A Newsletter for UMW Faculty and Staff
Professor of Political Science Stephen Farnsworth
Stephen Farnsworth, Professor of Political Science and Director of the University’s Center for Leadership and Media Studies, recently discussed research findings from his new book, “Presidential Communication and Character: White House News Management from Clinton and Cable to Twitter and Trump” at the Conference on Character Assassination in Theory and Practice at George Mason University.
Rosalyn Cooperman, Associate Professor of Political Science
Rosalyn Cooperman, Associate Professor of Political Science, presented a paper, “If He Can Run and Win, Surely She Can Too: (Re)Considering Gender and Political Candidacy in the Age of Trump” at the Oppenheimer Reconsidered conference sponsored by the Center for the Study of Democratic Institutions at Vanderbilt University.
Join us for a Thursday night happy hour at Art After Hours!
Belmont, Gari Melchers Home and Studio, invites you to come explore the studio, galleries, and gardens in a unique way with live music, drinks, and food trucks. Relax on the lawn with Fredericksburg’s favorite folk music from Cabin Creek, local beer and wine from 6 Bears & A Goat and Potomac Point Winery, and local-favorite food trucks Juan More Taco and Gourmeltz. The art galleries and studio will be open late for tours.
Thursday, May 23
6-8 p.m.
Gari Melchers Home and Studio
224 Washington Street
Fredericksburg, VA 22405
Art After Hours is free and open to the public! There will be $5 beer and wine tickets, and food trucks accept cash and cards. There will be limited onsite parking, with overflow parking at Pratt Park with shuttles to and from the event.
Come relax with us after work, stroll through our historic gardens, and enjoy the beautiful spring concert at Belmont!
The Women’s Leadership Colloquium @ UMW’s next networking event will be held on Tuesday, May 7 from 5:30 p.m. – 7:00 p.m. at Stevenson Ridge.This Old Piece…Finding and Finishing Furniture
The Beginner’s Guide to Annie Sloan Chalk Paint
Be inspired as you learn from Sara Branner and Mindy Gray, Co-Owners of SaraGray Designs, LLC, how to find and refinish furniture using Annie Sloan Chalk Paint. Participants will discover practical tips and gain the confidence to paint a piece on their own. A finished piece will be given away to one lucky person! All attendees will also get to experience one of their DIY workshops.
SaraGray Designs, LLC is a “Pop Up” studio/shop in Remington that features painted and farmhouse furniture, home accessories, jewelry, artwork and paper crafting items. DIY workshops are also held during the month.
Light food and wine will be provided. Cost per person: $15.
REGISTER TODAY! Space limited.
Attend a Weight Watchers Workshop at the University of Mary Washington.
The group meets every Thursday at 12:15 p.m. in the Hurley Convergence Center.
The Commonwealth of Virginia is proud to partner with WW to bring employees enrolled in a state health plan discounted WW pricing and 50% reimbursement. Spouses and dependents are eligible for discounted pricing only.
To sign up for WW today or learn more, visit wellness.weightwatchers.com and enter Employer ID: 63569.
College of Business Dean Lynne Richardson
Read College of Business Dean Lynne Richardson’s latest column in The Free Lance-Star: Having an Opinion with no Experience.
I seem to hear more and more stories about people expressing an “expert” opinion when they’ve not had personal experience with the subject for which they have an opinion.
It reminds me a bit of when people who don’t have children have all of the answers about raising children.
The workplace is complicated, comprising many individuals, each with their own issues. Sometimes I wonder how we get anything done. Businesses are made up of people who generally work together to achieve a common goal. Considering the problems that could arise, it’s amazing the goal is ever reached. Read more.
Political Science Professor Elizabeth Larus
University of Mary Washington Professor of Political Science Elizabeth Larus was named the recipient of 2019’s Waple Faculty Professional Achievement Award at a general faculty meeting on Wednesday, April 24.
Established in honor of Shirley Van Epps Waple, a 1952 Mary Washington graduate, the nomination-based award recognizes faculty members who have made significant contributions to their scholarly or creative area of expertise. The recipient must be a full-time faculty member for at least seven years.
Since coming to UMW in 1997, Larus has distinguished herself as an international expert in the politics of China, Taiwan and Hong Kong, and political science students at Mary Washington are eager to learn from her scholarly endeavors, which include three years conducting field research in Asia. Read more.
When the University of Mary Washington announced that the theme of 2019’s Giving Day was “All In,” the Department of Geography took that literally. On Wednesday, April 24, geography professors went “all in” the fountain in front of Monroe Hall to celebrate the more than $23,000 the department raised during the annual event, held this year on March 19.
Department of Geography professors went “all in” into the fountain in front of Monroe Hall on April 24 to thank their Giving Day donors.
The professors who took the plunge were Dawn Bowen, Stephen Hanna, Joe Nicholas, Marco Millones Mayer, Caitie Finlayson, Melina Patterson and Jacqueline Gallagher. Their former colleague, Professor Emeritus Donald Rallis, who now lives in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, jumped into a fish pond there in solidarity.
Gallagher said that getting into the cool water on a warm spring day was a shock, but she was glad that she and her colleagues had the opportunity to put the “fun” in fundraiser.
“We are a fairly small department with about 90 majors, so to be able to raise this much in one day is huge,” said Gallagher, who is chair of the department, which was ranked by College Factual as No. 1 in Virginia and in the entire southeastern region, and No. 10 nationally by College Factual. “We work really hard to foster a sense of community and a strong connection with our students. And we work to keep that bond with our alumni and their families.
The funds raised will go toward the department’s Geography Alumni Scholarship, which is named in honor of Professor Marshall Bowen, and late Professors Samuel T. Emory, James Gouger and Richard Palmieri.
Founded in 1959 by Emory (the namesake of Sammy T’s restaurant in downtown Fredericksburg), the geography department celebrates its 60th anniversary this year and has a number of special events planned. On April 13, the professors gathered with 135 current and former students and their families at Brock’s Riverside Grill for the Geography Honor Society (Gamma Theta Upsilon) induction and annual awards presentation. The event usually draws a crowd of about 50 in a normal year.
The department will also host the Jeff Rountree Geography Challenge, an ongoing fundraiser that is separate from the Giving Day challenge. The 1991 graduate and CEO of the UMW Foundation – who majored in geography – will give $4,000 to the Rountree Endowment when 60 gifts are made to the Geography Alumni Scholarship. The Rountree Endowment is used to help students pay for equipment, data or travel to do research or present at conferences. It helps both graduate and undergraduate students in geography and geospatial analysis.
For more information about the Department of Geography, or to give to the Jeff Rountree Geography Challenge, please visit the Online Giving website or call (540) 654-1037.
Two accomplished alumnae will be the featured speakers at the University of Mary Washington’s 2019 commencement ceremonies on Friday, May 10, and Saturday, May 11.
Terrie L. Suit, chief executive officer for the Virginia Realtors, will speak at the graduate ceremony Friday at 7:30 p.m. in Dodd Auditorium, George Washington Hall. Ann Elizabeth Guthrie, chief of communications for the National Gallery of Art, will deliver the undergraduate address Saturday at 9 a.m. on Ball Circle. Both ceremonies will take place on the Fredericksburg campus. Read more.
Professor of Art History Joseph Dreiss
Professor of Art History Joseph Dreiss presented a paper entitled “The Aesthetics of Flow: Achieving Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi’s Optimal Experience through Contemplative Practice with Visual Art” at the Virginia Humanities Conference at Virginia Wesleyan University on April 12-13, 2019.