June 29, 2026

EagleEye

A Newsletter for UMW Faculty and Staff

Larus Comments on Indian Prime Minister’s Visit to the U.S.

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Professor Emerita of Political Science and International Affairs Elizabeth Larus

Professor Emerita of Political Science and International Affairs Elizabeth Larus

Elizabeth Freund Larus, Professor Emerita of Politics and International Affairs and Adjunct Fellow at the Pacific Forum, offered commentary to

WION News on Indian Prime Minister Modi’s visit to the U.S. Professor Larus indicated that Modi’s visit had both economic and defense components. After meeting titans of U.S. industry in New York, Modi was treated to a state dinner and addressed a joint session of Congress. The threat of a more aggressive China in the Indo-Pacific is drawing India closer to the U.S. Professor Larus’ comments begin at 17 minutes into the program.
Larus also spoke recently on Modi’s visit to News X for a piece titled “India-U.S. Defence Dynamic Is Strengthening’ | Elizabeth Larus On Bilateral Bid To Counter China.” On the segment, Larus says, “This is Modi’s sixth visit to the United States but it is actually the first time that he going to be treated to a state dinner in Washington.” Watch the segment.

Farnsworth Comments on Virginia Primaries

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Professor of Political Science Stephen Farnsworth

Professor of Political Science Stephen Farnsworth kept an eye on the recent Virginia primary with comments in numerous publications and broadcasts, including the Washington Post, Free-Lance Star, Richmond Times-Dispatch, WUSA, WTOP. Read more.

For additional stories see:

GOP urges Republicans in Fairfax and Loudoun counties to vote in Democratic primary

GOP urges Republicans in Fairfax and Loudoun counties to vote in Democratic primary

Control of Virginia’s Senate may fall on District 27; Here’s who’s running to try and win the seat

Will the center hold in N.Va. primaries in a wave of change?

A guide to Northern Virginia’s Democratic primaries for Commonwealth’s Attorney

Insider-outsider Va. GOP primary fight will test Youngkin’s staying power

Hauser and Berge Talk Digital Creation at Open Ed Conference

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Shannon Hauser and Cartland Berge share their initiatives empowering digital creators at Reclaim Open. Photo by Tom Woodward

Director Cartland Berge and Associate Director Shannon Hauser, both of UMW’s Digital Knowledge Center (DKC), presented at Reclaim Open, a conference focused on leveraging the open nature of the web for education. Their talk highlighted DKC initiatives that give UMW students opportunities to practice digital creation and share knowledge with other students, including student-led workshops, fellowships, and employment opportunities. Hauser also sat on a panel discussing the benefits of web-building platforms like UMW’s Domain of One’s Own and Sites@UMW programs. The presentations can be viewed at the links below:  

Empowering Students to be Digital Creators 

Domain of One’s Own and WordPress Multisite – Better Together! 

Larus Comments on BBC Chinese on Blinken’s Beijing Visit

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Professor Emerita of Political Science and International Affairs Elizabeth Freund Larus

Elizabeth Freund Larus, Ph.D., Professor Emerita of Political Science and International Affairs and Adjunct Fellow at the Pacific Forum, commented to BBC Chinese on the advent of U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken’s visit to Beijing. Professor Larus indicated low expectations for the visit, stating that Washington and Beijing still disagree on key issues, including China’s increased military activity near Taiwan, disputes in the South China Sea, China’s support of Russia in the Ukraine war, trade and intellectual property disputes, and U.S. limits on the export of sensitive technology to China. She indicated that the Biden administration desired the meeting more than China’s leaders, a fact that was not lost on Beijing. Blinken cancelled his planned trip to Beijing after China’s spy balloon drifted over the U.S. It has taken several months to get the bilateral talks back on track, and largely at the U.S. initiative, making Blinken appear more as a supplicant than as an equal. Professor Larus stressed, however, that the two powers need to talk, particularly to avoid misunderstandings or accidents near Taiwan. Read more.

 

 

Grothe’s Climate Change Insight Blasts Through Media

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Assistant Professor of Earth and Environmental Sciences Pamela Grothe

Assistant Professor of Earth and Environmental Sciences Pamela Grothe

Assistant Professor of Earth and Environmental Sciences Pamela Grothe spoke to The Richmond Times-Dispatch for an article titled “One scientist drills into the past to figure out ocean warming.” Grothe is working to understand how much of these El Niño temperature surges are related to the warming climate. Read more.

Grothe received more than 70 media mentions related to the article, including News & Advance, NWI.Com, Kenosha News, Billings Gazette, Tucson.com, WFMZ, Independent Tribune, Bristol Herald Courier, The Post Star, The Bismark Tribune, Tulsa World and Newsbreak.

Harris Published in ‘White House History Quarterly’

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University of Mary Washington Museums Executive Director Scott Harris

University of Mary Washington Museums Executive Director Scott Harris

University of Mary Washington Museums Executive Director Scott Harris’ piece, “The New York City Death and Burial of President James Monroe,” which traces a series of temporary entombments that ultimately took the fifth president’s remains from New York to Virginia, is included in the new issue of White House History Quarterly – The White House and New York. The issue explores the historical connections between New York City and the White House from the first Oath of Office to the present day. Take a look at the publication.

Swerzenski Comments on Image Manipulation in ‘Elle’

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Assistant Professor of Communication and Digital Studies James Swerzenski

Assistant Professor of Communication and Digital Studies James Swerzenski

Assistant Professor of Communication and Digital Studies James Swerzenski spoke to Elle magazine for an article titled “When Did Everyone’s Skin Get So Damn Smooth?” Swerzenski said that while the early 2000s were instrumental in shaping how we perceive our skin—largely because of the rise of technology like Photoshop, which was used by photographers to perfect the images people saw in mass media—it’s important to recognize such phenomena in context. “I think often these conversations can get an ‘okay, Boomer’ tone,” he said. “There are so many incidents throughout history of people in dark rooms, messing with photos and changing and altering them.” Read more.

Schiffrin Shares Parenting Research With MSN

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Professor of Psychological Science Holly Schiffrin

Professor of Psychological Science Holly Schiffrin

Professor of Psychology Holly Schiffrin contributed to an article titled “Science Suggests Parents Are Taking Parenting Too Far” on MSN.com. “When I was in college, there was no parental involvement unless there was some kind of crisis,” she said in the piece. “It’s just a really different level of involvement now. Parents are giving kids feedback on their papers, or emailing or calling me and other faculty members. It’s not every student, but it’s shocking that it happens at all.” Read more.

Farnsworth Quoted on Politics in ‘The Washington Post’

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Professor of Political Science Stephen Farnsworth

Professor of Political Science Stephen Farnsworth

Professor of Political Science Stephen Farnsworth was featured for his expertise in a piece titled “Reform-minded prosecutors in Northern Virginia face primary challenges.” It appeared in The Washington Post, NBC 4, U.S. News, Bollyinside, WTVR,  WMAL and Fox News. In the piece, Farnsworth cautioned against drawing sweeping conclusions from a primary that historically draws only a narrow slice of the electorate. Still, he said if voters were to reject reform incumbents, it would be noteworthy. Read more.

Farnsworth also received other recent media mentions, including:

‘Virginia has made it a lot easier’: Early voting underway through June 17 (RVA HUB)
“That’s a big change from the way it used to be in Virginia,” said Stephen Farnsworth, political science professor and director of the University of Mary Washington Center for Leadership and Media Studies. “Where most of the votes were cast on election day, that’s just no longer the case here.”
https://rvahub.com/2023/05/31/virginia-has-made-it-a-lot-easier-early-voting-underway-through-june-17th/