A Newsletter for UMW Faculty and Staff
Three new majors and three new minors are among a bounty of fresh offerings this year at the University of Mary Washington.
With the fall 2024 semester underway at the University of Mary Washington, thousands of new and returning students are finding fresh on-campus offerings. From new courses of study and continuous-learning selections to pool renovations and a recently opened coffee shop, students, faculty and staff, as well as members of the Fredericksburg community, will find new opportunities to fill their cups at UMW this year.
And that’s great news for what Dean of Students Melissa Jones calls an “incredibly engaged student body.” Attendance at student events is trending up this year, Jones said, at opening programs like New Student Welcome and Club Carnival. “These students couldn’t be more excited. They are all in!”
Abigail Gellene-Beaudoin ’13 was this year’s Psychology Graduate in Residence.
In a way, Abigail Gellene-Beaudoin’s Mary Washington path began to take shape back in middle school. That’s when her friend was diagnosed with an incurable cancer.
“Walking through her journey with her … led me to decide I wanted to pursue a career in a helping profession,” said Gellene-Beaudoin, a licensed clinical social worker and practicing psychotherapist. A 2013 UMW alumna, she also was this year’s Department of Psychological Science Graduate-in-Residence.
In that role, she presented a free public lecture titled “Talking about the Tough Stuff: Helping caregivers find the words to explain a loved one’s terminal illness or end-stage disease to children.” The talk took place on Thursday, Sept. 12, at 4 p.m., in the Hurley Convergence Center Digital Auditorium. While she was on campus, Gellene-Beaudoin also discussed her experience in the field of clinical social work in classes including developmental psychology, psychopathology and clinical psychology. And she had lunch with students interested in pursuing careers in related fields. Read more.
From left to right: UMW students Stephen McClanahan, Rob Willcox and Katie Reif adjust lighting and camera equipment. With their mentor, Assistant Professor of Communication and Digital Studies J.D. Swerzenski, the trio conducted interviews, scouted locations, got familiar with equipment and the editing process, and honed other skills. The five-week filmmaking session was part of UMW’s Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences Summer Institute. Photo by Suzanne Carr Rossi.[/caption]
University of Mary Washington senior Stephen McClanahan spent five weeks this summer practicing filmmaking. A psychology major, he saw the session as the next step in carving out the career he’s hoping to build.
“It’s an incredible opportunity to have access to this technology the university offers while also getting hands-on experience with filming and editing footage,” said Rob Willcox, an anthropology and theatre major who also took part in the video project.
Led by Assistant Professor of Communication and Digital Studies J.D. Swerzenski, the summer filmmaking course – packed with interviews, location scouting, lighting set-up, editing and more – was part of UMW’s Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences Summer Institute (AHSSSI). The collection of immersive hands-on learning experiences, designed to give students real-world expertise they can add to their résumés, also included psychology, environmental sociology and 3-D design work, all done side-by-side with faculty mentors.
“Lots of universities offer research opportunities to students, only to have them end up doing menial work. That isn’t what happened this summer,” Tobias Conner, a senior psychology major who plans to pursue a Ph.D., said of AHSSSI, for which students receive free room and board, as well as a paycheck. “We were doing real research every step of the way, from researching our primary sources in week one, to building the study, running participants, and assessing data by the end.” Read more.