The 'Hokie Spirit': Rhetorically Exposing the Culture of Virginia Tech in a Moment of Crisis Through an Organizational Lens

• In Event: Organizational Learning in Crisis and Conflict

Abstract

On the morning of April 16, 2007, tragedy struck Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University (Virginia Tech). As this essay shall suggest, the culture of an institution emerges most clearly in moments of crisis. In an attempt to heal the distraught community following the Virginia Tech shooting, the university spokespeople use organizational rhetoric to reveal a culture of solidarity and cultivate hope for tomorrow.

Author

• Ralph Anthony Gigliotti, Villanova University