UMW student-athlete Addison Felts

The University of Mary Washington men’s and women’s tennis teams held firm in their national rankings in the Intercollegiate Tennis Association’s May 13 rankings, while Eagles were featured in national singles and doubles rankings as well.

The men held firm at 15th in the nation, while the women stayed at #27. In singles on the men’s side, Asher Willenborg ranks 22nd in singles, and joined Trevor Rein ranked 14th nationally in doubles. Addison Felts and Natalie Kim rank 11th in doubles for the women. In addition, Felts was named the 2026 ITA Division III Women’s Atlantic South Player to Watch by the Intercollegiate Tennis Association.

Willenborg, Rein, Felts, and Kim will compete in the NCAA Championships for singles and doubles in Chattanooga, Tennessee this weekend, May 23 – 26.

The HVAC in GW Hall was turned off to facilitate the chiller replacement in the building. There is no building-wide AC in GW Hall during the two-week project, which is set to conclude by Friday, May 29.

Office spaces will become warm or hot as the outdoor temperatures rise, and we recommend that building occupants make other arrangements for meetings or time in the office. Employees in GW Hall should work with their supervisors to determine the best options, which include working remotely or scheduling time in other spaces on campus.

Offices remain accessible if you need to get items or materials. Please note any building signage or areas marked off temporarily. Please call or email in advance to schedule any appointments with offices in GW Hall through May 29. If you have student employees, programs or visitors to GW Hall during this time, please share the information.

In addition, please mark your calendars for the next GW Hall project now scheduled to begin immediately after Orientation on June 27. As we replace the roof on the building, offices will once again need to relocate temporarily as building access will be restricted June 28 through July 6. This roof project at GW Hall will result in temporary building closures through mid-August, and we’ll communicate more details as the schedule is finalized.

The annual steam shutoff for maintenance will continue through May 26. During this time period, hot water will not be available in buildings serviced by steam on the Fredericksburg Campus.

These buildings include:

• Arrington Hall
• Bushnell Hall
• Combs Hall
• Goolrick Hall
• Jefferson Hall
• Madison/Ball/Custis Halls
• Melchers/Pollard/duPont Halls
• Randolph/Mason Halls
• Seacobeck Hall
• Virginia Hall
• Westmoreland Hall
• Willard Hall

In addition, space conditions may vary, as temperature could fluctuate in work spaces. Please be aware of this work and plan accordingly. If you have student employees, programs or visitors in the office or on campus during this time, please share the information. The buildings remain open during the annual steam outage.

During this same time, the University Tennis Center will have HVAC replacements that will impact AC in the building. Please plan for temperature fluctuations in that space as the units are updated.

If you experience any major issues related to the steam outage beyond the hot water outage, please submit a work order online. Facilities will ensure that necessary equipment continues to operate properly in the absence of steam during this time.

For questions on Facilities Operations projects, contact Assistant Vice President for Facilities and Capital Outlay Brian Gorham at bgorham@umw.edu.

As the Class of 2026 prepares to soar from the University of Mary Washington, we turn the spotlight on graduating seniors. These Eagles have spent their college years finding what matters most, rising to challenges and lighting the way for others. Before they take flight, meet some of UMW’s seniors whose stories reflect the spirit of the UMW campus community.

From Uncovering the Past to a Future in Filmmaking
Blake Bauer, Historic Preservation

Museum ‘Magic’ Fuels a Career in Curation
Makayla Bowman, Anthropology and Historic Preservation

Charting a Career Path in Content Creation
Matthew Clinton, Communication and Digtial Studies

On the Field and Beyond, he Built a Playbook for Success
Jay Hooker, Accounting

It All Adds Up for Star International Student
Aloysious Kebange, Applied Mathematics and Statistics

Helping Others Feel Welcome on Campus
Ashley Lam, Biomedical Sciences

Growing Into the ‘Best Version’ of Herself
Olivia-Lena De Veaux, Spanish and International Affairs

First-Generation Student: ‘UMW Matched My Vibe’
Mariana Leara, Environmental Science

College of Education Grad Aims to Meet Students Where They Are
Mollie Moomaw, Elementary Education

Study Abroad Makes Student’s Experience Sparkle
Carly Radgowski, French and Conservation Biology

Planting Seeds of Leadership and Conservation
Amira Said, Environmental Science

Aspiring Physician Tackles Breast Cancer Research
Mallory Thompson, Biomedical Sciences

Commencement is coming up this weekend, Saturday, May 9

Commencement is coming up this weekend, Saturday, May 9, and we look forward to welcoming graduates and their families for the ceremony. The schedule for commencement festivities is available online, including information for seniors on the Senior Toast and Grad Ball.

Commencement rehearsal happens Friday, May 8, from 1-3 p.m., and faculty and staff are invited to preview the processional around 1:45 to 2 p.m. along Campus Walk and cheer on the grads during rehearsal.

Commencement will be held Saturday, May 9, beginning at 9 a.m. If you are participating in the event, check your schedule and email for specific times and locations and make sure you allow plenty of time to park for the 8 a.m. line-up for graduates.

Please note the following parking changes:

• Jefferson Square parking will be closed to through traffic for rehearsal on Friday and for Commencement on Saturday.
• All spaces on in-and out-bound Double Drive will be reserved for Commencement speakers and staff on Saturday. There will also be reserved spaces throughout various lots.
• The GW Parking Lot is reserved for accessible parking – vehicles with DMV-issued accessible placards or license plates.

All lots are otherwise open for visitors and guests.

In addition, the City of Fredericksburg and particularly our neighbors in the College Heights and College Terrace neighborhoods welcome families for this annual celebration. If you choose to park in the adjacent neighborhoods, which lift the general parking regulations and timeframes, please do not block fire hydrants, fire lanes or driveways. Those areas will be enforced.

For a calendar view of lot reservations visit the Parking Lot Reservations Calendar webpage. Please contact Parking Management with any parking related questions: parking@umw.edu, 540-654-1129.

UMW Campus Community,

Thank you to everyone across the UMW community who provided thoughtful feedback on the Strategic Action Plan (SAP) draft shared earlier this semester. We received comments from individuals and shared governance groups, including SGA, UFC, and USC, and used that input to meaningfully strengthen the plan. The next draft is now ready for campus community input.

We reworked the high-level narrative and enhanced the action items across all four priority areas. In particular, we added new action items focused on energy infrastructure/sustainability, as well as digital and physical accessibility, which are areas that emerged clearly and consistently in the feedback. We also made a more intentional effort to highlight the many things that UMW is already doing well and initiatives that are already underway, so that this important work is captured and carried forward as part of the plan. It is particularly helpful to see how many of these actions are already reflected in existing budget plans, alongside those that would require new investment.

To deepen the work, we expanded the group of authors, bringing in additional faculty and staff leaders to contribute their expertise. This resulted in a rich set of ideas, along with a spreadsheet of the required resources to implement them. Each of the 24 action items is now accompanied by a SMART-goal-based implementation plan and a draft budget.

These two documents represent two different informational approaches to consider the whole and parts of the Strategic Action Plan:

• Revised Narrative Strategic Action Plan with links to the new Action Item plans
• Summary Strategic Action Plan Spreadsheet including budgetary implications of each Action Item, and recognition of Action Item plan authors

We recommend starting with the Narrative Strategic Action Plan to get a sense of the whole, diving further into those Action Item plans that most interest you, while using the Summary Spreadsheet as a handy overarching reference and reminder of projected costs.

Now, we ask for a second round of your feedback, as we must streamline the approach from the volume of ideas and associated costs. Please review the documents and complete the feedback form by May 15 to share your feedback. For access to the documents and forms — please refer to your April 24 email for the links.

We especially ask you to consider which of the unfunded initiatives should be a priority. Please consider what items are most important for broadening UMW’s appeal, advancing the University, and improving student success, from recruitment and retention through graduation and life after Mary Wash. We recognize that we cannot do everything at once, so we must narrow these options. We appreciate the wealth of ideas generated through this work, and even those pieces of action items that don’t make it into the final plan will be part of a bank of good ideas going forward.

We also appreciate your continued engagement and your help as we work together to align our resources with the priorities that will best position the University of Mary Washington for the future.

On behalf of the steering committee,
Chief of Staff and Vice President of Strategy Jeff McClurken & Provost Tim O’Donnell, co-chairs

The University of Mary Washington was recently recognized with the  Philanthropy Excellence Award during the Commonwealth of Virginia Campaign (CVC) Awards and Recognition Luncheon.

UMW earned the distinction for the highest agency amount donated in the 500–1500 employee category during the 2025 campaign, reflecting strong participation and generosity across the University community. The recognition highlights fundraising efforts led by the Division of Advancement and Alumni Engagement, along with contributions from faculty and staff across campus.

During the campaign, UMW raised $89,145.39 through direct giving efforts, with an additional $1,720 contributed through the CVC website. The Commonwealth of Virginia Campaign is the annual workplace giving initiative for state employees, supporting charitable organizations throughout Virginia and beyond. Additional campaign results and agency summaries are available on the CVC website.

Thank you to everyone in the Mary Washington community who contributed to the campaign and helped make this recognition possible.

The Arabelle Laws Arrington ’41 Scholarship is a wonderful opportunity for UMW students who are the children of full-time faculty and staff who have been employed with UMW for at least 5 years within a teaching, administrative or classified position.

Arabelle Arrington  served as a member of the Board of Visitors from 1975-1983, was a member of the Alumni Association and served as president of the Foundation Board of Directors. Mrs. Arrington left a generous fund from her estate, along with donations from alumni, parents, faculty and staff of the University to fund this opportunity. This Scholarship is a awarded annually.

To be initially eligible for the benefit, the student must meet the University’s admissions requirements, must be accepted as a degree-seeking student, be a dependent student, be enrolled full-time (12 credit hours or more) and maintain good academic standing (cumulative GPA of 2.0 or better). The award is renewable and can vary in amount each year based on the students’ financial need and eligibility for other financial aid awards. The award could cover up to the total cost of in-state tuition and mandatory fees, however, room, board, books, and other college expenses or additional fees are not covered by this scholarship. This scholarship does not apply to the enrollment of faculty or spouses of staff members, non-degree seeking students, part-time students (less than 12 credit hours), or summer session enrollment. The deadline for applications is July 1, 2026.

UMW Athletics has had a competitive spring season, with several teams and individuals earning conference honors and postseason opportunities.

On the diamond, UMW Baseball is set to host the 2026 C2C Conference semifinal game against Regent University on Friday, May 8. And if the Eagles are victorious, they’ll host either the Sea Gulls or the Captains in the C2C Championship game on Saturday, May 9. Both the semifinals and the championship games are slated for a 3 p.m. first pitch. The Eagles enter postseason play at 25–11, highlighted by multiple wins over nationally ranked opponents. Head Coach Kelly Swiney was named C2C Coach of the Year for a second straight season, while six Eagles earned All-C2C honors following the team’s strong regular season and top conference seed.

Women’s Softball had five members earn All-C2C Conference honors. Third baseman Emily Angel and pitcher Stephanie Csontos earned first team honors, while Erica Shoop, Emily Mousso and Maeve Haun were named as C2C honorable mentions.

The No. 13 Men’s Tennis team captured the C2C Conference Championship, securing the program’s 28th conference title. The Eagles have earned a berth in the NCAA Division III National Championships, receiving a first-round bye and advancing to their 25th NCAA appearance. Juniors Asher Willenborg and Trevor Rein have been invited to compete in the NCAA Individual National Championships in Chattanooga. In Women’s Tennis, junior Addison Felts and sophomore Natalie Kim, have also been invited to compete in this year’s NCAA Individual National Championships.

Players on Women’s Lacrosse earned recognition, including sophomore Sadie Laughlin, juniors Madeline Stauder and Cece Van Blenis, and senior Daelyn Gregory, who were named to the C2C Conference all-conference team. For Men’s Lacrosse, sophomore Tanner Boone and seniors Ryan D’Angelo and Jacob Fowler were named to the Coastal Lacrosse Conference all-conference team with second team honors.

The Men’s Rugby team finished in 11th place at the Collegiate Rugby 7’s Championships, and the Women’s Rugby team also placed 11th at the National Collegiate Rugby (NCR) Collegiate Rugby 7s National Championship tournament.

In Track and Field, both the men’s and women’s outdoor teams placed fourth at the C2C Championships, with standout performances including a meet-record victory in the women’s 4×100 relay and individual wins by Yasmin Deane in the 100 and 200 meters.