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More Than a Professor: How Angela Anderson Leads Students Beyond the Classroom

By Sage Mayhew, Health and Wellness Reporter

Anderson’s impact doesn’t end when class is over. She fosters well-being and sustainable habits for students to support more fulfilling, healthier lives.

Anderson teaches in the Department of Human Nutrition Foods and Exercise at Virginia Tech. Gaining her PhD from Virginia Tech in cancer metabolism and her expertise in exercise science, her research navigates how student motivation and performance are influenced by physical health. Her lessons reach beyond the end of a lecture. Through community engagement and mentorship, Anderson’s commitment to student wellness helps Hokies succeed in both their academic and personal lives.

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Tell me a little bit about your role here and how you got to where you are today

I am collegiate faculty, so I’m teaching faculty. One piece of collegiate faculty is research. That research is more pedagogical. So, how can I effectively teach in the classroom? How can I draw students in and increase their engagement and learning?

We moved to Colorado in 2014 for my husband’s job. I taught part time at Pikes Peak Community College and at Colorado College. During that time, we really missed Blacksburg, so I had reached out to my PhD advisor, who was the department head at the time, and said, ‘Hey, would there ever be any opportunities for me to come back?’ And he said, ‘Actually, they’ve started collegiate faculty, and I think it would be great.’ So we moved back in 2018!

How do you advise a student’s well-being?

Having an active lifestyle is really important for undergraduates, but also trying to keep things in perspective. What I try to remind my students is that I was 44 when I got hired back here at Virginia Tech. I went back to graduate school at 34 when my first son was born. Life is long, so I try to remind them everybody has a different path and that’s okay.

How does stress impact students physically and academically?

It can put your back up against the wall, where you make poor moral choices. You get to the point where you’re like, I’ve just got to check the box. And then maybe you look over at someone else’s computer on an exam because you didn’t put the hours in to study. I think there’s a lot of negative impacts of stress, and that’s one of the reasons why I think carving out time to be physically active can help reduce that.

Aside from stress, what other health concerns do you see among college students?

Digital wellness is a big one. I think the isolation that comes from our digital environment is really real. Having a phone at our fingertips, having air pods in our ear, having ChatGPT to have a relationship with makes it easy for us to be socially isolated, which increases depression and anxiety. I think what is really important is making students feel cared for, and making them feel that they belong, not just in my classroom, but also with each other. I’m not anti social media by any means. It’s just how we choose to use it. It’s a balance, having tech breaks to do things like exercise and engage in relationships with others.

What’s the connection between physical health and academic motivation?

I’ve done some research with that and it’s really hard to measure in humans, because there’s so many other confounders, such as their sleep schedule, their work schedule, and so many other things to really tease out. We did see some changes in executive functioning, specifically with memory after acute exercise. So there is some evidence out there. It’s just not as clear cut, but we do know that exercise increases blood flow to our brain. That correlation is the increase of our brain functioning would help us to be better learners.

What sustainable health habits do you recommend to students?

Finding physical activity that you enjoy, and then having a regular, scheduled time for it. Don’t be a runner if you don’t like running. It’s about finding something that you like and making it a routine. I’ve always said the hardest part about exercise is getting dressed, because it’s like, once you’ve gone over that mental mountain of actually getting dressed you’re like, okay, let’s just do it.

Have you seen any positive health trends among students recently?

One thing that those of us that grew up in the 80s and 90s see about

Gen Z is water. You guys are such better water drinkers! I also think our students here are a really active community. You see people exercising all the time.

Do you collaborate with any programs on campus or in the community?

Yes, through my class, Exercise and Health. We have a partnership with Rec Sports, the students come up with pitches for ways to get college students more active. If they like one, they roll it out. One rolled out this past spring, for girls and women in sports day which was really exciting! It was a women’s only weight lifting time, because some female college students feel intimidated in the weight room, but they want to be able to lift weights, and so having a protected time where they could go and lift was a way that we have partnered with rec sports to help increase physical activity.

Another way that I connect students with our community is as a board member for the soccer club with New River United. I reach out to students to be soccer coaches for kids in the community.

What’s one thing you wish students understood about long-term health?

That it is a life long process of balancing.

It is easy when you’re in college to prioritize exercise. As you get older, you just have more demands. So the habits that they’re making now are easier, and they’re going to be harder when you transition. So it’s continuing this healthy lifestyle that we’ve started in college and forming habits now that we will be able to take with us.

Can you share any moments that remind you why you love this work?

I think it’s when students email me after they’ve graduated, and they will say, ‘Oh my gosh, I am just finishing my first semester in med school, and your class really prepared me.’ That’s a win! I have set them up to be successful!

But I think my heart really goes out to the struggling students. It’s easy to think when students aren’t performing well, that they’re just not working hard enough. But we don’t always know what’s going on and that they’re having to adult through some things that really they shouldn’t have to. So it’s watching them overcome those things, seeing them be successful and move on from here into what they are passionate about, and then getting to hear from them later.

An interview with a student activist and protestor about DEI

By Julia Lagano, Nyles Stone, and Wilbert Ramirez, Politics Reporters

The Newsfeed politics team reached out to and interviews Tristan Reeves, a senior and student activist at Virginia Tech, about his recent role at a march protesting the board of visitor’s decision to dissolve DEI at the University. Tristan offers insight into what the board’s decision means for the future of students at Virginia Tech.

Dry January makes for a healthy start to the year for college students

Photo courtesy of istockphotos.com, photo credit: Getty Images, copyright: 4kodiak

By Madi Pool , health and wellness reporter

Participating in “Dry January” as seen on social media is on the rise for college students due to many health benefits stemming from the trend.

Dry January is taking all 31 days of January and choosing to not drink any alcohol. The trend has continued to rise in popularity due to social media and many influencers hopping on the trend. When doing the trend many have seen some significant benefits to their health and have even chosen to continue with sobriety for months after January or even the entire year.

The popularity in dry January brought to social media actually stems more from a fear of alcohol and some of its side effects that have been brought to light and caused concern for people especially those aging from 18 to 29 years old.

Tiktok and Instagram have been useful tools for both motivating and educating those participating in the trend.

Tiktok accounts like greenjuicedrinker and LJ post on their public account to give followers some help and guidance while doing dry January.

It is no secret that college students like to drink and have fun but they don’t always know what this alcohol can do to their body especially if it is a consistent part of their week. Research shows 80% of college students consume alcohol to some degree and estimated 50% of those students engage in binge drinking. They don’t realize what this may be doing to their body in the moment and down the road for their health in the future.

Taking just 31 days to not drink and show their body what it is capable of feeling has been rejuvenating for some as they have taken on dry January. Reagan Shiley, a student at Radford University is in her junior year and has decided to participate in dry January this year and she says the changes she has seen to her health have changed her mindset on drinking as a whole.

“I am currently on my 27th day of dry January and I have never felt better.” says Shiley. She feels she has been more energized, less bloated, more efficient, and even able to focus better due to cutting out alcohol. “I saw people on social media talking about a few health trends for the new year and I knew I wanted to participate in one to better myself and I felt this was the most obtainable for me.” Other trends like “75 Hard” or just “going to the gym more in the new year” are goals we see for everyone in the new year but dry January is one of the only long lasting trends society is seeing.

Students are able to learn a lot about themselves when participating in the trend as well as aspects they would not expect if they did not take on the trend. College students don’t realize how much of a social aspect there is to drinking or what some say “peer pressure” there is to drinking. Many students feel the need to drink because their peers are or because if everyone is drunk they can’t be the only sober ones. But by participating in the trend some have been able to see there is a balance and finding a healthy balance between the two is possible.

“A big concern for me going into this challenge was what my friends would think or say to me, and they did make comments or jokes at first but once they realized I still want to hangout with them and can still have fun without drinking they barely even noticed I wasn’t drinking with them.” says Shiley.

As more and more people participate and are able to see these health benefits more will be inclined to the trend and caring less about what their friends have to say. Dry January has shown that you can experience benefits like weight loss, better sleep, balanced mood, clearer skin, less acid reflux, better liver function and a lower risk for cancer. These are all essential to college students and perfect for the 18 to 29 age range.

Shiley states her favorite part to this whole trend “I think out of all the benefits I have seen from this trend my favorite has to be waking up knowing I don’t feel hungover or sluggish and can be productive with my day or my weekends.”

Shiley will continue participating and believes she will have no trouble making it to day 31 and claims she may even go longer or at least cut back on her alcohol habits once she does start drinking again. That is what the trend hopes people are able to take away from the experience. It is shown that about 75% of people who participate in the trend are able to complete it. But what is next after doing so? According to data, 25% of people who completed dry January reported reduced alcohol consumption even after the month was over. It was particularly noticeable in younger generations like Gen Z and specifically college students where participation in the trend is higher.

Dry January is not only for the young generation though, people of all ages have participated in the trend and are able to learn a lot about themselves from it. Katrina Lamberton, was 42 when she decided to take on the dry January trend in 2024. She said the trend saved her life for the better and she has still not had a drop of alcohol to this day over a year later. “I did dry January for more than just the physical benefits. I felt it was really good for my mental health as well.” says Lamberton. “I felt I had more control over my life when I stopped drinking, I made better decisions, I woke up feeling better about myself, and I got more done so I never felt a reason to go back to alcohol.”