University Dining will be hosting their annual Faculty and Staff Thanksgiving Lunch on Tuesday, Nov. 19, 2024 from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. in Chandler Ballroom. Our catering team will again be offering a beautiful Thanksgiving buffet with all the traditional dishes, including vegan and gluten-free options.

Reservations are strongly recommended and can be made individually or for a group. If registering for a group, one person should make the reservation for everyone, up to 10 per table. You’ll select a seating time when making your reservation. You can also pre-purchase your tickets at the Dining Concierge desk near Panera on the 2nd floor of the Cedric Rucker University Center. Dining Concierge hours are weekdays,11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m.

Pricing for the Faculty and Staff Thanksgiving Lunch is $11 for faculty and staff, $16 for guests, and $8 for children ages 5-10 (no charge for children 4 and under).

See the menu and make your reservation on the UMW Thanksgiving Lunch form.

Please contact Rose Benedict (rbenedic@umw.edu or 540-654-2169) with any questions.

On Tuesday, Nov. 19 at 5 p.m. in Farmer 204, faculty and students are invited  to attend the Khatib Program in Religion and Dialogue Scholar Lecture to be delivered by Mehdi Aminrazavi, Professor Emeritus of Religion. Dr. Aminrazavi has entitled his lecture, “The Politics of Interreligious Dialogue: Why Do the Children of Abraham Kill Each Other?”

Endowed by Dr. Reza Khatib and Mrs. Georgianna Clifford Khatib, the Khatib Program seeks to foster dialogue among religious traditions with the goal of understanding and peaceful discussion. Dr. Aminrazavi has served as our Khatib Scholar this year, teaching RELG 252, Religion and Politics in Islam. The inaugural director of the Khatib Program, he has published on such topics as Islamic philosophy, religious intolerance, and the legacy of Persian poet Omar Khayyam.

Please publicize the lecture to your students, and if you have questions, please contact Mary Beth Mathews, professor of religious studies (mmathews@umw.edu).

The Politics of Interreligious Dialogue Why Do the Children of Abraham Kill Each Other

Join us online for the next Mary Talk Wednesday, Nov. 20 from 7:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. online (via Zoom). Kevin Caffrey, Ed.D., senior associate registrar, will discuss “Prioritizing Empathetic Communication in the Workplace.”

Just about every organization you ever work for will require “excellent communication skills,” and just about every organization you ever work for will never define what exactly that means. In sharing his research on empathetic communication and psychological safety in the workplace, Caffrey will discuss how we can embrace empathetic communication at every level of an organization — and why that is now more important than ever.

To watch the talk, please Register Here. You then will receive a link to the streaming video, which can be watched live or at a later time. You also will have the opportunity to submit questions. Looking forward to seeing you online!

Join us at Academy of Technology and Innovation at the University of Mary Washington (ATI-UMW) to learn more about the regional, college partnership school focused on computer and data science as taught across content areas such as history, art, and mathematics. Focused on providing current 8th grade students and their families with the opportunity to learn more about attending ATI-UMW, this event will share with next year’s 9th graders about ATI, how to apply, and what families can expect if they attend.

ATI-UMW Open House
Nov. 21, 2024
4:30 p.m. – 6:30 p.m.
121 University Blvd.
Fredericksburg, VA 22406

The Student Health Center is collaborating with Giant Pharmacy to offer on-campus vaccine clinics this fall, with the final date scheduled for Thursday, Nov. 21 in the Cedric Rucker University Center living room areas from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. The clinic is open to students, faculty and staff with no appointment needed. Vaccines for flu, COVID, meningitis and tetanus will be available, typically at no cost with most insurance.

Each year, on the Tuesday after Thanksgiving, we join in this global day of philanthropy

Giving Tuesday is coming up on December 3 at givingday.umw.edu, and this is another opportunity to support students with a gift. Each year, on the Tuesday after Thanksgiving, we join in this global day of philanthropy by asking the UMW community of supporters to #MakeItPossibleUMW for students to succeed. A number of challenges and matches are being offered on Giving Tuesday to increase the impact of your gift to the Fund for Mary Washington, College of Arts and Sciences, College of Business, College of Education, Friends of Athletics, or student scholarships and financial assistance including the General Scholarship Fund, Cedric B. Rucker ’81 S.O.S. Fund, Gwen Hale Resource Center, and the Talley Center for Counseling Services.

This Giving Tuesday, you can name one of our beloved campus squirrels with a gift of $19.08 to the Fund for Mary Washington. Make a gift in honor of someone who made your time at Mary Washington memorable. Take a moment to say thank you or acknowledge a cherished colleague or mentor!

Visit givingday.umw.edu, mark December 3 on your calendar, and together, we can #MakeItPossibleUMW this Giving Tuesday. Every gift counts—every gift makes a difference.

We invite members of the University of Mary Washington community to submit program proposals for the annual Women’s History Month Celebration. Proposals are due by Friday, December 6, 2024. The deadline for open-class proposals is Friday, January 10, 2025. The sponsor(s) will be notified promptly. Approved programs will be included on the Women’s History Month calendar, as well as in print and electronic publications. Preference will be given to programs and events relating to the 2024 theme, “Women Educating and Inspiring Generations.” All programs must secure their source of funding, if applicable.

The program proposal form can be found at https://students.umw.edu/multicultural/programs/womens-history-month/. Please include as much information on the form as possible.

Return forms and appropriate attachments to:

Women’s History Month Planning Committee
Attention: Dr. Marion Sanford
James Farmer Multicultural Center
University Center, Room 319
1301 College Avenue
Fredericksburg, VA 22401

Email at msanford@umw.edu