On April 5, Will Mackintosh presented a paper entitled “Traveling Gender Identities in the Nineteenth Century” at the Graham Letters and Culture Symposium in Illinois.
Web Updates and Changes
The UMW Digital Communications team has been hard at work over the past year to bring the UMW website up to speed and to foster an effective and engaging web presence. Although a large number of the changes have been behind the scenes, several updates are immediately noticeable to users.
Most recently, the office unveiled a new mobile responsive interface for users nearly six months ahead of schedule. The change allows users on mobile devices to find information quickly and easily and to have a consistent web experience across platforms. The new mobile responsive theme provides all of the tools currently available on the website in an easier-to-use format.
The web team also made strategic updates to the homepage. After eight months of collecting user data and several anecdotal conversations with users across campus and the Web Advisory Council, the team removed the “helpful links” interface to bring the more useful “Online Tools” bar out into the open.
Now, icons to university-related web tools such as EagleNet and Banner are located across the top of each page of the website for easy access.
(Photo of the new toolbar)
The team will evaluate user behaviors on this new display to determine down the road if anything needs to be removed or replaced with something more valuable to users.
The web team also recently implemented a tool that will provide specific reports on spelling errors, broken links, accessibility issues, user behaviors, and search engine optimization opportunities to site managers across campus. The team has already started receiving basic reports, and will be working to configure, customize, and hone the tool over time.
All of the changes and updates are in line with the initial two-year plan for the web, and are part of an overall strategy to improve the user experience and empower content managers to create meaningful content.
If you have questions or feedback, please contact Shelley Keith, director of digital communications, and Curtiss Grymala, university webmaster, at webmaster@umw.edu.
UMW Names Associate Provost for Enrollment Management
Students Live on $2 a Day to Raise Money and Awareness for Poverty Issues
“It’s always interesting to see the campus community’s reaction to our camp when it goes up on the first day. I remember walking by the camp my freshman year with my head down, hoping to avoid being dragged into conversation with people outside of the tent. While there are certainly some people who treat us the same way I did, there does seem to be genuine interest among some students.”
“It is always nice when people come by, look at the tent wide eyed, and ask why we would ever want to do something like sleep outside or live meagerly when we could so easily do so otherwise. Their questions are often genuine and the start of a good conversation where we can talk about poverty. These interactions always confirm my belief in TDC as a change making activity at UMW.”The students lived in a self-made structure on Ball Circle and spent only $2 each day on food and other expenses. In the process, they hoped to raise more than $5,000 for La Ceiba, a microfinance institution, while shedding light on poverty issues.
“For me, the mental fatigue that comes with living on such a small level of nourishment is much worse than the physical issues. Even trying to go to class and focus or doing homework outside is 10 times more difficult this week than it is on any other week. The lack of food makes focusing that much harder, and that combined with being outside as much as possible makes getting things done nearly impossible but I have to keep trying. It just puts the situation of the poor into perspective because my troubles with class cannot even compare to trying to hold down a job, search for a job, or taking care of a family.”The Two Dollar Challenge, founded by Humphrey, is in its eighth year at UMW. The challenge has spread across the country, and this year has taken up roots internationally. Junior Jeff Paddock is participating in the challenge for one month while studying abroad in Peru. He is sharing his experience in a blog. The challenge is part of the larger TDC organization, which also includes the Month of Microfinance movement and the Poverty Action Conference.
“I would like to think that even the memory of our tent camp will be enough to spark conversation for a few days after we have packed up and moved back into the normal college life. That’s the objective of TDC, to provoke conversation and to give all members of the UMW community a chance to open up and think about their relationship with their fellow community members, whether they be rich or poor. And who knows, maybe we inspired someone to participate next year who had been on the fence this year!”For more information about the Two Dollar Challenge or to participate in next year’s challenge, contact Humphrey at shumphre@umw.edu.