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• For Ed Spencer, Virginia Tech's associate vice president for student affairs, the return of students to campus marks a favorite time of year.

Photos by Matt Gentry | The Roanoke Times

Ed Spencer, associate vice president for student affairs at Virginia Tech, serves students, parents and the university.

Ed Spencer

• Age: 61
• Education: Doctorate in social psychology, University of Delaware; master’s degree in social psychology, University of Delaware; master’s degree in student personnel administration in higher education, Syracuse University; bachelor’s degree in psychology, University of Rochester.
• Career: University of Delaware, 1970-82; Virginia Tech, 1983-present
• Salary: $136,370

Ed Spencer, associate vice president for student affairs at Virginia Tech, meets with student members of the summer orientation staff while attending orientation sessions at Squires Student Center on the Virginia Tech campus in Blacksburg. Spencer now sees some former students returning to the university as parents of new students.

BLACKSBURG -- As he drove down Interstate 81 toward Blacksburg, Ed Spencer felt hopeful again.

It was April 22, and Virginia Tech's associate vice president for student affairs had endured the worst week of his career.

In nearly four decades of working with students, Spencer has handled his share of crises and tragedies. But he said nothing could have prepared him for losing 33 members of the university community at one time.

While spending a sleep-deprived week comforting families and helping to form the university's response to the worst school shooting in U.S. history, Spencer also dealt with personal tragedy. He and his wife, Tech's director of undergraduate admissions Norrine Bailey-Spencer, attended memorial services April 21 for a friend and relative in Pennsylvania.

Spencer dropped off his wife at a professional conference in Maryland the next day and began the trek back to campus. But he wasn't alone.

He drove south that Sunday alongside a stream of Hokie-emblazoned vehicles filled with students returning to Blacksburg for the first classes since the shooting. Some, recognizing Spencer's "ESVT" license plate, honked and waved as they drove by. He realized then that he was part of a larger homecoming involving thousands of Hokies.

That same sense of rebirth, of the campus coming to life, is what makes this week Spencer's favorite time of year.

"I love seeing students come in as new students, green freshmen, if you will. And some of them look like they probably shouldn't be here quite yet, and some of them look terribly sophisticated and mature," he said.

Spencer oversees student programs, housing and dining services, residence life, judicial affairs, Greek life and career services. As his title suggests, every responsibility of his professional life intersects with students.

His role this year will be more important than ever, as some students return to the campus where their lives changed April 16.

Greg Sagstetter, a 2007 graduate who has remained at Tech as assistant director of alumni relations, said students couldn't be in better hands.

"He's someone you can always lean on; he's someone you can always count on for advice," Sagstetter said. "He's a mentor."

'All about students'

Raised in upstate New York, Spencer received an undergraduate degree in psychology from the University of Rochester, where he was a student leader. After a short stint in medical school, he decided to become a student leader again and attended Syracuse University for a degree in student personnel administration.

While there, he met and married his wife, and they both took jobs at the University of Delaware in 1970.

In 1983, Spencer became Tech's director of housing and residence life. Norrine Bailey-Spencer would get her doctorate from Tech and become associate dean of the college of business.

"Both of us feel strongly about the power of higher education," Bailey-Spencer said. "No matter what your background is ... you have the chance through higher education to really become the person you want to be. Even though that sounds corny, he really believes that. ... He's all about students."

Spencer's tenure at Tech is long enough that students he worked with years ago now come to summer orientation as parents. At orientation, Spencer holds a presentation for parents, giving them information about student life.

At one of those sessions in late July, a mother struggled for a few seconds to find the right way to pose a question about alcohol at Tech.

"You have a wet campus," she said.

Spencer responded without missing beat.

"It rains here sometimes, yes," he said as the parents laughed.

While orientation was different this summer -- each day began with a moment of silence -- it remained an upbeat event designed to get students and parents excited about joining the Hokie family.

The university has taken some additional security measures this year, such as locking dorms 24 hours a day. Spencer said the challenge will be responding to the needs of students whose experiences with April 16 differ widely. He expects school spirit to be even higher among the students. Parents have appeared upbeat this summer and asked very few questions about the shootings.

One father did mention that the shooter, Seung-Hui Cho, showed signs of problems before killing 32 people and himself.

"What about five other kids showing the same warning signs?" he asked.

Spencer told the father that people have to be careful about jumping to conclusions.

"Obviously an incident like that sensitizes us. In hindsight, the pieces connect. In foresight, they don't necessarily."

April 16

It was about 7:30 a.m. when Tech's executive housekeeper came into Spencer's office in East Eggleston Hall. Spencer had just poured himself a cup of coffee. She told him that two students -- freshman Emily Hilscher and resident adviser Ryan Clark -- had been shot in nearby West Ambler Johnston Hall.

As Spencer headed to West AJ, his mind raced, wondering what he was going to find.

Police had secured the building. Spencer went to the fourth floor and was the only civilian who remained on the scene, serving as a point person to relay information from police to his staff. He called his wife and Zenobia Hikes, vice president for student affairs. It appeared to be an isolated incident, and police had found a person of interest.

"And then, over the police radio, comes this call from Norris," he said.

All but a couple of the officers ran out. Spencer stayed put.

The week became a blur of constant phone calls, senior staff meetings and interviews with the media. Spencer also helped coordinate media interviews with students and, along with other staff, did what he could to comfort the families of victims.

Friends, meanwhile, offered him comfort. When he came home April 16, there were a number of messages on his answering machine. One was from Jim Rhatigan, a colleague who was dean of students at Wichita State in 1970 when a plane crash killed 29 people from the university.

Rhatigan made several suggestions, such as allowing families a direct line of communication with Tech President Charles Steger and creating liaisons to care for their needs. Spencer became one of those liaisons for the family of Mary Read, a freshman from Annandale who died in Norris Hall.

Spencer had experience dealing with families who lost students to tragedy, but said all the experience in the world doesn't make it any easier.

"You certainly start out by saying you're very, very sorry," he said. "You try to listen very carefully to them. ... You try to go out of your way to be as helpful as you can."

Student advocate

Spencer could feel the stress and pain of the week in his stomach. The sick feeling never went away as he spoke to students, families and media.

Marilyn Hutchins, a longtime friend of the Spencers, said she knew the stress of the week was wearing on him even if it didn't show at press conferences.

"Ed is a person who puts on a mask when he needs to and does absolutely everything that needs to be done without letting the difficulty of the situation get in the way," she said.

Spencer said he was just one of many people who worked long hours under pressure that week. He was particularly impressed by students, who organized several events to honor the victims and help people cope.

Sagstetter, a student leader who helped plan several of the events for the student group Hokies United, said many of the things they did that week wouldn't have been possible without Spencer. Even though he was busy, students could count on him to help. When the students wanted to hold a picnic on the Drillfield on April 21, he helped them get permits and reserve space.

"He would take the time to make the phone calls, to get the answers, to make the connections," Sagstetter said.

Spencer's genuine interest in students' lives and his approachability are empowering for students, who sometimes find it difficult to be heard, Sagstetter said.

"He holds up to an ideal of what students need and he sticks by it," he said.

Friends describe Spencer as a thoughtful, organized person who will solicit advice and study decisions, whether it's working on the building committee for Blacksburg Presbyterian Church or preparing for the arrival of a new class of students.

So he listened carefully to Frank DeAngelis, the principal of Columbine High School, who contacted Tech officials after the tragedy.

DeAngelis' advice was to make thoughtful decisions and prepare for a wide range of reactions.

"The least little thing will set somebody off because of their particular experience," Spencer said. "Every time you make a decision, you'll have to think about it from the eyes and ears of people who were in Norris Hall, people who weren't in Norris Hall. Families, survivors, cousins of victims. You just have to really think through what you do because people have different reactions."

Spencer received roughly 1,000 e-mails about the shootings, most of them offering support. There were some nasty notes that he received, along with Steger and Tech spokesman Larry Hincker.

As more information came out about Cho, Spencer's role in the school's judicial position also opened him up to scrutiny. He said he's used to criticism and "Monday morning quarterbacking."

Spencer is looking forward to the upcoming year and chuckles when talking about freshmen who will be walking around campus with their schedules and maps this weekend so they don't look like newbies on the first day of classes.

But he still has to fight back tears when he talks about April 16.

"It's always in the back of your mind -- it always has some impact," he said.

"But you realize that you have to move on. There is a new beginning."