Professional Notes Archives

Rao Contributes to Article About AI and Academic Integrity

May 7, 2025 by Guest Author

Professor of Communication and Chair of the Department of Communication and Digital Studies Anand Rao

Professor of Communication and Chair of the Department of Communication and Digital Studies Anand Rao contributed to a story written by UMW alum, Ryan Kailath, published in the Gothamist. Rao was quoted in the article titled “Columbia suspended him after he built a cheating app. Now he’s raised $5.3M for it” which was published in Gothamist and Hoodline. Kailath is a reporter with WNYC in NY. He saw Rao referenced in another article and reached out about this story. Read the article:

https://gothamist.com/arts-entertainment/columbia-suspended-him-after-he-built-a-cheating-app-now-hes-raised-53m-for-it

https://hoodline.com/2025/05/former-columbia-student-suspended-for-ai-tool-sparks-debate-and-success-with-5-3m-startup/

Farnsworth Co-authors Book Chapter on Political Humor

May 7, 2025 by Guest Author

Professor of Political Science and Director of the Center for Leadership and Media Studies Stephen Farnsworth

Stephen Farnsworth, professor of Political Science and director of the University’s Center for Leadership and Media Studies, is co-author of a book chapter, “Ridicule in Late-Night Political Humor in the United States: Contours and Consequences,” published in the Wiley Handbook of Social and Political Conflict.

Other recent media mentions for Farnsworth include:

Virginia GOP: John Reid Controversy (DC News Now)

“Well, for Virginia Republicans, this is bad news on top of that,” said Stephe Farnsworth.

https://www.dcnewsnow.com/news/capitol-review/virginia-gop-john-reid-controversy/

Youngkin’s record vetoes: a new approach to executive power, analysts say (Richmond Times-Dispatch)

In a way, the difference between Youngkin’s use of vetoes and the approach of earlier governors mirrors what’s been happening over the years in national politics, said Stephen Farnsworth, a political scientist at the University of Mary Washington. And in Virginia, he said, “Two things explain this trend: first is the growing Washingtonization, as Democrats and Republicans are increasingly distant from each other … the second is a move to outsiders in executive positions.”
https://richmond.com/news/state-regional/government-politics/article_9930e5b0-7bb1-4c21-8f60-0eb9f1ee8cdb.html

Future of retail marijuana market in Virginia likely depends on gubernatorial election (WHRO Public Media)
Political expert Stephen Farnsworth, a professor of political science at the University of Mary Washington and the director of its Center for Leadership and Media Studies, is skeptical that cannabis policy alone will drive voter turnout. However, he predicts Democrats will retain their majority in the House.
https://www.whro.org/virginia-government/2025-04-30/future-of-retail-marijuana-market-in-virginia-likely-depends-on-gubernatorial-election

President Donald Trump tests executive power in first 100 days (United Press International; Yahoo)
“The courts have already made it pretty clear that people in the country are entitled to due process, whether they’re in the country legally or not,” Stephen Farnsworth, political science professor at the University of Mary Washington in Virginia, told UPI.
https://www.upi.com/Top_News/US/2025/04/29/trump-first-100-days-immigration-education-tariffs/2081745948785/
https://www.yahoo.com/news/president-donald-trump-tests-executive-181348458.html

Trump marks 100 days in office of second term (CTV Canada)
“Well, nothing has been quiet at all in these 100 days. The Trump administration has reached across all kinds of policy areas, transgressed all kinds of lines in terms of the way Congress and the President usually work together and has so created an environment where there are a huge number of law suits and a huge number of questions about what happens to some of these policies going forward,” said Stephen Farnsworth.
https://review.bellmedia.ca/view/690263675

Youngkin asks John Reid to withdraw from Lt. Gov. race, could this impact the GOP in VA? (WJLA; Loudoun Times-Mirror)
University of Mary Washington political scientist Stephen Farnsworth said Republicans are fighting a national tide, and party infighting may cost them.
https://wjla.com/elections/virginia-lieutenant-governor-race-candidates-gop-republican-john-reid-campaign-social-media-full-interview-glenn-youngkin-winsome-sears-primary-election-day-nominee-scandal-politics-commonwealth
https://www.loudountimes.com/0local-or-not/2state/in-deepening-va-gop-crisis-reid-accuses-youngkin-pac-of-extortion/article_1e05b2c8-312d-4f89-bf17-385b67f4aae3.html

Democrats clash over approaches as party still searches for an identity (The National Desk; Komo News; WPDE; CBS Austin; KATV; ABC 45)
Strategies Stephen Farnsworth, a professor of political science at the University of Mary Washington, says, point toward the 2028 presidential election officially being underway. When you’re looking at the Democratic Governor’s in particular, they’re trying to make more of a name for themselves. They’re trying to reshape the vision of the party,” said Farnsworth.
https://thenationaldesk.com/news/americas-news-now/democrats-clash-over-approaches-party-still-searching-for-an-identity
https://komonews.com/news/nation-world/democrats-clash-over-approaches-party-still-searching-for-an-identity
https://wpde.com/news/nation-world/democrats-clash-over-approaches-party-still-searching-for-an-identity#
https://cbsaustin.com/news/nation-world/democrats-clash-over-approaches-party-still-searching-for-an-identity
https://katv.com/news/nation-world/democrats-clash-over-approaches-party-still-searching-for-an-identity
https://abc45.com/news/nation-world/democrats-clash-over-approaches-party-still-searching-for-an-identity

Swing state GOP in explosive disarray as Republican’s PAC is accused of extortion (MSN; Virginia Mercury; Yahoo; Royal Examiner)
Stephen Farnsworth, a political scientist at the University of Mary Washington, said the turmoil surrounding Reid’s candidacy highlights deeper challenges for Virginia Republicans heading into a critical election cycle. “The biggest challenge that you have as a first-time statewide candidate is getting your name out there in the public,” Farnsworth said. “That’s not going to be a problem for John Reid.” But, he cautioned, the downside is significant: “This controversy won’t help Reid or the Republican ticket.”
https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics/swing-state-gop-in-explosive-disarray-as-republican-s-pac-is-accused-of-extortion/ar-AA1DNtBr
https://virginiamercury.com/2025/04/28/in-deepening-va-gop-crisis-reid-accuses-youngkin-pac-of-extortion-is-a-legal-battle-ahead/
https://www.yahoo.com/news/deepening-va-gop-crisis-reid-220037292.html
https://royalexaminer.com/in-deepening-virginia-gop-crisis-reid-accuses-youngkin-pac-of-extortion-is-a-legal-battle-ahead/

Could Lt. Gov. furor give Republicans a do-over on N.Va. candidate? (Richmond Times-Dispatch)
“Republicans need somebody to speak to Northern Virginia and this ticket doesn’t really have that,” said Steve Farnsworth, director of the Center for Leadership and Media Studies at the University of Mary Washington in Fredericksburg. Youngkin’s effort to push Reid off the ticket could give Republicans a do-over with a candidate from Northern Virginia, but only if it works, Farnsworth said.
https://richmond.com/news/state-regional/government-politics/elections/article_22e38b52-9a34-4b01-9d23-603afd1ce8ba.html

Schapiro: Virginia GOP betting on a DEI ticket? (Richmond Times-Dispatch)
“Filling in the diversity box is not particularly more important for Republicans than the state of the Virginia economy this fall,” said Stephen Farnsworth, a political analyst at the University of Mary Washington and director of its Center for Media and Leadership Studies.
https://richmond.com/news/state-regional/government-politics/article_6de8b963-64a4-4a06-918c-27b787663219.html

Virginia’s future retail marijuana market likely depends on gubernatorial election (Virginia Business)
Political expert Stephen Farnsworth, a professor of political science at the University of Mary Washington and the director of its Center for Leadership and Media Studies, is skeptical that cannabis policy alone will drive voter turnout. However, he predicts Democrats will retain their majority in the House.
https://virginiabusiness.com/virginia-marijuana-retail-veto-youngkin-2025/

Senator Durbin’s exit seen as chance for generational shift in Democratic leadership (The National Desk; Fox 4 Beaumont; Baltimore Sun; News 4 San Antonio)
What Durbin is doing is helping create that generational shift in the party,” said Dr. Stephen Farnsworth, a professor of political science at the University of Mary Washington. Farnsworth believes a big challenge the Democrats face right now is an identity crisis.
https://thenationaldesk.com/news/americas-news-now/se-dick-durbin-d-il-not-seeking-reelection-could-accelerate-shift-in-democratic-party-david-hogg-joe-biden-younger-democrats-activist-dnc-leaders-we-deserve#
https://fox4beaumont.com/news/nation-world/se-dick-durbin-d-il-not-seeking-reelection-could-accelerate-shift-in-democratic-party-david-hogg-joe-biden-younger-democrats-activist-dnc-leaders-we-deserve
https://www.baltimoresun.com/2025/04/24/durbins-exit-seen-as-chance-for-generational-shift-in-democratic-leadership/
https://news4sanantonio.com/news/nation-world/se-dick-durbin-d-il-not-seeking-reelection-could-accelerate-shift-in-democratic-party-david-hogg-joe-biden-younger-democrats-activist-dnc-leaders-we-deserve#

Va. future retail marijuana market likely depends on gubernatorial election (Virginia Scope; The Patriot; The Virginian-Pilot)
Political expert Stephen Farnsworth, a professor of political science at the University of Mary Washington and the director of its Center for Leadership and Media Studies, is skeptical that cannabis policy alone will drive voter turnout. However, he predicts Democrats will retain their majority in the House.
https://www.virginiascope.com/va-future-retail-marijuana-market-likely-depends-on-gubernatorial-election/
https://pcpatriot.com/earle-sears-spanberger-split-on-cannabis-as-youngkin-vetoes-retail-sales/
https://www.pilotonline.com/2025/04/23/future-of-virginia-marijuana/

Foss Joins Editorial Board; Publishes Book with UVA Press

April 23, 2025 by Guest Author

Professor of English Chris Foss

Professor of English Chris Foss has accepted an invitation to serve on the editorial board of Ought: The Journal of Autistic Culture, which publishes interdisciplinary work, both scholarly and creative, authored by autistic people and allistic allies.

In addition, Foss published a new book with UVA Press titled The Importance of Being Different: Disability in Oscar Wilde’s Fairy Tales. See book.

Over the course of his remarkable career, Oscar Wilde published two volumes of fairy tales: The Happy Prince and Other Tales and A House of Pomegranates. Both collections feature numerous stories with protagonists who may be said to be disability-aligned, owing to their pronounced physical differences.

In Foss’s book he explores the way that Wilde’s stories problematically replicate many of the Victorian era’s typical responses to disability but also the ways they diverge, offering a more progressive orientation—both through more sympathetic identifications with disability-aligned characters and through a self-conscious foregrounding of the mechanisms of pity and the consumption of pain. The first ever monograph to examine Wilde’s work through a disability studies lens, this groundbreaking book encompasses all of his fairy tales as well as his writings during and after imprisonment. Even though Wilde unflinchingly represented the extent to which these peculiar bodies suffered rejection by society, he encouraged his readers to embrace them and to advocate for emotional responses that engage love and kindness toward both individual transformation and social change.

Foss will read from his newly published book on April 24 at 5:00 p.m. in Combs 139. He’ll talk about and read from the book for about 30 minutes and take questions from the audience. Refreshments provided.

: Foss’s newly published book, The Importance of Being Different: Disability in Oscar Wilde’s Fairy Tales

: Cover of Fall 2024 issue of Ought: The Journal of Autistic Culture

Barry’s NEH Research Grant Leads to Book Contract

April 23, 2025 by Guest Author

Assistant Professor of Religious Studies Jennifer Barry

Associate Professor of Religious Studies Jennifer Barry

Associate Professor of Religious Studies Jennifer Barry received the 2024 Summer National Endowment of the Humanities (NEH) Research Grant. Due to this highly competitive funding, she was able to develop materials to secure an advanced book contract for her third monograph, Scandalous Christian Histories, which will be published with the University of Edinburgh Press.

Barry was also recently quoted in the latest issue of Past Imperfect where she noted how much faculty, especially from teaching-focused institutions like Mary Washington, benefit from granting institutions like the NEH, which has been under increasing attack and many of its funding cut. There she noted that even smaller funds for the humanities allow faculty to use their summers to build research projects and how much the NEH has directly contributed to her productivity. Most importantly, this grant and other humanities focused funds help enrich the UMW classroom experience. To fund the humanities is to contribute to the core aims of a public liberal arts education.

Frankel Featured in Article by Bay Journal

April 23, 2025 by Guest Author

Assistant Professor of Earth and Environmental Sciences Tyler Frankel

Assistant Professor of Environmental Science Tyler Frankel was featured by Bay Journal in an article titled: Elevated Metals Found in James River Sediment Near Coal Ash Pits. The article states, Frankel began testing waters near coal ash storage sites a few years ago to help fill gaps in the data, he said. An aquatic toxicologist, Frankel wanted to understand whether elevated levels of trace metals associated with coal ash might be found in the sediment or fish of nearby rivers, even if they are no longer present in the surface water. Read the article.

Other recent media mentions for Frankel include:

Heavy Metals Found in James River, Near Power Plant, Raises New Questions (Chesapeake Bay Magazine)

Tyler Frankel, an associate professor of environmental science at the University of Mary Washington in Fredericksburg, began testing waters near coal ash storage sites a few years ago to help fill gaps in the data, he said.

https://www.chesapeakebaymagazine.com/heavy-metals-found-in-james-river-near-power-plant-raises-new-questions/

Segelken, Young and Pack Appear on WFVA to Discuss Career Resources

April 23, 2025 by Guest Author

Segelken, Young and Pack (from left) appear on WFVA to discuss career resources

Director of Continuing and Professional Programs Teresa Segelken, Associate Provost Career & Workforce Kimberly Young, and Associate Dean of Graduate Admissions Christy Pack got together to talk with NewsTalk 1230 WFVA’s Town Talk.

They spoke about UMW master’s level programs and opportunities for adult and nontraditional learners and announced a special half-day conference May 15 focusing on changing economic times. Listen to the episode.

Al-Tikriti Presents Paper at AUC Annual History Seminar in Cairo

April 23, 2025 by Guest Author

Professor of Middle East History Nabil Al-Tikriti @ AUC’s Oriental Hall

On April 11, 2025 Professor of Middle East History Nabil Al-Tikriti presented a paper titled “Gather a Retinue, Leave a Cultural Legacy: Şehzade Korkud’s (d. 1513) Court Patronage” in Cairo, Egypt.This paper, envisioned as an additional chapter for Dr. Al-Tikriti’s ongoing book profect on Prince Korkud, was presented at the American University in Cairo (AUC)Annual History Seminar, this year concentrating on “Entertainment in Middle East History: The Serious Business of Leisure and Fun.”

Prof. Al-Tikriti’s paper summarized the significance of the contributions Prince Korkud’s court patraonage left to Ottoman imperial culture in the early 16th century. This paper should next be turned into a chapter in the workshop proceedings, due later this year.

Dr. Al-Tikriti’s Presentation

The presentation abstract is as follows:

“Every Ottoman şehzade, at least through the end of the sixteenth century, gathered a miniature court retinue modeled on the padışāh’s court at Topkapı Sarayı. In addition to kapıkulu professionals serving both the imperial bureaucracy and the prince in question, such courts frequently carried on their payroll tutors, boon companions, poets, musicians, cooks, personal doctors, scholars, and anyone else thought to be of value. Just as princes competed with each other over access to state assets, tax revenues, assignments, and talented officials, through their entourage princes constantly tried to outdo one another in cultural patronage to demonstrate their centrality in the dynastic hierarchy.

Court patronage was an important marker of dynastic prestige, a sphere which ultimately served as an expression of political power. The composition of his retinue was one of the spheres where a prince possessed a great deal of personal discretion, judging from the great variation between different retinues in Şehzade Korkud’s (d. 1513) generation alone. For example, Şehzades ‘Abdullāh, Ahmed, and Mahmud each sponsored prominent poets, a standard level of princely involvement. In addition, Şehzade Selimşah, the celebrated Yavuz Selim, was remembered in his own right as a respectable Persian poet in the tez̲kire literature.

Korkud, in addition to patronizing famous poets such as Ġazālī (d. 1534), exceeded minimum expectations for princely court patronage by sponsoring works of poetry, history, military strategy, religious instruction, legal theory, and scientific inquiry. In addition, Korkud was not content to merely finance or provide logistical assistance for artistic and intellectual production. He was an active artist in his own right, producing a dīvān of poetry, musical compositions, and calligraphy, in addition to seven known scholarly treatises.

In my contribution, I will analyze Prince Korkud’s personal contribution to Ottoman arts, the artists whom he patronized and supported within his court, the artistic and cultural legacy of his court, and the role his courtly patronage played within the Ottoman political system of the day.”

Dr. Al-Tikriti wishes to thank the University of Mary Washington Provost and CAS Dean’s Office for their support of this presentation in the international Humanities. While in Cairo, Dr. Al-Tikriti explored potential future institutional cooperation and exchange in international education and study abroad.

Berrier Named a PCACAC Counselor of the Year

April 23, 2025 by Guest Author

Senior Admissions Counselor Carson Berrier

UMW’s own Carson Berrier ’22 was named one of Potomac and Chesapeake Association for College Admissions Counseling (PCACAC) Counselor of the Year. Berrier was nominated by her supervisors in the Office of Admissions for her unwavering dedication to graciously counseling students and families through the sometimes stressful admissions process. Berrier also diligently leads the Washington Guides program that provides campus tours to our prospective families.

Davidson Comments on Ukraine for LeDevoir

April 23, 2025 by Guest Author

Professor of Political Science and International Affairs Jason Davidson

Professor of Political Science and International Affairs Jason Davidson commented to LeDevoir in article titled: Is Ukraine entering NATO through the back door?

“Ukraine has three years of bloody experience in its fight against Russia, and this is an asset for NATO, which believes that Moscow now represents the most significant and direct threat to its members,” commented political scientist Jason Davidson, a researcher in international security at the University of Mary Washington in Virginia, in an interview. “Ukraine has managed to defend itself and, above all, has demonstrated remarkable innovation in its combat methods, for example, by using inexpensive drones for reconnaissance and munitions transport.” Read the article.

Mitchell Appears on ‘PS: I Love U(MW)’ Series

April 23, 2025 by Guest Author

Assistant Director of the Center for Student Transition, Access & Retention Services (STARS) Shanita Mitchell ‘12

Creative force and champion for all students, Assistant Director of the Center for Student Transition, Access, & Retention Services (STARS) Shanita Mitchell ‘12 goes beyond her role with @umwstars to inspire and support every corner of campus. Her passion extends to student organizations, which are open to all students, creating opportunities for everyone to thrive. She recently appeared on the University’s PS: I Love U(MW) social media series.

See the episode!

“A good portion of the whole college experience is just getting to learn who you are and being able to express those things in ways that you love.”

Next episode of P.S. I Love U(MW) drops May 6! Watch more episodes from PS: I love U(MW) on the @marywash Instagram.

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