April 28, 2026

EagleEye

A Newsletter for UMW Faculty and Staff

Whalen Shares Thoughts on ‘Last of Us’ With ‘Wired’

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Associate Professor of Digital Studies Zach Whalen

Associate Professor of Digital Studies Zach Whalen

Associate Professor Zach Whalen in the Department of Communication and Digital Studies contributed to a piece titled “The Last of Us: The Musical Transposition in the Series is a Revolution.” Whalen suggested that for both the game world and its characters to be as believable as the cinematic, they need distinct theme music attributed to locations and different characters within the game, the so-called sound theme or leitmotif, capable of recalling the narrated character through the chanting of short and impalpable notes. Read more in Wired and on Blog Flavio Perrone.

Rycroft Co-authors Book on Income Inequality

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Professor of Economics Robert Rycroft has co-authored Income Inequality in America: A Reference Handbook, published by ABC-CLIO. Inequality is the economic issue of our time. The United States is an extraordinarily affluent society compared to most others in the world today and to all others throughout human history, and that is news worth celebrating. But the dark underbelly of this news is that not everyone has shared in the prosperity, and inequality has only become more pronounced in recent decades. That is news worth lamenting and ought to command our full attention.

Gupta to Share Expertise on Indian Political Economy at Stanford

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Professor of Political Science and International Affairs Surupa Gupta

Professor of Political Science and International Affairs Surupa Gupta

Professor of Political Science and International Affairs Surupa Gupta is a scheduled speaker for “India’s Approach to Globalization in the 2020s” at Stanford University’s Shorenstein Asia-Pacific Research Center. “Join two of the most insightful scholars of Indian political economy as we explore the feasibility and the implications of India’s policy approach to globalization.” Read more.

Gentry Comments on Employment Report in ‘The Free Lance-Star’

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Lance Gentry, Professor, College of Business

Lance Gentry, Professor, College of Business

Lance Gentry, a professor in the College of Business, commented on an employment report for an article titled “More people working locally than before the pandemic” in The Free Lance-Star. Summer 2022 statistics from the Virginia Employment Commission included people who live outside the Fredericksburg region and commute to the area for work, Gentry said. The statistics do not include an estimated 83,000 people who live in the area and commute outside the region — primarily north — to jobs. Read more.

The article also was published by Fredericksburg Today. The Fredericksburg Regional Alliance asked University of Mary Washington Business Professor Dr. Lance Gentry to explain an apparent discrepancy.

“The first set of numbers from the VEC [Virginia Employment Commission] includes people who live outside the region and commute here, but does not include an estimated eighty-three thousand people who lived inside the region and worked outside of it before the pandemic.” Read more.

Larus Comments on Trump’s Return to Twitter and Facebook

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Professor Emerita of Political Science and International Affairs Elizabeth Larus

Professor Emerita of Political Science and International Affairs Elizabeth Larus

In the segment, “After Twitter, Will Facebook Reinstate Donald Trump’s Account?” WION News, January 19, 2023, Elizabeth Freund Larus, Professor Emerita of Political Science and International Affairs, indicated that Trump’s Twitter and Facebook accounts were important fundraising tools during the 2016 presidential campaign against Hilary Clinton and would be equally important for his 2024 bid. She also indicated that Trump could face security fraud charges if he were to abandon or slight his own social media platform, Truth Social, for Twitter. Access the interview.

Hummer Named Frederick County Public Schools Superintendent

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George Hummer, adjunct professor of educational leadership

George Hummer, adjunct professor of educational leadership

George Hummer, an adjunct professor of educational leadership with Continuing and Professional Studies has been named the new superintendent of Frederick County Public Schools. Hummer earned a master’s degree in educational leadership and special education from the University of Mary Washington and a doctorate in educational leadership from Virginia Commonwealth University. He has taught at UMW for the past three years. Read more in the Winchester Star.

Northern Virginia Magazine also publicized the appointment in an article titled “Top Stafford Educator Becomes Superintendent of Virginia’s Frederick County Public Schools.”

McMillan Discusses Tribal Research on ‘With Good Reason’

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Assistant Professor of Historic Preservation Lauren McMillan

Assistant Professor of Historic Preservation Lauren McMillan

Assistant Professor of Historic Preservation Lauren McMillan appeared on a recent episode of the With Good Reason radio show titled “The Visitors’ Center.” Her segment of the show, “Virginia Indian Trail,” featured the work she and her students have been doing with tribes and the local tourism board to develop the Native American History and Culture Trail. “The two groups that my students and I have been working with for about two years now are the Rappahannock tribe and the Patawomeck people who are along the Potomac River,” McMillan said. Hear more.

Black History Month Events, Keynote Feb. 8

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Black History Month Events include:

Human Rights Film Series: Teach Us All
Thursday, February 2 | 5 PM | Colonnade Room, Cedric Rucker University Center
In 1957, the segregation in schools ended with a group of students known as the Little Rock Nine. Inequalities still exist in American schools but some are working to change the system.

Great Lives Series: Gladys West
Thursday, February 2 | 7:30 PM | Dodd Auditorium, George Washington HallWhen Dr. West arrived at Dahlgren in 1956, she was only one of four African Americans at the lab, and only the second woman. Specializing in the field of satellite geodesy—the science of measuring the shape and size of the earth from space—she created algorithms and programs for analyzing satellite data using early super computers. Her work contributed to numerous projects, including GPS and SEASAT, the first satellite to map oceans from space. As one of her colleagues noted, “Her competence, not her color, defined her.” This panel conversation will explore the life and legacy of Dr. West, from her determined pursuit of education, through her distinguished career at Dahlgren, to her continuing efforts to inspire young STEM students.

Gospelfest
Saturday, February 4 | 3 PM | Dodd Auditorium, George Washington HallJoin gospel choirs and praise dance teams as they engage in spiritual song and dance.

Black Mary Washington: Past, Present, and Future
Monday, Feb. 6 | 6 p.m. | Chandler Ballroom A&B, Cedric Rucker University Center
Join the UMW NAACP College Chapter in an intergenerational panel about the Black Mary Washington experience and activism throughout the years.

Jazz Ensemble Black History Tribute:  Iconic Jazz Greats
Tuesday, Feb. 7 | 7:30 p.m. | The Underground, Lee Hall
Celebrate Black History Month with the UMW Jazz Ensemble! Doug Gately, a senior lecturer in the Department of Music, directs this concert featuring music from iconic jazz artists.

Great Lives Series: Fannie Lou Hamer
Tuesday, Feb. 7 | 7:30 p.m. | Dodd Auditorium, George Washington Hall
Fannie Lou Hamer, a poor Mississippi sharecropper with a sixth-grade education, faced down white supremacists and challenged President Lyndon Johnson and other national civil rights leaders to secure voting rights for all Americans during the 1960s. She was an improbable leader whose beginnings gave no hint of the powerful woman she would become. The work of elite, well-educated men dominated leadership roles in the civil rights movement, and their lives and stories remain the focus of much of civil rights history. Hamer reminds us that at a movement’s center sits unlikely leaders, forged through difficult circumstances and who use their unique gifts to face the challenges posed at critical crossroads. She channeled her anger, her courage, her faith, and unwavering commitment to human rights in a battle against entrenched racism and bigotry. Using recently opened FBI records, secret Oval Office tapes, new interviews, and more, Dr. Kate Clifford Larson will share fresh details from her highly acclaimed biography Walk With Me about Hamer’s determination to make her light shine in the face of disabling physical abuse and death threats to bring revolutionary change to America.

Wisdom O. Cole

Wisdom O. Cole

Black History Month Keynote Speaker:  Wisdom O. Cole
Wednesday, February 8 | 7 p.m.  | Chandler Ballroom C, Cedric Rucker University Center
Wisdom O. Cole is the National Director of the NAACP Youth & College Division. In this role, he serves more than 700 youth councils, high school chapters, and college chapters actively involved in the fight for civil rights. Wisdom brings extensive experience in civil rights advocacy training institute, electoral action training, grassroots organizing, issues toolkits, and webinars at the local, state, and national level. He has managed national campaign efforts focused on building Black political power through youth leadership development, advocacy, and direct action organizing for the past 3 years with the NAACP, formerly as the National Campaigns & Training Manager.

In his time at the NAACP, he has worked on campaigns around the cancelation of student debt, removing police from schools, as well as increasing voter access for young Black people. He has been featured on NPR, VICE, NBC Washington News, Brooking Institute, and The Economist as an advocate for Black youth voter turnout through issue-based campaign organizing. In 2020 he was named one of Complex Life’s 32 young activists who are changing the world.

Wisdom was previously a field and state conference organizer for the Afrikan Black Coalition (ABC), the largest Black collegiate organization in California. In 2014, he collaboratively organized the Afrikan Black Coalition conference that featured keynote speakers such as Marc Lamont Hill, Angela Davis, Bobby Seale, and Attallah Shabazz. For this effort, he received the Chancellor’s Achievement Award for Diversity in recognition for outstanding contributions to furthering diversity, inclusion, and excellence at UC Santa Cruz.

Wisdom grew up in California where he earned a B. A. in Chemistry, with a minor in STEM Education, from UC Santa Cruz as well as a M. A. in Teaching from the University of San Francisco. (Credit: NAACP)

Black History Month:  African Dinner
Thursday, Feb. 9 | 5 p.m.  | Dining at the Top of the CRUC, Cedric Rucker University Center
Cost with Campus Meal Plan is one meal swipe or $13 Flex. The cost for EagleOne or credit card purchase is $15.00.

The Woman King
Friday, Feb. 10 | 7 p.m. | Digital Auditorium, Hurley Convergence Center
Saturday, Feb. 11 | 10 p.m. | Digital Auditorium, Hurley Convergence Center
Sponsored by Campus Programming Board

Till
Friday, Feb. 10 | 10 p.m. | Digital Auditorium, Hurley Convergence Center
Saturday, Feb. 11 | 7 p.m. | Digital Auditorium, Hurley Convergence Center
Sponsored by Student Activities and Engagement Office

Bail Out Bake Sale
Monday, Feb. 13 | 1 p.m. | Campus Walk
The UMW NAACP College Chapter will be selling baked goods and donating the proceeds to the Richmond Community Bail Fund to aid the many marginalized individuals behind bars in Central Virginia’s jails.

See the entire list of Black History Month events!

UMW Theatre’s ‘Men on Boats’ Opens Feb. 9

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UMW Theatre will continue its 2022-2023 season with Men on Boats by Jaclyn Backhaus. Performances will be February 9-11 & 16-18 at 7:30 p.m., and February 12 & 19 at 2:00 p.m. in Klein Theatre, duPont Hall at the University of Mary Washington. Guests may also attend the Pay-What-You-Can Preview performance on February 8 at 7:30 p.m. The box office opens at 5:30 p.m. and tickets are available on a first-come, first-served basis. AfterWords, a post-show talkback with the cast, will take place after the matinee performance on February 12. Tickets are $25 for standard admission and $20 for students, senior citizens, and military. Groups of ten or more can receive a discount as well.

Men on Boats tells the story of ten adventurous men that embark on an expedition down the Colorado River. Set in 1869, this mostly factual historical journey is led by John Wesley Powell, a Civil War veteran, and his crew of disparate men. As they chart a path through the great American West, the explorers face hardships within their environment and amongst their rank. Their quest for fortune turns into one of struggle as tensions rise and they experience the true dangers of conquering the Grand Canyon.

Men on Boats is a dramatized retelling of the true 1869 expedition down the Colorado and Green Rivers. This journey was led by Major John Wesley Powell, who recorded the entire enterprise in his personal journal.  The journal was later turned into a novel, The Exploration of the Colorado River and Its Canyons, which was published in 1895. Powell’s journal entries serve as the first recorded passage of white men through the Grand Canyon. Jaclyn Backhaus drew on these reports for her narrative, gleaning inspiration from the historical voyage. Backhaus decided to adapt the circumstances by re-gendering the ten original male crew members. The casting for Men on Boats calls for female-identifying individuals and non-binary actors to portray these historical roles. Although the story remains relatively accurate, the characters have been reimagined to represent modern awareness and inclusivity.

Men on Boats is directed by Marc Williams, assistant professor of theatre. Scenic design is by assistant professor Michael Benson and costume design is by associate professor Kevin McCluskey. Lighting and sound design are by guest designers Cat Girardi and G Clausen, respectively. For further information, call the Klein Theatre Box Office at (540) 654-1111 or visit www.FredTix.com