Eagles in Service Food Drive
Please join the Staff Advisory Council (S.A.C.) in participating in the Governor’s announced “Day of Service in Virginia” campaign, now through Saturday, Sept. 29.
If every UMW employee brings just one non-perishable food item to the Eagles in Service donation sites listed below, UMW will collect 869 items to help replenish our area’s food banks.
Donation Locations:
- Marye House
- George Washington Hall, 3rd Floor
- Facilities Services Lobby
- Jepson Alumni Executive Center Lobby
- University Relations, Eagle Village, Suite 300
- Lee Hall – 2nd and 3rd floors
- Trinkle Hall, Education Suite, 2nd floor
- Stafford Campus, North and South buildings
Donation boxes will be available on Campus Walk and Lee Terrace at the Alzheimer’s Walk on Saturday, Sept. 29 – the final day of the Eagles in Service Food Drive!
Employee Reimbursement for Purchases
To: Faculty and Staff
FROM: Rick Pearce
Subject: Employee Reimbursement for Purchases
Recent audits by Virginia’s Division of Purchases and Supply (DPS) and the Auditor of Public Accounts (APA), have reflected an intensified scrutiny of NON –TRAVEL REIMBURSEMENTS to Faculty and Staff.
As a gentle reminder, purchases by faculty and staff for which reimbursement will be sought should be a very last resort and must be done in compliance with purchasing policies and procedures (i.e., SWAM quotes). Apparently, there has been a statewide increase in using this reimbursement approach to avoid State procurement regulations.
Regretfully, we cannot guarantee that folks who do not comply with procurement procedures will be reimbursed for their expenses.
UMW procedures are included at the following links:
Accounts Payable reimbursement information and procedures http://adminfinance.umw.edu/ap/reimbursements/
Please contact Leigh Penn at extension 1226 or lpenn@umw.edu with any questions.
Purchasing policies and procedures http://adminfinance.umw.edu/purchasing/umw-policies-and-procedures-2/
Please contact Pauline Jenkins at extension 2260 or pjenkins@umw.edu with any questions.
— Richard R. Pearce, Vice President for Administration and Finance and CFO
‘Chat’ Underscores Lincoln’s Decree (The Free Lance-Star)
C-SPAN Campaign Bus to Visit UMW, 9/27
The University of Mary Washington will host the C-SPAN Campaign 2012 Bus, Thursday, Sept. 27, on the Fredericksburg campus. The stop is part of a four-day tour to five Virginia universities and colleges to speak to students and community members regarding their thoughts about campaign issues. The bus will be located beside Lee Hall from 8:30 a.m. until noon.
Political analyst Stephen Farnsworth will be a guest on C-SPAN’s Washington Journal segment from 8:30 to 9:15 a.m. Farnsworth, who is a UMW political science professor and director of the University’s Center for Media and Leadership Studies, is an expert on the 2012 presidential election cycle as well as Virginia government and politics. He is the author or co-author of four books, including “The Nightly News Nightmare: Media Coverage of U.S. Presidential Elections, 1988-2008,” “Spinner in Chief: How Presidents Sell Their Policies and Themselves,” “The Mediated Presidency: Television News and Presidential Governance” and “Political Support in a Frustrated America.”
From 10:15 to 11:45 a.m., C-SPAN will hold tours aboard the Campaign 2012 Bus. Visitors will learn via HD TVs, touch screen computers, laptops and mobile devices about the network’s Campaign 2012 website, including video of candidates and campaign events, information on key state races, the electoral college and ways to follow the social media related to the campaign. The tour also will include information about C-SPAN’s public affairs event coverage; web offerings, including archived video going back to 1987 through C-SPAN’s Video Library and Congressional Chronicle; and the numerous ways to connect with the network through social media.
C-SPAN representatives also will encourage students and members of the community to share their thoughts about the presidential campaign. Participants will be asked to comment on the presidential candidates and the issues most important to them in this election cycle. Their responses — captured in 15-second videos via Smartphone and shared instantly — will be uploaded onto various C-SPAN social media platforms, including C-SPAN’s own Tout page (http://www.tout.com/cspanbus). Responses in this week-long election special also will be highlighted on C-SPAN’s Washington Journal. The bus tour is open to the public at no charge. Public parking is in designated “visitor” parking spaces on Double Drive and on the top deck of the UMW Parking Deck accessed from U.S. 1.
More information about the bus tour is available at www.c-span.org/bus or by contacting Jennifer Curran, C-SPAN marketing representative, at (202) 309-3360.
John Broome Invited to Present at Education Conference
John P. Broome, assistant professor in curriculum & instruction and director of undergraduate secondary education and preK-12 education in the College of Education, has been invited to present his study on civic engagement in an alternative learning environment at the American Montessori Society (AMS) 2013 Annual Conference in Orlando, Florida on March 14th, 2013.
The study entitled, “Reflecting on The Civic Mission of Schools: Lessons from a Montessori Middle School” examined how the Montessori curriculum and educational practices address civic engagement in a U.S. Montessori middle school. He further analyzed how the curriculum compared against U.S. civic education recommendations and investigated students’ observable civic engagement in that environment.
The American Montessori Society (AMS) is the foremost advocate for quality Montessori education in the United States. AMS sets the high professional standards that inform Montessori education as practiced in AMS-accredited schools and taught in AMS-affiliated teacher education programs. Founded in 1960, the organization has nearly 13,000 members worldwide.
Rededication and Groundbreaking Ceremonies, 9/20 – 9/21
President Richard V. Hurley and the UMW Board of Visitors held a groundbreaking ceremony for the Information and Technology Convergence Center on Thursday, Sept. 20. The building, slated to open in the fall of 2014, will be a multipurpose, technology rich center for student-driven collaboration.
On Friday, Sept. 21, Hurley and the BOV will hold a rededication ceremony for the Mason and Randolph residence halls at 4 p.m. Mason and Randolph, originally built in the 1950s, reopened in August 2012 after a year of extensive renovations.
At 11:30 a.m. on Friday, the UMW Foundation will hold the groundbreaking ceremony for the Hyatt Place at Eagle Village. The five-story hotel is scheduled to open by fall 2013.
SCHEV and Council of Presidents to Meet at UMW Next Week
On Monday, September 24 and Tuesday, September 25, the State Council of Higher Education for Virginia (SCHEV) will meet at the University of Mary Washington. Meetings will begin at 1 p.m. on Monday and continue through 12:30 p.m. on Tuesday. The meetings will be held in Lee Hall Rooms 411 and 412 on the Fredericksburg campus.
Included on the agenda is a joint meeting with the Council of Presidents, a group that is comprised of Virginia public college and university presidents. President Hurley is currently vice chairperson of the Council of Presidents. He also serves on the Higher Education Advisory Committee (HEAC).
For more information or to view the full agenda, visit http://www.schev.edu/council/AgendaBookIndex.asp.
International Education Week Exposes Students to Opportunities Abroad
Despite the threat of rain, countless students met at the Lee Hall terrace on Monday, Sept. 17 for the Study Abroad Showcase, the kickoff of the Center for International Education’s second annual International Education Week. The week aims to expose students to a variety of opportunities abroad.
At the showcase, students who studied abroad in the spring semester or over the summer shared their experiences with other students and answered questions. The students represented 30 programs in 21 different countries.
“This is a show and tell for our students,” said Kate Jordan, study abroad program assistant in the Center for International Education.
Senior Jennifer Crystle helped organize and promote this year’s International Education Week. For her, similar events last year eased her “reverse culture shock” after a semester abroad in Spain.
“This can help them with their reintegration,” Jordan said.
The week also included seminars on internships and scholarships and financial aid. The Education Abroad Fair on Friday, Sept. 21 gave parents and students the opportunity to explore more than 50 study abroad providers and UMW programs. On Saturday, CIE hosted an open house from 9:30 to 11:30 a.m. in Lee Hall, Room 434.
For more information, visit https://www.facebook.com/events/396880400379881/.
UMW Staff Volunteer for “Day of Caring”
University of Mary Washington staff formed four volunteer teams that participated in one of the Rappahannock United Way “Days of Caring” on Friday, Sept. 14.
A total of 42 UMW staff members volunteered this year, an increase from last year’s 28 volunteers. Participants came from UMW’s Facilities Services, Advancement and University Relations, Academic Services, and Student Affairs divisions.
The volunteers spent the day at the Boys and Girls Club in Fredericksburg, and helped with weeding, cutting grass, planting flowers, mulching and washing the vans that transport the children. UMW also donated used computers to the club.
UMW’s Director of Service, Christina Eggenberger, has helped involve staff in the Rappahannock United Way’s program for the past three years.
“It’s fun to hear each team name being called…and to show UMW spirit to the community,” she said.
Other local businesses and organizations volunteered, however UMW had the biggest group there, Eggenberger said.
Director of Campus Recreation and the Fitness Center, Mark Mermelstein, worked with other staff members to wash the vans.
“It’s a great opportunity to get out and work on something together,” Mermelstein said.
Rappahannock United Way expanded the opportunity for community volunteering when they changed the “Day of Caring” into “Days of Caring.” Likewise, Mark Thaden, director of alumni relations, has a similar mindset.
“I hope to see our numbers continue to grow every year in participation,” said Thaden.