A Newsletter for UMW Faculty and Staff
Director of Small Business Development Center Susan Ball appears on WFVA.
Director of Small Business Development Center Susan Ball appeared on NewsTalk 1230 WFVA’s Town Talk to discuss small businesses. She is a free resource for anyone in the Fredericksburg area with a small business idea or a small business, no matter what stage it’s in. Listen to the episode.
Jon Reynolds is the director of marketing and audience services for UMW’s Department of Theatre. But two days a year, he steps into the role of Mary Washington’s commencement reader.
P.S. I Love U(MW) shines a light on the voice most linked with graduation day. Jon Reynolds ’07, Director of Marketing and Audience Services for the Department of Theatre and Dance, is the person who proudly reads each graduate’s name as they cross the stage. “The bonus for me at Commencement,” Jon shared, “is I get to see my students walk across the stage—and I get to be the last thing they see before they get their diploma.” See the episode.
Give Jon a wave (or a thank you!) after you hear his familiar voice at Commencement Watch more episodes from PS: I love U(MW) on the @marywash Instagram.
Professor Emerita of Political Science and International Affairs and Adjunct Senior Fellow at Pacific Forum Elizabeth Freund Larus
Professor Emerita of Political Science and International Affairs and Adjunct Senior Fellow at Pacific Forum Elizabeth Freund Larus published her book chapter, “Taiwan: One of the Most Dangerous Places in the World” in Contemporary Security Problems (Lublin: UMCS Press, 2024).
The May 1, 2021 cover of the Economist magazine declared that Taiwan is “the most dangerous place on Earth.” Similarly, the WEF’s annual Global Risk reports since 2022 have labeled Taiwan as a dangerous hot spot because of its proximity to the PRC. The chapter, co-authored with Polish scholar and Professor Larus’ Fulbright host Agata Ziętek, analyzes the potential for cross-Strait conflict by examining the conditions contributing to tensions in the Taiwan Strait.
Professor Larus regularly travels to Taiwan. Despite the chapter title, she finds Taiwan to be a dynamic democracy and economy, and a remarkably safe place to travel and live.
Head Swim Coach Justin Anderson
The University of Mary Washington swimming and diving program earned Virginia Sports Information Directors (VaSID) honors, including Head Swim Coach Justin Anderson who earned All-State Women’s Coach of the Year honors after guiding the Eagles to a second place finish in the NJAC Championships and six swimmers that qualified for the NCAA Swimming & Diving Championships.
Professor of Mathematics Larry Lehman
Professor of Mathematics Larry Lehman has published a new book, Quadratic Ideal Numbers: A Computational Method for Binary Quadratic Forms with De Gruyter, a German publishing house. This book studies quadratic ideal numbers, introduced as a notational device in Lehman’s previous book, Quadratic Number Theory, as objects in their own right, with applications to quadratic forms and other topics in elementary and algebraic number theory.
Associate Professor of German Jennifer Hansen-Glucklich
Associate Professor Jennifer Hansen-Glucklich in the Department of Modern Languages and Literatures has published a new book entitled German Memorials, Motifs, and Meanings: A Cultural History in Bronze, Wood, and Stone with University of Massachusetts Press (2025).
The book offers a unique cultural history of German memorialization by focusing not on a single, isolated era, but rather on enduring memorial motifs—enchanted stones, magical trees, raised fists, stone circles, and similar evocative symbols derived from myth, folklore, Christianity, national iconography, and post-Holocaust imagery. It thus takes a long-duration perspective to explore abiding themes such as death, rebirth, and redemption; violence and reconciliation; and sacrifice, identity, and community. Along with a consideration of the historical and social circumstances of each memorial and its motifs, the book seeks to answer the questions of why and how these cultural markers survive the passage of time and how they endure amidst cultural, social, and political upheavals that include the rise and fall of empires, catastrophes of war and occupation, and genesis of new national identities.
A Waple Professorship (2023-2025) generously supported the publication of this book by providing funds for travel.
Cover for The Importance of Being Different: Disability in Oscar Wilde’s Fairy Tales.
Professor of English Chris Foss
Professor of English Chris Foss participated in a Recent Books Showcase as part of the program for the The Incredible Nineteenth Century: Science Fiction, Fantasy, and Fairy Tale annual conference, held on Zoom early in May. This small but international meeting featured two days of presenters hailing from nine different countries. Foss talked about his new book, The Importance of Being Different: Disability in Oscar Wilde’s Fairy Tales, published in April by the University of Virginia Press.
Foss was also featured in an Author’s Corner interview for the University of Virginia Press’s website. He answered five questions related to his recently published book. The interview may be found at: https://www.upress.virginia.edu/author-corner/authors-corner-with-chris-foss-author-of-the-importance-of-being-different/
Assistant Professor in the College of Education Danielle Springston
Academy of Technology and Innovation at UMW Director Rebecca Towery
Danielle Springston, assistant professor in the College of Education and Rebecca Towery, director of the Academy of Technology and Innovation attended the “Innovation Summit: Transforming Learning and Teaching for the Future Across Virginia” on April 22-24. This summit was part of the Virginia College Partnership Lab Schools Learning Exchange and was hosted by the Center for Educational Innovation and Opportunity at Old Dominion University.
The Summit attendees represented higher education professionals, K12 partners, Lab School Leadership, and representatives from the Virginia Department of Education. The Summit provided opportunities for networking, problem solving, success sharing, and collaborative learning.
Associate Professor of Sociology Eric Bonds
Associate Professor of Sociology Eric Bonds and UMW student Viktor Newby (majoring in sociology with a minor in digital studies) shared research and perspective on the widespread use of non-disclosure agreements (NDAs) in data center development. The two sent Freedom of Information Act requests to every Virginia locality with a proposed or existing data center project. They found that the vast majority (25 out of 31 localities) have at least one NDA with a data center company. The story, titled “Data centers, non-disclosure agreements and democracy,” can be found via this link and on the Virginia Mercury website.
Professor of Communication and Chair of the Department of Communication and Digital Studies Anand Rao