A Newsletter for UMW Faculty and Staff
Rachel Graefe-Anderson and John Marsh, both assistant professors in the College of Business, have published the article “Cashing-In: Understanding Post-Acquisition CEO Stock Option Exercise” in the journal Management Decision.
Dr. Graefe-Anderson
Dr. Marsh
Don’t miss Ginny the State Fair Bus as she makes a stop at the Fredericksburg campus on Tuesday, Aug. 25. The bus will be parked on Campus Walk near Lee Hall between 2:30 and 3:30 p.m. T-shirts and tickets to the State Fair will be given to the first 50 people in line. The State Fair of Virginia will be held from Friday, Sept. 24 through Sunday, Oct. 4 at The Meadow Event Park in Doswell. For more information about the State Fair, go to http://www.statefairva.org.
The 22nd Virginia Festival of the Book is now open for submissions.
Do you have a book being published in 2015 or by mid-March 2016? Our offices are now taking submissions for the 22nd annual Virginia Festival of the Book, March 16-20, 2016.
Guidelines and the online form can be found via How To Participate. The deadline is Oct. 1, 2015.
Here’s what some of our 2015 authors had to say about their experience:
It was an absolute treat for me to be included in the festival. – Katherine Paterson
I love it when an audience has a good time, and I felt that they did. We enjoyed meeting everyone. Congratulations on such a grand accomplishment the festival is! – Frances Mayes
Everyone was super-awesome and it was an absolute pleasure to be there. I hope I can do this again in the future. – Grady Hendrix
It was such a pleasure to be a part of the Festival this year and to spend time with you and the terrific authors on my panels! – Maureen Corrigan
I wanted to take a moment to thank you for your hospitality and for inviting me to be a part of the Virginia Festival of the Book. It was a wonderful experience I hope someday to repeat. I hope next year’s gig is even more successful for you all. – Reed Farrel Coleman
Notifications will be sent after the October 1 deadline. Any questions? Check VaBook.org or write vabook@virginia.edu.
Thank you,
JANE B. KULOW
Program Director, Virginia Festival of the Book
Office 434 924-7548 | Cell 434 806-4004
Landphair will be responsible for the planning and direction of all of UMW’s student engagement programs in the offices of student activities, residential life, health and counseling services and athletics; and will administer the university’s student-run honor system. She will begin work Aug. 10.
“I am delighted that Dr. Landphair will be joining the UMW administration,” said President Richard V. Hurley. “She brings a wealth of very relevant experience at a critical time in the history of the institution.”
Landphair replaces Douglas N. Searcy, who will become the 12th president of Barton College in Wilson, N.C.
Landphair has been affiliated with the University of Richmond since 1999. In her current position, she leads the Westhampton College dean’s office in serving 1,600 undergraduate female students. She oversees the administration of new student orientation, residence life and the Women Involved in Living and Learning (WILL) program. In addition, she administers academic policy for arts and sciences majors; works with faculty, staff, parents and students to respond to students in crisis; and oversees the dean’s office crisis and threat management systems, among other duties. Previously, Landphair served as interim and assistant director for the WILL program.
Among her initiatives at the University of Richmond, Landphair led institution-wide retention efforts, chaired the Westhampton College strategic planning process, co-wrote the University’s sexual misconduct policy and led the creation and implementation of the University’s women and philanthropy initiative.
A recipient of the Influential Woman of Virginia Award presented by Virginia Lawyers Media, Landphair also received the Bob E. Leach Award for Outstanding Service to Students presented by the NASPA Student Affairs Administrators in Higher Education. A frequent presenter at academic conferences, she has written numerous articles for academic journals and newspaper opinion pieces. She is a book reviewer for the Journal of American History, a peer reviewer of The Journal of Southern History and panel proposal reviewer for the National Association of Student Personnel Administrators.
She holds a master’s degree and doctorate in history from the University of Virginia and a bachelor’s degree in history and French from Tulane University.Career Ambassador Pamela Bridgewater urged University of Mary Washington graduates to embrace new challenges, take risks, value diversity and learn every day from people and situations throughout their life’s journey.
Career Ambassador Pamela Brigewater
“On this day your dreams should be your only boundaries,” said Bridgewater during the University’s 2015 commencement address on Saturday, May 9. “It’s never too late for your dreams to become opportunities.”
Bridgewater, who retired from active duty in the U.S. Diplomatic Service in 2013, said she dreamed of joining the Peace Corps after she graduated from Virginia State College to answer President Kennedy’s call for youth ambassadors. But the political science major was disappointed to find that the Corps needed volunteers with agriculture and other development skills for which she didn’t qualify.
Instead she took a different path, attending graduate school that led to a position as a university professor, until a friend cajoled her into trying a two-year tour of duty in the Foreign Service. That stint stretched to 34 years and led to a rewarding career where she became the first African-American female consul general in South Africa during the historic transition from Apartheid to a non-racial government and cemented a friendship with anti-apartheid revolutionary Nelson Mandela who served as president of South Africa.
During her Foreign Service career, she helped open communication channels between the African National Congress and the U.S. and, as special coordinator for peace in Liberia at the height of a civil war, led a U.S. delegation to peace talks that set that country on a road to recovery. Bridgewater served as U.S. ambassador in three countries under three different presidents: President Bill Clinton appointed her U.S. Ambassador to the Republic of Benin; President George W. Bush named her U.S. Ambassador to the Republic of Ghana, and President Obama appointed her as Ambassador to Jamaica.
Despite her distinguished career, Bridgewater told graduates that her most cherished award was being named an honorary Peace Corps Volunteer by the Peace Corps in Jamaica where she swore in Peace Corps volunteers.
“So you see, it’s never too late for your dreams to become a reality,” she said. “One setback can open opportunities more exciting than you thought and erase any disappointment you might encounter along the way.”
She shared what she called “Pam’s Principles” and urged graduates to believe in themselves and to be passionate about their journey ahead.
She challenged them to repeat the pledge: “I can make a difference, I must make a difference, I will make a difference. The main thing is to keep the main thing, the main thing.”
“We need high quality leadership,” said Staples, who pondered the question of whether leaders are made or born. He recounted the impact of three diverse trailblazers–Abraham Lincoln, Martin Luther King Jr. and Mother Teresa—who shared common traits.
“All three refused to simply accept circumstances ‘as they were’ and worked to make progress to improve life, despite obstacles and challenges,” Staples said. “And all three led from the heart. Their leadership was an extension of their core beliefs and principles.”
Staples addressed nearly 1,000 graduates, family members, friends and faculty, gathered in Dodd Auditorium. A total of 169 graduate degrees were awarded, including 87 Master of Education degrees, 47 Master of Business Administration degrees, 27 Master of Science in Elementary Education degrees and 8 Master of Science in Management Information Systems degrees. Five graduates received both the MBA and the MSMIS in a dual-degree program.
Staples implored graduates to model qualities from such leaders of the past. “Refuse to accept ‘what is’ if ‘what could be’ is better,” he said. “Lead by your core principles.”
As Virginia’s 24th superintendent, Staples is a leader in his own right. He serves as the executive officer of the Virginia Department of Education, the administrative agency for the commonwealth’s public schools. He also serves as secretary of the Board of Education.
Pondering the ‘born’ or ‘made’ leadership dilemma, Staples said the answer may be a combination of the two.
“Perhaps it doesn’t matter, as long as leaders are willing to accept the expectations, responsibilities, and challenges inherent in leadership . . . . as long as we are all ready to become one of those willing to dare greatly.”
Pamela Bridgewater, a Foreign Service officer who served as U.S. Ambassador in three countries, will deliver the undergraduate commencement address on Saturday, May 9, beginning at 9 a.m. on Ball Circle.
“The UMW Board of Visitors is committed to advancing Mary Washington’s position as a premiere liberal arts university,” said Holly Cuellar, Rector for the Board of Visitors. “In order to do so, the Board strives to keep Mary Washington affordable, to attract a diverse student body, and to employ superb professors. It must accomplish these things in face of significant decline over the past decade in appropriation support from the Commonwealth.”
“As the Board considers tuition and fee increases for the next academic year, key factors are the need to address faculty salary deficiencies and state-mandated retirement and health care increases,” said Cuellar. “The Board felt an obligation to move forward in establishing costs for next year.”
The university, with a total enrollment of nearly 5,000 students, features colleges of business, education and arts and sciences, and three campuses, including a residential campus in Fredericksburg, a second one in nearby Stafford and a third in Dahlgren, which serves as a center of development of educational and research partnerships between the Navy, higher education institutions and the region’s employers.