From cadet to mayor: A VMI grad’s short road to success

As mayor of the city of Hopewell, Virginia, Johnny Partin is too busy trying to lead the community forward and make critically needed infrastructure improvements to think too much about his age.

One year into the job as mayor, the 30-year-old Virginia Military graduate (Class of 2014) was just 26 when he was elected as a Hopewell City Council member. Partin, who is also a captain in the Virginia National Guard, attributes his passion for service to the influence of his grandfather, who was a one-star general in the National Guard and the Army Reserve.

The elder Partin wasn’t able to complete his college education because of the Great Depression and World War II, but he told all six of his grandchildren that he’d help them through college. There was one string attached, though, Partin said. They had to attend VMI, the small, state-supported military college in the mountains of western Virginia. The school, which has produced a Nobel Prize winner, 11 Rhodes Scholars, seven Medal of Honor recipients, a Pulitzer Prize winner, college presidents, generals and flag officers, is far from ordinary.

“VMI was the only option because my grandfather loved the model of being a citizen-soldier,” Partin said. “He loved the school’s model because it incorporated a lot of the philosophy that the National Guard is built on.”

VMI’s unique combination of an excellent academic program, physical fitness, honor, character, and military training appealed to the younger Partin as well. During his time at the school, he participated in the Institute Honors program, served as vice president of the Honor Court, and was president of the VMI chapter of Engineers Without Borders, a humanitarian service group.

After graduating with a degree in civil engineering, Partin moved to Hopewell, an economically disadvantaged community (population 23,000) south of Richmond, where he began attending City Council meetings. He quickly realized the council was in need of leadership. Making his case to voters several decades his senior, Partin realized that his degree from VMI was one of his greatest strengths.

“They saw that I was a graduate of VMI… They knew that this guy knows what he’s doing. This guy is a leader. He knows how to get things done.”

       Johnny Partin - 2014 VMI alumnus

“VMI itself prepares you for leadership positions,” he said. “It prepares you to tackle a lot of the problems that you're going to face in life, whether it is in business, whether it's in politics, whether it’s in the nonprofit sector, or even in the military. And that’s what VMI is truly all about— serving as a role model and as a leader, and also helping people, helping your community, helping your country, and basically being a part of that call to selfless service.”

Since he was elected, Partin’s goal has been to improve public safety and help facilitate neighborhood improvements that are currently in the works. Some of these involve fixing drainage issues, upgrading utilities and improving the wastewater plant.

Nearly a decade after graduating from VMI, Partin reflects and remembers his younger self who would have never had imagined he would one day lead a community.

“[VMI] prepares you to tackle a lot of the problems that you're going to face in life, whether it is in business, whether it's in politics, whether it’s in the nonprofit sector, or even in the military.” 

       Johnny Partin - 2014 VMI alumnus

His grandfather would be proud.

For more information, please visit vmi.edu.

Take a look at what else is happening at VMI in the Richmond Times-Dispatch.

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