Volunteers clad in hot-pink t-shirts helped families with the heavy lifting during the University of Mary Washington’s Move-In Day.

Surrounded by pink – a pink clothes hamper piled high with stuffed animals, a full-length mirror inside a pink frame, two pink rugs rolled up tight – Ana Saravia spoke into her phone. The conversation, held outside her new Randolph Hall room, was with her mom, who was just down Campus Walk helping her other daughter, Lexi, move into Virginia Hall.

“Every time I was here, I felt like I was wrapped in a warm hug,” said Ana, whose pop of color was mirrored in the hot-pink T-shirts worn by volunteers who helped families with the heavy lifting yesterday during the University of Mary Washington’s Move-In Day.

The Saravia sisters, from Henrico County, Virginia, are among the nearly 1,100 new students UMW welcomes this year, the 600 or so who registered for on-campus housing and the majority who come from the Commonwealth. First-years and new transfers hail from 30 more states, including California, Montana, Texas and Tennessee, and from overseas, as far away as the Philippines, India and Australia.

SUVs, pick-ups and compact cars lined Mary Washington’s normally traffic-free areas, with friends and families helping haul copious college-life commodities into Randolph and other first-year residence halls, Ball, Virginia and Willard. Upperclassmen, including Move-In Day volunteers, plus peer mentors dressed in purple and resident assistants donning green, answered questions and provided support. So did UMW President Troy Paino and wife Kelly, who drop into rooms each year to welcome new arrivals and their families. Read more about UMW Move-In Day.

During UMW’s 2026 Summer Enrichment Program, Aiden Anderson, who attends the Academy of Technology and Innovation at UMW, practices stitching sutures at Mary Washington Healthcare with guidance from UMW alumna Sabrina Elliott ’17, a general surgery resident.

Aiden Anderson poked a needle into a pink silicone tray, weaving black thread through an assortment of pre-cut lacerations. The practice exercise in suturing wounds at Mary Washington Healthcare could come in handy someday for Aiden, a sophomore at the Academy of Technology and Innovation at UMW’s Stafford Campus.

He was among about 70 aspiring medical professionals, artists, engineers and more who took part in last week’s Summer Enrichment Program (SEP), a six-day experience for rising 10th- through 12th-graders. Participants live in residence halls, take courses filled with hands-on learning and participate in extracurricular activities like the Wednesday-morning fieldtrip introducing students to hospital practices.

Part of a course taught by UMW Professor of Biology Deb O’Dell, the offering was among more than 20, covering everything from pop culture and culinary chemistry to environmental engineering and cybersecurity.

“The program continues to be a great introduction to college life,” said Associate Professor of Communication Elizabeth Johnson-Young, who coordinates SEP with Department of Biological Sciences Senior Lecturer Michael Stebar and College of Education Assistant Professor Danielle Ott. “Campers participate in a wide variety of courses, enrichment sessions, and field trips, and it’s exciting to see them engage and learn what a liberal arts education feels like at UMW.”

Read more about UMW’s 2026 Summer Enrichment Program.

Governor Appoints Two New UMW Board of Visitors Members, Renews One Term

The Virginia Governor’s Office recently announced the appointment of two new members of the University of Mary Washington Board of Visitors and renewed the term of a current member.

Kaci Easley of Richmond, director of community engagement and local affairs at Dominion Energy, and Charlie McDaniel of Washington, D.C., vice president of growth and strategy for Hilldrup’s workplace and logistics division, will join the Board.

In addition, the governor’s office renewed the term of current UMW BOV Rector and Mary Washington alumnus Lee Murray ’04 of Fredericksburg, managing director and regional manager at the wealth management firm Cary Street Partners.

Read more about UMW Board of Visitors Members.

A historical account of a road that never was is the winner of this year’s University of Mary Washington Center for Historic Preservation Book Prize.

Road to Nowhere: How a Highway Map Wrecked Baltimore tells the story of the lasting harm caused by the 1957 proposal of a highway slicing through Maryland’s once-vibrant Black middle-class Rosemont neighborhood. Written by historian Emily Lieb and published in November 2025 by University of Chicago Press, the book draws on land records, oral history, news items and policy documents to reveal the effects of the unfinished East-West Expressway.

UMW’s Center for Historic Preservation announced the book as its choice for the 2026 prize in May in recognition of Historic Preservation Month, which celebrates the heritage and architectural legacy of communities across the country. “This is an important event for our students and our community because it gives everybody a chance to think about the future of historic preservation in this country,” said Professor of Historic Preservation Christine Henry. “What’s new? What’s exciting? What new direction are preservationists taking the field?”

Road to Nowhere tells the story of Black families who were attracted to the Rosemont area after several white schools were converted into “colored” ones. In the 1950s, they enjoyed a community dotted with a sprawling park, corner stores and other amenities. But, by 1967, when city council voted to condemn hundreds of its homes to make way for the proposed expressway, residents faced deflated property values and predatory real estate deals. Read more about the Historic Preservation Book Prize winner.

The newest graduates process to UMW’s Commencement with handshakes, hugs and high fives from Mary Washington faculty. Photo by Suzanne Carr Rossi.

With their Mary Wash blue regalia, caps decked out just for the day and smiles shared with family and friends, nearly 1,000 graduates traversed Campus Walk this morning for the University of Mary Washington’s 115th Commencement.

Followed by the faculty who’d guided them through the past four years, the Board of Visitors, President Troy D. Paino and the Eagle Pipe Band, the members of the Class of 2026 made their way to Ball Circle, where the three-hour ceremony unfolded. The chilly air warmed throughout the morning as family, friends and supporters cheered for the graduates’ hard work, perseverance and commitment to earning a degree with the power to enlighten their careers and their lives.

“The classes weren’t easy; it was challenging,” said Aidan Ramirez, an economics major from Stafford, Virginia, who chose Mary Washington for its small class sizes and opportunities to receive individual attention from professors. Read more about UMW’s 2026 Commencement.

Senior Hannah Wall, a management and entrepreneurship major, took first place, winning $2,500, in UMW COB’s Blate-Schneibolk Strategy Case Competition.

The Blate-Schneibolk Strategy Case Competition took place in the College of Business (COB) on Thursday, April 16. Now in its 10th year, the bi-annual event began with a reception in Woodard Hall’s Red Room, with opening remarks from COB Dean Filiz Tabak.

The Case Competition pits teams from UMW’s 400-level Strategic Management course against one another in a quest to sort out a “case” of a struggling business. Participants tap into the concepts and skillsets they’ve collected in class to analyze issues, plan a path to success and impress a panel of judges. The challenge gives students the type of real-world experience they’ll likely encounter in their careers, plus the top three contenders walk away with cash prizes totaling $5,000.

This semester’s case, focused on Coursera and its AI strategy, was judged by Andrew Blate ’04 and Craig Schneibolk, co-owners of Beautiful Home Services, and Jenn Cole ’06, a Markel Insurtech Underwriters director.

“The judges were impressed by the creativity of the recommended strategies, the depth of the analysis and the professionalism of the presentations. They noted that this year’s presentations were the best since the competition began,” said UMW Assistant Professor of Management Samira Fallah. “The college is proud of the excellent work of its faculty, staff and students and looks forward to making the event even bigger and stronger in the future.”

Five teams competed, each delivering a 10-minute presentation followed by a five-minute question-and-answer session with the judges.

Senior Hannah Wall, a management and entrepreneurship major, took first place, winning $2,500. Seniors Lucy Gentry, a double major in marketing, and communications and digital studies, and Maria Torres, who is majoring in business administration, came in second, taking home $1,500; and Ashlyn Diederich, Kyra Frola, Marisol Juarez, Megan Fallin and Lindsay Price finished third, winning $1,000.

“The students were extremely well prepared, professional, and did a fantastic job,” Blate said. “I firmly believe that the Case Competition is one of the best displays of the amazing job the professors and staff are doing to create not only great students but ones who are ready for success in the future.”

The uniquely UMW tradition of Devil-Goat Day celebrated its 100th anniversary this year. Photo by Parker Michels-Boyce.

And … the Devils have it! At least for a year.

Devil-Goat Day at the University of Mary Washington was in full force for the 100th anniversary of the uniquely UMW tradition.

“Everything felt a little bigger and more meaningful,” Alyson Hardy, a senior majoring in communication and digital studies, said of the end-of-the-academic-year event that helps cut pre-exam tension. “There were more activities, and you could tell a lot of effort went into making it memorable.”

UMW’s Devil-Goat Day has students who graduate in odd years (Devils) battling it out against those who graduate in even years (Goats) in a friendly competition of school spirit, where participation counts, collecting points is all about fun, and an epic tug-of-war battle wraps it all up. Read more about Devil-Goat Day.

UMW junior J.D. Nett (third from right) took top prize in last week’s Eagle Egg Pitch Competition, winning $10,000 to help bring his LAX Gear Dryer venture to life. Photo by K Pearlman Photography.

University of Mary Washington junior J.D. Nett already knew he had at least one supporter of his proposed business venture – his mom.

His LAX Gear Dryer – a portable system for airing out sweaty athletic equipment, like the shoulder pads that fumed up the family car between practices in Leesburg, Virginia – now has more backing … and more seed money. Lots more.

Nett, No. 41 on the Eagles lacrosse team, walked away from last week’s Eagle Egg Pitch Competition with a first-place finish and $10,000 to help bring his entrepreneurial vision to life.

“Small awards create excitement. Larger awards create traction,” College of Business Dean Filiz Tabak said of the Shark Tank-like contest, where students present their ideas to a panel of experienced judges. “For many UMW students, even a few hundred dollars for prototyping can be transformational.” Read more about UMW Eagle Egg Pitch Competition.

Adam McAninley received the Prince Woodard Emerging Leader Award and the Cedric Rucker Eagle Beyond Compare Award at the 2026 Eagle Awards ceremony, recognizing extraordinary contributions by individuals and organizations. Photo by K Pearlman Photography.

As Honor Council president, University of Mary Washington junior Adam McAninley upholds academic integrity across campus. He’s shared his school spirit as a campus tour guide, represented UMW students at the State Council of Higher Education for Virginia and interned on Capitol Hill.

Last week, McAninley, a double-major in political science and environmental science, earned more feathers to put in his cap, receiving not one but two honors – the Prince Woodard Emerging Leader Award and the Cedric Rucker Eagle Beyond Compare Award. The accolades were bestowed during the annual Eagle Awards event, held Thursday evening in the Cedric Rucker University Center’s Chandler Ballroom.

From more than 200 nominations – a program record – the event awarded 32 honors to UMW students and administrators who’ve gone above and beyond, and organizations and programs that have made a significant impact on campus. Read more about UMW’s 2026 Eagle Awards.