March 29, 2024

UMW Receives $200,000 in V-TOP Grants for Growing Internships

The University of Mary Washington has received $200,000 in Virginia Talent + Opportunity Partnership (V-TOP) grants to enhance internship and work-based learning opportunities. “There’s no substitute for a quality internship as part of the undergraduate experience,” said UMW Provost Timothy O’Donnell. “We are so pleased to have increased support to make this a reality for […]

Mary Wash Day Celebrates Philanthropy, Engagement and UMW Pride

When life threw Christine Exley ’09 a challenge during her senior year of college, University of Mary Washington friends and faculty got her though it. “I was so excited for the next phase of my life, then everything was turned upside down,” said Exley, who praised the support she found at UMW after she was […]

UMW Faculty Members Receive VIVA Open Grant Awards

A trio of UMW faculty members has received VIVA Open Grants for adopting, adapting and creating open and affordable course materials from the Virtual Library of Virginia that can be made available to students at little or no cost. These grants work to save students money on expensive textbooks and help professors enhance the knowledge and […]

UMW Faculty Members Receive VIVA Open Grant Awards

A trio of UMW faculty members has received VIVA Open Grants for adopting, adapting and creating open and affordable course materials from the Virtual Library of Virginia that can be made available to students at little or no cost. These grants work to save students money on expensive textbooks and help professors enhance the knowledge and learning experiences they’re able to offer through their courses.

College of Business Assistant Professor Samira Fallah, Professor of Computer Science Stephen Davies and Associate Professor of Communication Adria Goldman received 2023 awards that together represent more than $72,000 in student cost avoidance throughout a five-year period.

“Congratulations to these professors!” University Librarian Amy Filiatreau said in an email to UMW teaching faculty. “Thanks to all who strive to make educational materials more open and affordable for our students and other researchers.”

VIVA grants support a range of possibilities, Filiatreau said, from adopting existing open educational resources (OER) to creating new materials, like the five open-source textbooks Davies has penned himself to make “knowledge freely available,” he said.

The VIVA Open Adopt Grant program provides support for the time it takes to integrate existing open or no-cost materials into a syllabus and to ensure that the results of those efforts are available to Virginia educators. Statewide, the 2023 awards have an anticipated student cost avoidance of nearly one-and-a-half million dollars and the power to impact more than 16,000 students.

Below, the winning UMW faculty members share their thoughts on the value of VIVA resources and why they pursued funding:

College of Business Assistant Professor Samira Fallah

College of Business Assistant Professor Samira Fallah

College of Business Assistant Professor Samira Fallah
Resource to be adopted: OpenStax Principles of Management
Course in which it will be used: MGMT301: Principles of Management
Five-year student cost avoidance: $49,700
Students impacted over five years: 700

Q: How do you feel this resource adds value to the Principles of Management course?
A: First and foremost, it contributes to the improvement of my students’ learning experience. When students are required to purchase costly textbooks, instructors often feel obligated to assign activities available within these books. Unfortunately, many of the activities integrated into Principles of Management textbooks tend to rely on short-answer or multiple-choice questions, which are not conducive to optimal learning of class concepts, especially in a course with a significant practical aspect like Principles of Management. The high cost of textbooks often restricts my flexibility in incorporating more innovative content such as cases or simulations, which, though often not free, play a crucial role in delivering an effective learning experience for my students. Using an OER resource facilitates incorporations of more practical material in my course.

Second, it helps students financially. Typically, students enrolled in my Principles classes are sophomores and juniors, many of whom are still without substantial income. Even those who have part-time jobs often earn modest wages. By offering them access to textbooks at no cost, my intention is to alleviate some financial strain from students, providing them with the opportunity to concentrate more on learning the course content.

Q: What made you decide to pursue the grant?
A: In addition to the benefits of OER that I previously mentioned, I believe that the adoption of OER is in alignment with the fundamental mission of COB and UMW. As an AACSB-accredited college, we have a commitment to delivering pedagogy that creates a meaningful societal impact. Moreover, serving as a public liberal arts institution, our foremost dedication lies in the pursuit of teaching excellence and we uphold the principle of Inclusive Excellence, with a commitment to ensuring that every member of our community has equal access to opportunities for participation and the essential resources required for achieving success. I believe adoption of OER is poised to promote equitable access to educational materials, ultimately fostering a more inclusive and accessible learning environment for my students. Consequently, I have made the decision to transition to OER in my Principles of Management course. Because of the valuable opportunity and support provided by the VIVA Open Adopt grant to facilitate this switch, I applied for it.

Q: What are your thoughts on being named a grant recipient?
A: I am sincerely honored and deeply grateful to have been named a recipient of this grant, which enables me to be a part of its significant impact on students’ equitable access to essential learning materials.

Professor of Computer Science Stephen Davies

Professor of Computer Science Stephen Davies

Professor of Computer Science Stephen Davies
Resource to be adopted: Database Design – 2nd Edition
Course in which it will be used: CPSC/DATA 350: Applications of Databases
Five-year student cost avoidance: $14,998
Students impacted over 5 Years: 250

Q: How do you feel this resource adds value to the Applications of Databases course?
A: Databases is a rapidly developing field, with new innovations (and paradigms, and technologies) being introduced all the time. There really isn’t a good, stable textbook for my needs in that class, where we cover everything from the relational model to more recent, NoSQL databases. I’ll be cobbling together two sources for the fall; one is the open-source textbook by Adrienne Watt (for the first half of the course) and the other is an open-source book that I’m currently writing, to be used in the second half.

Q: What made you decide to pursue the grant?
A: I saw it advertised by the UMW Library folks and it sounded like a good idea.

Q: What are your thoughts on being named a grant recipient?
A: I think it’s great! Textbooks are generally way too expensive. I think that as far as possible, knowledge should be made freely available, which is why I’ve written five open-source textbooks myself, which I and others at UMW use in our classes.

Associate Professor of Communication Adria Goldman

Associate Professor of Communication Adria Goldman

Associate Professor of Communication Adria Goldman
Resource to be adopted: Communication in the Real World
Course in which it will be used: COMM 340: Introduction to Communication and Rhetoric
Five-year student cost avoidance: $7,750
Students impacted over five years: 125

Q: How do you feel this resource adds value to the Introduction to Communication and Rhetoric course?
A: The text, Communication in the Real World: An Introduction to Communication Studies, will provide students with a clear overview of human communication. The adaptable nature of the text allows me to thread in material that is especially relevant and interesting to our students. The free text will couple nicely with the online academic research from the library that we use in the course. With the resources combined, students will be able to successfully complete the course without purchasing a textbook. They will also be able to keep the materials and revisit them as needed.

Q: What made you decide to pursue the grant?
A: I am growing more and more passionate about OERs. Textbooks are so expensive, and I would like to be able to eliminate that cost for students, when possible. When a colleague shared their experiences with the grant, I was intrigued to apply and use the time and resources to revamp my COMM 340: Introduction to Communication and Rhetoric course.

Q: What are your thoughts on being named a grant recipient?
A: What an honor! I am also excited to join my fellow recipients in reducing the cost of course resources for students.

Countdown to UMW’s Spring Career and Internship Fair, March 21

More than 45 employers will be at UMW’s Career and Internship Fair, held Thursday, March 21, in the Cedric Rucker University Center’s Chandler Ballroom.

More than 45 employers will be at UMW’s Career and Internship Fair, held Thursday, March 21, in the Cedric Rucker University Center’s Chandler Ballroom.

Career opportunities bloom this spring with UMW’s Career and Internship Fair on Thursday, March 21. More than 45 employers across a variety of industries have signed up to meet UMW’s undergraduate students, graduate students and alumni, as well as students from Germanna Community College.

Students have been preparing throughout the spring semester with résumé clinics and class visits from staff from the Center for Career and Professional Development (CCPD). They’ve held social media fashion shows as inspiration for professional attire, taken free professional headshots and been given guidance to make the most of their online presence. And Career Week is getting a makeover, too, with Life After Mary Washington Week starting March 18.

The CCPD encourages all interested students to register ahead of time on Handshake. Registration is not required, but registered students will receive a printed UMW name tag upon check-in and reminders before the event.

“The Spring Career and Internship Fair is a unique opportunity for students and alumni to hear directly from talent management professionals about the skills needed to grow their teams and their organizations,” said Associate Director of Employer and Alumni Engagement Amanda Talbert. “Our event is structured with a thoughtful variety of career options and internships curated for UMW students.” Read more.

UMW College of Business Achieves Accreditation Renewal from AACSB

The College of Business at the University of Mary Washington has successfully completed the continuous improvement review of the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB) and has achieved extension of its accreditation for another five years.

“This is a significant milestone signifying our commitment to academic excellence and highest quality standards in business degree programs and in student success,” said UMW College of Business Dean Filiz Tabak.

UMW first achieved AACSB accreditation in 2018, among just 5% of schools earning the international recognition at the time. Only 6% of the world’s business schools are currently accredited by AACSB, demonstrating a commitment to high-quality rigorous standards, innovation and continuous process improvement. Read more.

UMW and Germanna Lab Schools Take Important Step Forward

RICHMOND – Continuing Virginia’s role as the nation’s top leader in lab school development, the Virginia Department of Education is accelerating the momentum for educational innovation in the commonwealth with contracts for Germanna Community College’s Future Educators Academy (FEA) and University of Mary Washington’s Academy of Technology and Innovation (ATI) now completed and signed by all parties.  Both […]

UMW College of Business Achieves Accreditation Renewal from AACSB

The College of Business at the University of Mary Washington has successfully completed the continuous improvement review of the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB) and has achieved extension of its accreditation for another five years. “This is a significant milestone signifying our commitment to academic excellence and highest quality standards in business […]

City, UMW Announce Addition of Fredericksburg Civil Rights Trail to U.S. Civil Rights Trail

The City of Fredericksburg and the University of Mary Washington on Thursday, Feb. 8, announced that the Fredericksburg Civil Rights Trail has been added to the national collection of landmarks that make up the U.S. Civil Rights Trail. The U.S. trail, which spans 15 states, includes churches, schools, museums and other locations that played a […]

Lessons in the Sciences: Mary Washington Alumnae Advance STEM Careers

A young woman leaves New York to earn a bachelor’s degree in chemistry at a small Virginia women’s college in the 1950s. After graduate school, she becomes a revered electron microscopist – but not without the challenges of being a woman in a male-dominated field. Consequently, she spends her life helping female students at her […]