Summer wouldn’t be complete without the annual University of Mary Washington Seersucker Thursday. Began in the United States Congress in the 1990s, Seersucker Thursday was started as a tradition to recognize the past Southern U.S. history when seersucker, a light and breathable fabric, served in place of the yet to be invented air conditioning. At UMW, the tradition was started by Charles Tate at the Stafford campus when he decided that we could outshine Congress! And it seems that we are doing just that. Congress discontinued the tradition in 2012, but we will carry it on. Anyone is welcome to join in the tradition. Contact Charles Tate if you’d like to be added to the email list.
Staff Advisory Council Updates
Members of the Staff Advisory Council collecting school supply donations for local schools.
The Staff Advisory Council will be initiating two simultaneous campaigns beginning Aug. 4 and running through the month of August.
The first campaign is the annual School Supplies Drive, benefiting several area elementary schools. Among the items needed are pencils, spiral notebooks, erasers, crayons, glue sticks, tissues, and plastic bags. For a complete list of school supplies, visit http://www.walmart.com/classrooms/lists/57-Elementary-K-2nd-School-Supplies-List. Last year, the S.A.C. donated to four area elementary schools. School supplies will be stored on campus until Friday, Aug. 29, and then delivered on Monday, Sept. 1. All area schools begin on Tuesday, Sept. 2 this year.
Reminder ~ School supply/clothing Tax-Free days are Friday, Aug. 1 – 3. For further information about the Tax-Free weekend, visit http://www.tax.virginia.gov/site.cfm?alias=SchoolSuppliesAndClothingHoliday.
In addition to the School Supply Drive, we will be participating in WhyHunger’s Summer Food Program targeting our area children who have been fed at school during the school year, but may not have enough food during the summer months.
WhyHunger is a national organization striving to close the hunger gap between the close of school in the summer and beginning of school in the fall.
As we collect food, the S.A.C. Activities Committee will deliver the donations weekly to the following WhyHunger centers in our area:
- Bragg Hill Family Life Center
- Hazel Hill Complex
- Mayfield Civic Association
- Lafayette Upper Elementary
Current UMW donation locations are:
Fairfax House – HR
Jepson Alumni Executive Center
Lee Hall
Marye House
Eagle Village – 4th floor
GW – 3rd floor
Trinkle Hall, 2nd floor
Stafford Campus – South
Facilities Services – Lobby
To find out how you and your department can help, or to become a donation location, contact Priscilla Sullivan, S.A.C. Activities Chair at psulliva@umw.edu.
Tammy Pettus and Baldwin
The Eagle Has Landed
Baldwin’s latest victim is Tammy Pettus. Check out sac.umwblogs.org for more details on this initiative.
Stafford Campus Blood Drive, Sept. 10
The American Red Cross will be sponsoring a blood drive at the Stafford Campus on Wednesday, Sept. 10. The drive will take place in University Hall from 1-5 p.m. All those who donate will automatically be entered into a raffle for a chance to win a Tailgate Party Gift Basket right in time for the beginning of football season. To make an appointment to donate, please contact Kevin Caffrey at kcaffrey@umw.edu or 540-286-8008.
UMW Student Chosen as Shawn Carter Scholar
Ebony Dixon, a University of Mary Washington political science and theater double major, was selected as a Shawn Carter Scholar for the 2014-2015 academic year.
Shawn Carter — better known as rapper Jay-Z — provides yearly grants from $1,500 to $2,500 to help college students pay for tuition and other educational expenses through his foundation.
“This scholarship means the world to me,” said Dixon, who is a senior from Alexandria, Virginia. “I am especially thankful because it was unexpected and I was selected from a competitive pool of applicants.”
According to the Shawn Carter Foundation website, this program was created to give individuals facing socio-economic hardships the opportunity to further their education. Dixon has personally overcome several obstacles while obtaining her degree, including the death of her father.
“I continued to go to school despite my financial and academic struggles,” Dixon said. “The largest tragedy I had to overcome, which I still haven’t fully recovered from, was the death of my father in 2012. Continuing my education showed them that I was very resilient and determined.”
All Shawn Carter Scholars are required to give back by conducting community service and by serving as mentors to younger, aspiring Shawn Carter Scholars.
Dixon plans to join the Peace Corps after graduation and eventually seek her master of fine arts degree. She has aspirations of becoming a playwright.
UMW Galleries to Host Two New Exhibitions
Title: Supersonic .22 Bullet Shadowgraph
by Andrew Davidhazy, archival ink jet print, 12 x 17 inches.
The University of Mary Washington Galleries will debut two new exhibitions to begin the new school year. The Ridderhof Martin Gallery will show The [Visual] Poetry of Logical Ideas and Melchers Gray Purchase Award Showcase, in duPont Gallery. The exhibitions open on Thursday, Sept. 4 with a reception from 5 to 7 p.m. in each gallery. Admission to the receptions and exhibitions are free and open to the public, the exhibitions will run from Sept. 4 to Oct. 5.
The main gallery of Ridderhof Martin features artwork that uses mathematical principles, The [Visual] Poetry of Logical Ideas explores the relationship between rationality and beauty- between the perfection of a conceptual form and the visual pleasure it manifests. This gallery will also exhibit the Arthur Hash: Wearable Objects. Hash’s recent works utilize digital fabrication technologies, such as 3-D printing, which will be showcased in the exhibit.
Opening in duPont Gallery is the Melchers Gray Purchase Award Showcase, a retrospective of all the outstanding student recipients of this award. Each year, artworks are purchased from students by the UMW Galleries and become part of its permanent collection. Since the founding of the Purchase Award in 1995, the Galleries have collected over 20 paintings, photographs, sculptures, and multimedia works by students which will be shown together for the very first time.
Center for Deployment Psychology Training, Aug. 19
Dear Colleagues,
The University of Mary Washington will host the Center for Deployment Psychology on Tuesday, August 19, 2014 for an interactive training on the topic of increasing our level of awareness, service and collaboration between departments when working with veteran students. We would like to extend an invitation to all faculty, staff and community members who are interested in understanding the concerns, challenges, and experiences of veterans attending college. Although this training targets college counseling centers, all faculty and staff who interact and support our student veterans will benefit from the training.
Service members and veterans attending college often face unique clinical and cultural challenges. With focused education on the intersection of military and campus experiences, university and college mental health providers can offer improved care, with greater competency, to military-connected undergraduates.
Curriculum includes interactive, didactic, and workshop components that address multicultural understanding of service members and veterans, campus-specific challenges, deployment cycle stressors, outreach discussion and workshop, and an overview of evidence-based treatment of PTSD appropriate for counseling center work.
6.5 hours of continuing education credits are offered for licensed mental health and behavioral health providers attending the program for a fee of $25 to be paid at the door. Please follow the link below to register for this training:
http://www.deploymentpsych.org/training/uc4-university-mary-washington-va-19-aug-2014
http://www.deploymentpsych.org/uc4
Please direct any questions regarding the training to:
Daniel Nelson
dnelson@umw.edu
(540)654-1647
Date: Tuesday, August 19, 2014
Location: Monroe 116
Time: 8 a.m. – 5 p.m.
Sincerely,
Nicole Surething, Ph.D.
Director, UMW CAPS
UMW Announces Recipient of Citizenship and Diversity Award
Cara Wimberley of Blacksburg, Virginia, has been named the 2014-2015 recipient of the University of Mary Washington’s Citizenship Award for Diversity Leadership.
The annual award is given to a rising senior enrolled as a full-time student in an undergraduate degree program at UMW. The student must maintain high academic standards, possess characteristics of leadership and make a personal commitment to advocating an appreciation for diversity and inclusion on campus.
As the award recipient, Wimberley will serve as an active spokesperson for diversity inclusion, a peer mentor to students and a voice for underrepresented populations.
“Cara recently spent a semester abroad at Al-Ahliyya Amman University in Jordan studying Arabic and taking other courses about Middle Eastern culture and history,” said Marion Sanford, director of multicultural affairs. “The experience opened her eyes to many global, social and political issues and further enhanced her leadership skills, as well as increased her understanding of different cultural environments.”
During her UMW career, the psychology major and linguistics and Middle Eastern studies minor served as secretary and vice president of People for the Rights of Individuals of Sexual Minorities (PRISM) and participated in the Cross-Cultural BBQ, Arab Culture Night, Day of Silence and Multicultural Fair. Wimberley will be a peer mentor in the InterLink Mentor Program with the Center for International Education this year.
“Her studies at UMW and abroad have encouraged her to work toward causes that promote diversity, equality, social justice and cultural awareness,” Sanford said. “Cara’s UMW and study abroad experiences have taught her that being a leader means learning about diverse identities and cultures in order to best understand the richness of community.”
Wimberley plans to use the Citizenship Award for Diversity Leadership as an opportunity to address social justice and diversity issues that impact members of the UMW community and beyond. She aspires to continue these efforts after graduating.
News from HR
To see upcoming professional development courses, visit the Human Resources What’s New page.
Farewell From Sally Scott
Dear UMW community,
As I wrap up my final week at the university I want to thank each of you for your kindness, collaboration, and support. It’s been a fast five years! I am taking on a new professional venture working with our national professional group, the Association on Higher Education and Disability. I will be remaining nearby in the Richmond area and hope to stay in touch.
Best wishes!
Sally
Show Fredericksburg that UMW Cares
On September 26, the United Way will be coordinating a one-day mobilization of volunteers from the business communities in the City of Fredericksburg and surrounding area– also known as the Day of Caring. Volunteers will be matched with non-profit organizations, social services, and schools to complete vital projects in the Greater Fredericksburg area.
Last year, volunteers from multiple divisions formed a team and took part in the Day of Caring and we served 3 different agencies – Hope House, Micah, and Hartwood Elementary School!
This year, I would like to invite all divisions at UMW to take part. Every employee is allotted 16 hours of service every year. Not only is this a way to encourage employees to use those hours but also to bond as a co-workers across the university.
If you are interested in volunteering for a full or half day, please fill out the registration form on OrgSync: https://orgsync.com/59560/forms/79478
Please register by August 12 at 5:30 p.m.!!