Mary Helmick, former director of procurement at James Madison University, has been named director of procurement at Virginia Tech.

Helmick succeeds Tom Kaloupek who recently retired after 20 years of service to the university.

Reporting directly to the vice president for finance and chief financial officer, Helmick will provide leadership and direction to the procurement and surplus property functions at the university. This includes providing oversight to the university procurement processes for the effective and efficient acquisition of goods, services, insurance, and minor construction contracts, the surplus property disposal functions, and the supplier diversity program.

The supplier diversity program seeks to advance Virginia's and the university’s goals of promoting and supporting small, women-owned, and minority-owned businesses.

Helmick also will be responsible for the effective management of the electronic business system (HokieMart) that processes transactions destined to commercial and internal university suppliers and to ensure a positive customer-service environment with the Procurement Department and Surplus Property operations in order to best serve faculty, staff, and students.

As James Madison’s director of procurement since 2005, Helmick led an 18-member staff responsible for all university purchases of goods, professional and non-professional services and construction.

“Mary brings a wealth of experience to the procurement operations. She is well- versed in the Virginia procurement policies including application of restructuring authorities for procurement. We are excited to have Mary lead the procurement operations at the university” said Dwight Shelton, vice president for finance and chief financial officer.

She is a member of the Virginia Association of State College and University Procurement Professionals, Virginia Association of Government Procurement, National Institute of Government Procurement, and the National Association of Education Procurement. She is a certified Virginia Contracting Officer for the Commonwealth of Virginia and a certified university procurement officer by the Virginia Association of State College and University Procurement Professionals.

She received her bachelor’s degree from Bridgewater College.

Kaloupek, who retired at the end of 2014, led the university procurement operations for nearly 20 years. During his tenure, the university made great strides in the procurement operations including the transition to an electronic procurement system (HokieMart), the implementation of new business practices and procedures under the Restructuring Act, and improved morale, productivity, and professionalism of the Procurement Department and its employees. In 2008, the National Association of Educational Procurement awarded Virginia Tech the award for excellence for the implementation of Hokiemart. 

Dedicated to its motto, Ut Prosim (That I May Serve), Virginia Tech takes a hands-on, engaging approach to education, preparing scholars to be leaders in their fields and communities. As the commonwealth’s most comprehensive university and its leading research institution, Virginia Tech offers 240 undergraduate and graduate degree programs to more than 31,000 students and manages a research portfolio of $513 million. The university fulfills its land-grant mission of transforming knowledge to practice through technological leadership and by fueling economic growth and job creation locally, regionally, and across Virginia.

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