James Eugene Justice receives Alumni Distinguished Service Award

The Virginia Tech Alumni Association has named alumnus James Eugene Justice a 2004 Alumni Distinguished Service Award winner, an honor bestowed to recognize outstanding service and support on behalf of the university and the association.

The award is given annually in conjunction with the university’s Founders Day celebration occurring at 3 p.m. Friday, April 23, in the Donaldson Brown Hotel and Conference Center Auditorium. First taking place in 1972, Founders Day Convocation is Virginia Tech's annual celebration of the academic and professional achievements of the university and recognizing service to Virginia Tech.

Justice, of Virginia Beach, Va., graduated from Virginia Tech in 1954 with a B.S. degree in Business Administration. Following graduation, he embarked on a successful 35-year career with IBM Corporation. During his time there, Justice held a variety of positions with the company including branch manager of the Greensboro, N.C., office, executive assistant to the president of IBM, and director of the corporate marketing staff.

Justice later served as vice president of IBM Europe for the World Trade Corporation, IBM’s international subsidiary, where he was responsible for operations and performances of more than 50 countries in Europe, the Middle East, and Africa.

Upon his retirement from IBM in 1988, Justice was vice president of Systems and Product Management at the Paris, France, headquarters. There, he personally managed the flow of products into Europe producing a revenue flow exceeding $20 billion.

In 1988, Justice was appointed deputy director of the newly formed Virginia Department of World Trade located in Norfolk, Va., where he was responsible for developing a statewide strategic plan and support to increase export and international activities with Virginia companies. In 1990, Justice used his professional experience and expertise to form his own company, Alliance Europe. The company distributed computer parts throughout Europe and refurbished personal computers for distribution. After building a successful operation to be managed in Scotland and France, he sold the company in the late 1990s.

Justice has served on numerous boards of various companies, civic, and educational organizations. His current civic board activities include the Norfolk Rotary Club, Norfolk Forum, Norfolk Sister City Association, and the Norfolk Senior Center.

In addition to his professional success, Justice has remained active in various organizations at Virginia Tech. He is the past chairman of Pamplin College Advisory Council, past member of the Alumni Association Board of Directors, the President's Advisory Council, and the President and Chairman of the German Club Alumni Foundation. Pamplin College also honored him with the Distinguished Alumnus Award in 1999.

Justice and his wife, Helen, have three children and three grandchildren.

Virginia Tech's nationally ranked Pamplin College of Business offers undergraduate and graduate programs in accounting and information systems, business information technology, economics, finance, hospitality and tourism management, management, and marketing. The college emphasizes the development of leadership skills and ethical values and the integration of technology in the academic curriculum, and prepares students for global business challenges through faculty-led study abroad programs. The college has research centers that focus on business leadership, electronic commerce, energy modeling, and wireless telecommunications. The college is committed to serving business and society through the expertise of its faculty, alumni, and students.

Founded in 1872 as a land-grant college, Virginia Tech has grown to become the largest university in the Commonwealth of Virginia. Today, Virginia Tech’s eight colleges are dedicated to putting knowledge to work through teaching, research, and outreach activities and to fulfilling its vision to be among the top 30 research universities in the nation. At its 2,600-acre main campus located in Blacksburg and other campus centers in Northern Virginia, Southwest Virginia, Hampton Roads, Richmond, and Roanoke, Virginia Tech enrolls more than 28,000 full- and part-time undergraduate and graduate students from all 50 states and more than 100 countries in 170 academic degree programs.