A Newsletter for UMW Faculty and Staff
Steve Klein, adjunct instructor of English, Linguistics and Communication, will be presenting a paper, “Hugh S. Fullerton, the Black Sox Scandal, and the Ethical Impulse in Sports Writing,” at the annual NINE Spring Training Baseball Conference in Tempe, Arizona, on March 13.
He also had a book review published in the Society of American Baseball Research (SABR) December newsletter of Tim Hornbaker’s “Turning the Black Sox White: The Misunderstood Legacy of Charles A. Comiskey.”
Green will be joined by special guests DeAngelo Hall and Pierre Garçon of the Washington Redskins.
“The gala will allow us to showcase our department,” said Philip Pierce, director of athletic development and promotions, noting UMW’s emphasis on student athletes’ academic and athletic excellence.
The gala will feature a silent auction and live music at 6 p.m., followed by dinner and guest speakers at 7 p.m. Tickets are $125 for single tickets, or $1,000 for a table of 10. A portion of ticket purchases are tax deductible.
With an initial fundraising goal of $20,000, Pierce hopes the gala will become an annual event at UMW.
“[It will] provide a platform for us to share our story and raise resources that play a crucial role in our support for more than 400 student athletes,” said Pierce.
The University of Mary Washington Dining Services by Sodexo is the Gala’s exclusive title sponsor, while Virginia Lottery has claimed the first of three additional sponsorship opportunities. The Eagles’ Athletic Department is still looking for two other patrons.
To purchase tickets or for more information, visit umweagles.com/gala, or contact Pierce at (540) 654-1153
(540) 654-1153 or ppierce@umw.edu.
Hundreds of University of Mary Washington students presented their research as part of the annual Undergraduate Student Research and Creativity Symposium on Friday, April 25. The event, in its eighth year at UMW, celebrates excellence in undergraduate student research by giving students the opportunity to share their work with faculty, their peers and the public.
Students discuss their research in Jepson Hall as part of the ninth Research and Creativity Symposium.
The presentations represented various disciplines, including the sciences, history, humanities, mathematics, social sciences and the arts.
Many student oral and poster presentations took place in Jepson Hall, filling the building with students, faculty and family members. Presentation topics ranged from biodegradable polymers and erosion in the Chesapeake Bay to food security and advertising.
“It’s fun learning about the real life applications of the chemistry we’ve been learning,” said Rachel Thomas, a sophomore biology major and chemistry minor who presented on alternative methods for closing wounds. “You learn more as you go, and people ask questions to really help you think about your research.”
An art student shares her work.
Student performed original music and scenes from plays in duPont Hall, with art and art history presentations and works in Melchers.
In conjunction with the symposium, additional presentations took place across campus in the areas of English, math, history and geography.
“We hope that our research will help inspire future UMW students,” said David Chambers, a senior geography major who co-presented with junior Ray Humiston on the results of their field work on deforestation in Guatemala.
The symposium kicked-off on Thursday, April 24 with the keynote lecture “Structural Color – Origin and Evolution,” by Hui Cao, professor of applied physics and physics at Yale University.
The Undergraduate Student Research and Creativity Symposium is funded by the Class of 1959 Endowment. For a full list of student presentations, visit http://cas.umw.edu/student-research-and-creativity-symposium/.
Her work focuses on understanding how dead plant life, known as dissolved organic matter, and pharmaceuticals and personal care products, known as PPCP’s, degrade. An accurate estimation of how quickly PPCP naturally degrade will provide a better estimate of the actual concentrations of pharmaceuticals entering the environment. During her research process, Laszakovits, a chemistry major, collaborated with research groups from Ohio State University and the University of Connecticut. Charles Sharpless, UMW associate professor of chemistry, will present their research findings at the Gordon Research Conference this summer.
The Barry Goldwater Scholarship Program, established by Congress in 1986 to honor longtime Senator Barry Goldwater, is designed to foster and encourage outstanding students to pursue careers in the fields of mathematics, the natural sciences and engineering. The Goldwater Scholarship is the premier undergraduate award of its type in these fields. It aims to foster and encourage excellence in the STEM disciples and to education and train new generations of U.S. leaders.
This year, the Goldwater Foundation awarded 283 scholarships from more than 1,100 STEM students across the country. In addition to the scholarships, the foundation also recognized several students from each state with the honorable mention distinction.
Laszakovits, a member of the UMW Honor’s Program, has been named to the Dean’s List. In August, she will attend the Biennial Conference on Chemical Education to present findings on the effectiveness of Peer Assisted Study Sessions at UMW.The University of Mary Washington President’s Technology Advisory Council, PTAC, recently awarded 10 PTAC Innovation Fund Grants to UMW faculty and staff members.
PTAC Innovation Fund Grants, which can range from $500 to $25,000, are intended to help jump-start innovative uses of technology in learning, teaching and exploration at UMW. This year’s grant recipients were:
The President’s Technology Advisory Council is a presidentially appointed committee of faculty, students and staff established in 2012 as a recommendation within the University Strategic Plan.
PTAC advises the president on technology issues, provides input on the purchasing of digital systems, and fosters and enables academic technologies and libraries at UMW. For more information visit http://president.umw.edu/ptac/grant/.
Senior Sidney Mullis of Spotsylvania received the Melchers Gray Purchase Award for her piece “Straight.” The work will become part of the university’s permanent collection.
Senior Christine Valvo of Stafford received the Emil Schnellock Award in Painting for her piece “VI.” The Department of Art and Art History presents this award each year to recognize excellence in painting.
Senior Elizabeth Castillo of Alexandria was presented the Anne Elizabeth Collins Award for her piece, “Andy Warhol.”
The following students also received awards at the exhibition’s opening ceremony:
The Student Juried Art Exhibition will run through Sunday, April 21 in the duPont Gallery, located on College Avenue at Thornton Street. The exhibition is open to the public without charge and selected works are for sale.
The duPont Gallery is open Monday through Friday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. and Saturday and Sunday from 1 to 4 p.m. Free parking is designated for gallery visitors in a lot across College Avenue at Thornton Street.James P. Morris, assistant professor of psychology at the University of Virginia, will deliver the keynote address at the 29th annual Psi Chi Symposium for Undergraduate Research in Psychology at the University of Mary Washington. The lecture, “Characterizing Individual Variability in Neural Circuitry Underlying Social Perception,” will be delivered at 4 p.m. on Friday, April 18 in Lee Hall, Room 411.
James P. Morris, assistant professor of psychology at the University of Virginia
UMW students will present their research as part of the symposium on Thursday, April 17from 9:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. and on Friday, April 18from 10:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. in Lee Hall, Room 411. Morris’s lecture and the symposium are free and open to the public.
Morris is the head of the Social Neuroscience Laboratory at the University of Virginia. He also teaches courses in human neuroscience, social neuroscience and social neuroscience research at UVA. In his research, Morris focuses on how social perception is represented in the brain, with research relating specifically to the neuroscience of autism spectrum disorder, epigenetics and social perception. He is a member of the International Society for Autism Research, the Society for Experimental Social Psychology and the Social and Affective Neuroscience Society.
Sponsored by UMW’s chapter of Psi Chi, the international honor society in psychology, the symposium provides a forum for students to share their research and findings with their professors and peers.
For more information, contact Mindy Erchull, associate professor of psychology, at (540) 654-1557.
The University of Mary Washington will hold its 24th annual Multicultural Fair on Saturday, April 12 from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. The outdoor fair, organized by the James Farmer Multicultural Center, is one of the largest annual events at UMW, attracting more than 4,000 attendees each year. The Multicultural Fair demonstrates UMW’s commitment to multicultural awareness through a variety of ethnic performances, food and craft vendors. The fair also features kid-friendly crafts, activities and performances.
The annual Multicultural Fair is one of the most attended events at UMW.
Throughout the day, more than 30 music and dance groups will perform across campus, including Save the Arcadian, a local folk-pop band, Calico Cloggers, Sons of Solomon and the Muggivan School of Irish Dance. A dozen UMW student groups will also perform, including BellACapella, UMW’s all-female a capella group, Eagle Bhangra and the UMW Salsa Club.
This year’s fair will feature more than 50 vendors selling an array of jewelry, pottery, instruments and traditional clothing representing various cultures and food trucks from different cuisines.
The Multicultural Fair will be held rain or shine and is free and open to the public. For more information, including a full list of performers, visit http://umw.edu/multicultural/fair or contact the James Fair Multicultural Center at (540) 654-1044.
The specially designed plastic eggs, built and donated by the Stafford County-based International Association of Bomb Technicians and Investigators, emit a beeping sound that allows visually impaired children to retrieve the eggs using their sense of hearing. The event also includes “touch” and “verbal imaging tours” of Gari Melchers' studio and home, which will allow visitors to explore the various features of Belmont. Games, Wegman’s-sponsored healthy snacks, a visit with the Easter bunny, a miniature horse petting zoo and a “Touch a Tractor” station will round out the day’s activities.
Families should RSVP to the egg hunt at (540) 654-1851 by Wednesday, April 9. The event will be held rain or shine.
Gari Melchers Home and Studio is a 28-acre estate and former residence of the artist Gari Melchers and his wife Corinne. The property, which is operated by the University of Mary Washington, is both a Virginia Historic Landmark and a National Historic Landmark. Located at 224 Washington St. in Falmouth, Va., a quarter mile west of the intersection of U.S. 1 and U.S. 17, it is open daily with an admission charge. The museum also serves as the official Stafford County Visitor Center. For directions and other information, call (540) 654-1015 or visit the museum website at www.GariMelchers.org.