First-year University of Mary Washington student Tonia Attie has been recognized by the ALL IN Campus Democracy Challenge (ALL IN) as part of the 2023 ALL IN Student Voting Honor Roll. This roster highlights college students doing outstanding work to advance nonpartisan democratic engagement at participating campuses.

Attie joins a group of just 175 students recognized for their voter registration, education and turnout efforts ahead of last year’s midterm elections, which saw a sizable number of young people weighing in at the polls.

A double major in political science and philosophy with a pre-law focus, Attie quickly established herself at UMW. “Having grown up in Fredericksburg, I’ve genuinely always wanted to go to Mary Washington and give back to my hometown,” she said. “As I started looking into college, I just knew that UMW would be the perfect fit for me.” Read more.

As more than 1,000 Class of 2023 graduates crossed the stage at UMW’s Commencement to the applause of hundreds of faculty and thousands of family and friends, two students and two faculty received top-of-class honors.

Graduates Hannah Harris and Riley Smith earned the Colgate W. Darden Jr. Award for Academic Achievement for completing their degrees with the highest grade-point average (GPA) in the undergraduate program. Both finished with a perfect 4.0 GPA and are members of the UMW Honors Program and Phi Beta Kappa, the nation’s oldest honor society.

In addition, Associate Professor of Chemistry Randall Reif was recognized with the Mary W. Pinschmidt Award, for having had the greatest impact on the lives of the members of the Class of 2023, and Professor and Chair of Theatre and Dance Gregg Stull was named the first Anderson Distinguished Professor. Read more.

The newest Eagles have landed at the University of Mary Washington, as May 1 marked the annual college decision day.

For the incoming cohort in fall 2023, UMW has named two Washington Scholars and three Alvey Scholars, offering full scholarships to these exceptional students. In addition to earning the scholarships, which are renewable for four years of undergraduate studies with GPA and residential requirements, the students are admitted to the Honors Program and have access to funding for experiential learning opportunities such as study abroad and undergraduate research. Applicants are automatically considered for UMW scholarship opportunities, including these top awards, which are equal to full tuition, fees, room and board.

The Washington Scholarship is available for Virginia residents, with priority to those who apply for admission to UMW by Nov. 15. UMW’s Alvey Scholars program recognizes out-of-state students, again with priority by Nov. 15. Several Alvey Scholarships focus on STEM majors, with generous support from Irene Piscopo Rodgers ’59, who has funded 12 Alvey Scholarships during her lifetime and through a transformational estate gift, leaving $30 million to the University of Mary Washington to fund scholars in science, technology, engineering and math through scholarships and undergraduate research.

Many are finalists or semifinalists in the National Merit Scholarship competition, valedictorians and salutatorians, and show promise for providing service and leadership to the University community through extracurricular activities.

Meet the 2023 Washington and Alvey Scholars at UMW. Read more.

Bagpipe music will fill the air and graduates will don their brand-new blue regalia, as the University of Mary Washington prepares for its 112th Commencement, scheduled for May 6, 2023. About 1,000 graduates and their families will celebrate their academic accomplishments and student success in person on Ball Circle during the Saturday ceremony.

A livestream will be available to watch from home, as well as in several indoor viewing locations on campus, including Dodd Auditorium, Lee Hall Room 414 and the Colonnade Room in the Cedric Rucker University Center.

This year’s class includes more than 100 first-generation students who will be recognized with a white stole. Graduates in the Honors Program – celebrating its 10th anniversary this year – will don a light blue stole.

UMW students also customize their regalia by decorating their mortarboards and wearing colorful cords to signify their induction into various honor societies. These include the national senior honor society Mortarboard; the oldest national honor society, Phi Beta Kappa; the international honor society in education, Kappa Delta Pi; and an international honor society for business, Beta Gamma Sigma. Students top off their graduation-day style with academic hoods in colors that correspond to particular degrees worn over the traditional commencement gown. And while the gowns are now blue, they are also “green” – made from recycled water bottles by Virginia-based company Oak Hall.

Friends and family from the commonwealth, across the United States and around the world will be able to watch this year’s graduates make the iconic Mary Washington procession from the Bell Tower at the tip of Double Drive to the ceremony site at the center of campus. And viewers can share congratulations with all the graduates who cross the stage on Ball Circle using #UMWGrads on social media, with well wishes broadcast on site prior to the ceremony start at 9 a.m. EST.

Tune in on the livestream starting at 8:30 a.m. on Saturday, May 6.

The newest members of the nation’s oldest academic honor society celebrated their induction recently, as UMW’s Kappa of Virginia chapter announced its 2023 Phi Beta Kappa Society cohort.

“These are among our most outstanding junior and senior students, all of whom have demonstrated particular strength in both the disciplines and methods of the liberal arts and sciences. We’re tremendously proud of these wonderfully accomplished students,” said Kappa Chapter President, Professor of English and Department of English and Linguistic​s Chair Jonathan Levin.

The induction ceremony on Sunday, April 2, featured a keynote by Virginia Poet Laureate Emerita Carolyn Kreiter-Foronda ’69, an honorary Kappa of Virginia member. Her reading included Monarch Butterfly, inspired by her own work with her husband to establish a habitat for the insects, and meant as guiding words to the newest inductees.

It concludes with “Let me be a leading light; a luminary, destined to survive.” Read more.

The University of Mary Washington and Stafford County Public Schools’ proposed lab school has named a director to lead the next steps of the planning process and begin the implementation proposal to launch. Local educator and administrator Rebecca Towery has been appointed to the leadership role, continuing as an employee of Stafford County Public Schools, in partnership with UMW, her alma mater.

An experienced educator with expertise in strategy, research and evaluation, Dr. Towery brings a unique blend of in-classroom knowledge with the know-how to launch a lab school, from securing grant funding to building out the necessary capacity and curriculum for a successful program. She holds an Ed.D. in education leadership and policy from Vanderbilt University, an M.Ed. in secondary education from the University of Mary Washington, and a B.A. in history, with a political science minor, from Virginia Tech, as well as an education administration license from Lipscomb University.

“Dr. Towery has been an incredible asset to Stafford Schools, and was key in securing the grant to create this incredible opportunity for regional students. She is an energetic and forward-looking leader who applies critical thinking and long-range strategic planning to develop exceptional programs. She will certainly be an asset to both the school division and the University of Mary Washington. We know she will bring great success to this partnership,” said Stafford County Public Schools Superintendent Dr. Thomas W. Taylor. Read more.

The University of Mary Washington has expanded scholarship opportunities this fall, with awards for first-year and transfer students, whether they choose to submit test scores or take advantage of UMW’s test-optional alternative.

“Our merit program is just one way Mary Washington is able to lower out-of-pocket costs for enrolling students,” said Dean of Admissions and Associate Vice President Melissa Yakabouski. “Dollar for dollar, UMW continues to reward academic excellence and meet the financial needs of students and their families, with nearly $40 million awarded in 2022.”

Students are automatically considered for merit awards based on the information included in their application. Merit scholarships are awarded at the point of admission, and students receive notice within their official offer letter and packet.

First-year scholarships are available for degree-seeking applicants and range from the full-ride Washington Scholars for in-state students and Alvey Scholars for out-of-state students to subject-specific scholarships and merit awards. Read more.

Starting Monday, Sept. 12, 2022, UMW students seeking counseling services have access to such resources 24 hours a day, seven days a week, with on-campus options at the Talley Center for Counseling Services during business hours and after hours and weekend crisis stabilization and support available through ProtoCall.

As always, students can call the Talley Center first and speak with a clinician. After hours, by calling the same number for the Talley Center, they will be directed to ProtoCall, a telephonic behavioral health service staffed by trained clinicians.

“Understanding that students often feel distress after 5 p.m. when the Talley Center is closed, we sought ways in which students could receive clinical attention,” explained Vice President for Student Affairs Dr. Juliette Landphair. “Students’ well-being affects everything they do, including their academic pursuits. This service complements our current resources as well as the new national hotline for mental health crisis, 988.” Read more.