plant continued to expand during this administration.

Some of the later years of the Hahn administration were marked by student demonstrations and protests, like those which occurred at many university campuses in the late 1960s and early 1970s.

After twelve years in office, Hahn sent a letter to faculty and staff in August 1974 indicating his decision to resign as president, stating that "it is not in the best interest of a university for one person to serve as president for too long a time." In November, William Lavery was named to succeed Hahn, beginning in January 1975.

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