Author: Brynn Boyer

Fredericksburg, Va. – The University of Mary Washington will celebrate the inauguration of Richard V. Hurley on Friday, September 30 with a week of festivities; including speakers, a formal installation ceremony and community service activities.

Hurley assumed the presidency of the University of Mary Washington on July 1, 2010, with the primary goal of making UMW the best public liberal arts university in the nation. His inauguration as the university’s ninth president will formalize his leadership, acknowledging and honoring his 11 years of dedication to Mary Washington and more than three decades in higher education.

The theme of Hurley’s inauguration, “Engaging Minds. Serving the World,” reinforces his strong belief in the importance of a stimulating educational environment and the value of a liberal arts education coupled with his support for the Mary Washington community’s dedication to public service.

The events of the week are as follows:
• Monday, September 26 – “Partners in Prosperity for the Rappahannock Region,” an economic development conference for the business community. The conference, which will take place at the Stafford campus from 8 a.m. – 1:30 p.m., will feature Eugene P. Trani, former president of Virginia Commonwealth University and author of “The Indispensible University: Higher Education, Economic Development, and the Knowledge Economy,” Lt. Gov. Bill Bolling and a panel of local leading business persons representing diverse industries in Planning District 16. For more information, email regionalconference@umw.edu.
• Wednesday, September 28 – Fredericksburg Forum featuring Karl Rove, former senior advisor and deputy chief of staff to President George W. Bush and author of “Courage and Consequence: My Life as a Conservative in the Fight.” The lecture will take place at 8 p.m. in George Washington Hall, Dodd Auditorium. Tickets are available for purchase at www.umw.edu/forum or (540) 654-1065.
• Thursday, September 29 – “Serving the World” service activity with Habitat for Humanity, including a barbeque. The event, which will involve members of the UMW community building tables and sheds, will take place from 2-6 p.m. on Ball Circle.
• Thursday, September 29 – “Engaging Minds: The Legacy and Future of the Stafford Campus,” will feature the accomplishments of graduates from the Stafford campus. The sessions will take place from 6-8 p.m. in University Hall at the Stafford campus.
• Thursday, September 29 – “Engaging Minds: Teaching, Service Learning and Research,” will include discussions about innovative teaching, undergraduate research and study abroad, and faculty-directed service learning activities. The sessions will take place from 5-7 p.m. in Lee Hall on the Fredericksburg campus.
• Friday, September 30 – The Presidential Installation Ceremony will take place from 3-4:30 p.m. in George Washington Hall, Dodd Auditorium. A reception will follow. Tickets are required and may be reserved at inauguration.umw.edu/events/installation-ceremony.
• Saturday, October 1 – “Into the Streets” student service day will take place throughout the Rappahannock region from 1-5 p.m. Students will volunteer at projects throughout the Fredericksburg area.

Active in the Fredericksburg community, Hurley established the Town and Gown Committee. He serves as a director of the Fredericksburg Regional Chamber of Commerce and as a member of the board of the Rappahannock United Way, the Fredericksburg Regional Alliance and Virginia Partners Bank.

Prior to arriving at Mary Washington in 2000, Hurley served as vice president for administration and finance at Longwood University. He holds degrees, diplomas and certificates from Harvard University, University of Kentucky, Central Michigan University and Richard Stockton College in New Jersey.

For a complete list of events and more information, visit the inauguration website at http://inauguration.umw.edu.

Congratulations to Carolyn Diehl, special projects coordinator in the Office of University Events and Conferencing, who has been selected as an Excellent Eagle Employee by the Staff Advisory Council. To thank you for such a wonderful job, Carolyn will have a reserved parking spot of her choosing through Friday, September 30^th.

Here is what one of Carolyn’s co-workers said about her:

“Carol joined our office last September. Her first few days here she helped with Family Weekend and jumped right in with a can-do attitude.  She does a great job helping others in our office with projects and making sure that she is ahead with planning events. We love having Carol as part of our team. “

To nominate an Excellent Eagle Employee, just send an email to Dre Anthes at (aanthes@umw.edu) with Excellent Eagle Employee in the subject line.  In your email, be sure to include the person’s name, department, work location (with the most convenient parking lot) and the reason why you believe the employee should be recognized.  Please spread the word to other employees about this wonderful opportunity to recognize a co-worker.

The University of Mary Washington today announced that Charles J. Shields has been named associate director of the university’s Great Lives public lecture series. Shields, a noted historian and author of The New York Times best-selling biography "Mockingbird: A Portrait of Harper Lee," was an audience favorite when he spoke about Lee as part of the Great Lives series earlier this year.

The University of Mary Washington today announced that Charles J. Shields has been named associate director of the university’s Great Lives public lecture series. Shields, a noted historian and author of The New York Times best-selling biography "Mockingbird: A Portrait of Harper Lee," was an audience favorite when he spoke about Lee as part of the Great Lives series earlier this year.

An exhibit of books and photographs on the Chicago Cubs will be on display at Simpson Library until October 14, 2011. Titled “Before They Were Loveable Losers: The Pennant-Winning Chicago Cubs,” the exhibit details noteworthy events in the team’s history, particularly its National League pennants from 1929 through 1945.  It also examines the careers of some of the notable ballplayers on those teams. The exhibit, in the first floor lobby, is open during regular library hours.

Jack Bales, reference and humanities librarian and compiler of the exhibit, said that although “world champions” is a term not often associated with the Cubs, “various teams and players over the years have nonetheless either made their marks on baseball history, or, at the very least, achieved some degree of enviable success.”  In 1906, for example, the Cubs won 116 games and lost only 36, still a major league record.  The World Series winners of 1907 and 1908 featured baseball’s most celebrated double-play combination:  Joe Tinker to Johnny Evers to Frank Chance.

Some of the players whom Bales features include Hall of Famer Hack Wilson, who, as one sportswriter said, “was built like a beer keg, and not entirely unfamiliar with its contents.”   Wilson batted in 191 runs in 1930, a record that will probably never be broken.  Another player is catcher Leo “Gabby” Hartnett, whose hit on September 28, 1938, as darkness was descending on Wrigley Field, resulted in the Cubs’ most famous home run, the “homer in the gloamin’.” One exhibit case is devoted to Babe Ruth’s “called shot” in the 1932 World Series, in which Ruth supposedly pointed to center field before hitting a long home run.