The University of the Virgin Islands plays a unique role in the Virgin Islands community.

• The Caribbean Writer anthology, published annually by UVI, has provided an outlet for the development of expression in the Caribbean since 1987. 
• UVI's Community Engagement and Lifelong Learning (CELL) Center works to meet the workforce and professional development training needs of the Virgin Islands and surrounding Caribbean islands. CELL focuses on providing training opportunities that contribute to organizational and individual achievement.
• The Cooperative Extension Service (CES) delivers programs in the areas of Agriculture & Natural Resources, 4-H, Family and Consumer Science, and Communications, Technology and Distance Education.
• The University's Emerging Caribbean Scientist (ECS) Programs offer scholarships, research experiences, mentoring and supplemental instruction to St. Thomas and St. Croix students participating in STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) and psychology courses.
• The Etelman Observatory serves as a center for Science Technology Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) education excellence, a venue for public science outreach activities, and a fundamental astrophysics and geophysics research station.
• The University of the Virgin Islands Male Initiative - led by the President's Office and Brother's with a Cause - emcompasses programs designed to increase the enrollment of young men in higher education through efforts such as the annual "Man-Up" Male Empowerment Conference, volunteer and mentoring programs and creating a clearinghouse of male-oriented organizations in the Territory.
• UVI's Reichhold Center for the Arts provides an unrivaled venu for classical as well as popular entertainment as well as educational opportunities for young people and masters classes.
• UVI's Small Business Development Center (SBDC), a partnership program with the U. S. Small Business Administration, aims to be the U.S.V.I.'s premier provider of professional and affordable small business education, technical and management assistance, training and related services.
• UVI's Summer Bridge Program focuses on a student's transition from high school to college during a five-week, residential, academic program held on the St. Thomas campus and the Albert A. Sheen Campus on St. Croix.
• The Global Institute for Leadership and Management Development provides an annual leadership development course designed to broaden student awareness of the impact global forces of technology, commerce and communication have on the region.
• University Bound Program focuses on students from families meeting low income criteria and on potential first generation college students. This college prep program helps students and parents generate the skills and motivation necessary for academic success in college and beyond.
• UVI's Virgin Islands Marine Advisory Service (VIMAS) works to increase interest in and awareness of marine career opportunities, to assist coastal planning and decision-making, and to increase the general public's awareness and understanding of marine resources and marine affairs.
• The Virgin Islands University Center for Excellence in Developmental Disabilities (VIUCEDD) works to enhance the quality of life for citizens with developmental disabilities and their families.
• The participants of the Virgin Islands Writing Project (VIWP) expand their knowledge and understanding of how best to teach writing by learning new strategies to improve their students' writing skills, the latest research and effective classroom practices.
• The Wellness Center is a newly completed facility on the UVI’s St. Thomas campus equipped with Classic Series treadmills, LeMond spin bikes, Life Fitness cable equipment, free weight with TKO barbell and dumbbells, elliptical, exercise bikes, fitness balls and step equipment for $50 per month for general membership and $25 per month for seniors."