Virginia Tech’s Carilion School of Medicine hosts the Center for Inclusion.

Roanoke, Va. – Virginia Tech is celebrating diversity in the medical field.

Virginia Tech’s Carilion School of Medicine and Fralin Biomedical Institute held a ribbon-cutting ceremony opening an inclusive and equitable environment for students on their Roanoke campus.

“Today is a great day,” said Hassan Farah, Ph.D. Student, he said. “It’s something everyone enjoys. I think opening an Addition Center on this campus is good not only for medical students but also for research. A reason to leave their lab gives them something to talk about.

Medical students said opening the inclusion center has been two years in the works since the deaths of Breanna Taylor, Ahmad Arbury and George Floyd.

Students said they wanted a safe place to take a break from their studies and relax when they felt stressed.

“Each of our voices is valid, we have the right to unapologetically express ourselves without judgment,” said medical student Sarah Joseph.

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The dean of the Virginia Tech School of Medicine said the center will help generate new ideas.

“It encourages safe and open communication about their life experiences and helps us come up with new ideas,” said Lee Lerman, dean of the VTC School of Medicine.

Other students hope there are more places to be included in the future.

“I’m really hoping to see more places set up on this campus,” said graduate student Gates Palliseri, “I think it’s going to be a big step forward and hopefully create a lot of momentum.”