Rucker was emotional after this morning’s unanimous Board of Visitors vote to rename the University Center in honor of him upon his June retirement. Photo by Karen Pearlman.
His big laugh and bowties may not be present at the University of Mary Washington much longer, but a decision at today’s Board of Visitor’s meeting ensures that Associate Vice President and Dean of Student Life Cedric Rucker’s legacy will live on in the heart of campus.
The UMW Board voted today to name the University Center – the four-story hub of student activity on bustling Ball Circle – the Cedric Rucker University Center.
Rector Heather Mullins Crislip ’95 said of the decision, “Cedric Rucker has had an indelible impact on thousands of Mary Washington students and alumni. He made us better people and inspired us to live lives that are authentic, pursue justice and seek to deeply understand each other. I can think of no other person who perfectly defines the Mary Washington ideal than Cedric.”
The renaming goes into effect upon Rucker’s official retirement on June 24, 2022, more than four decades after he arrived on Marye’s Heights in 1977 as an undergraduate who’d go on to study sociology and weave himself into the fabric of Mary Washington.
The first African-American male graduate to live in the residence halls, Rucker soaked up campus life, joining the anthropology club, working at the library and radio station, and forming unbreakable bonds with his classmates.
“Mary Washington just felt like mine,” he said during a recent interview. Read more.
Congratulations Dean Rucker!
That is awesome news…You deserve the honor for a job well done!
Thank you for your years of dedicated service at UMW; You have definitely left a legacy that will not be forgotten.