A Newsletter for UMW Faculty and Staff
Grace Anne. May 30, 2007.
© 2007 Scott K Brown Photography inc.
Longtime UMW Dining employee and Panera cashier Grace Anne Braxton took the silver medal in golf at the Special Olympics World Games in Berlin. Learn more at Fredericksburg Today and see photos at Special Olympics Virginia.
Krista Rodgers
Krista Rodgers claimed C2C Female Senior Scholar-Athlete of the Year honors after leading the Eagles to the C2C volleyball championship and to the third round of the NCAA Tournament, gaining AVCA honorable mention accolades, and graduating with a 3.88 cumulative GPA. Read more.
As a University of Mary Washington student, Sean Simons ’13 spent two years working in the Office of the President on campus, where he got to know countless alumni who supported him on his journey to become one of the youngest congressional aides on Capitol Hill.
“I made a pledge that I’d someday return the favor and give back to the University that gave me so much,” said Simons, who went on to shape former U.S. Congresswoman Gabby Giffords and U.S. Sen. Mark Kelly’s gun violence prevention organization. Read more.
Continuing and Professional Studies at the University of Mary Washington has launched a series of seminars for local businesses and professionals to invest in developing their leadership skills over six months.
The Business Acumen Series will consist of mostly monthly one-day seminars for regional businesses and organizations. Each scheduled event will cover a business acumen or leadership-related topic, such as negotiating solutions, building a culture of innovation, and skills for the adaptive leader. Read more.
Junior three-time All-America swimmer Kinsey Brooks (Lake St. Louis, Mo.) has been named as the 2022-23 University of Mary Washington Female Athlete of the Year. Read more.
Senior men’s soccer All-America selection Josh Kirkland (Richmond, Va.) and senior men’s basketball All-America Greg Rowson (Fairfax, Va.) have been named co-winners of the 2022-23 University of Mary Washington Male Athlete of the Year. Read more.
The University of Mary Washington athletic department finished 40th among 432 NCAA Division III schools in the final Learfield Director’s Cup standings for the 2022-23 year. The finish is the Eagles’ highest since 2009-10, when they finished 39th, and is the program’s eighth-highest finish since the program began in 1995-96. UMW accumulated 453 points this year. Read more.
A new UMW initiative, Eagles Let’s Talk, offers support, education and conversation to support student-athletes’ mental health.
When student-athletes sign up to compete at the collegiate level, they have a goal – to play the game and win. All too often, mental health takes a back seat. That’s where Eagles Let’s Talk comes in.
The program aims to help the University of Mary Washington’s more than 525 student-athletes – from soccer and lacrosse players to swimmers and equestrians – identify and discuss stressors that could affect their performance in the classroom or on the field. Spearheaded by UMW Assistant Athletic Trainer Katie Carnaghi, the initiative lays out a full game plan, with monthly meetings, timely topics like nutrition and stress management, and most of all, a safe space for sharing concerns and conversation.
“It really does make such a difference to have an open and safe environment that allows people to feel comfortable to talk about the tough stuff,” said senior Krista Rogers, a volleyball player and Student-Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC) member who helped get Eagles Let’s Talk off the ground. Read more.
SCHEV’s Senior Associate for Assessment Policy and Analysis Jodi Fisler tells the group, “Civic engagement is complex. There are so many dimensions to it, and moving pieces.” (Sam Cahill photo)
University of Mary Washington has a long commitment to community and civic engagement, encouraging students to get involved in the broader community through service, volunteerism, community-engaged classes, and civic learning. In fact, civic engagement is a leading goal in UMW’s strategic vision and a realization of the public purpose on our mission. A statewide conversation brought these topics to the forefront on June 5, 2023, as the State Council of Higher Education for Virginia (SCHEV) hosted the “Day of Dialogue” at Mary Washington.
“We appreciate the work that each and every one of you do,” said UMW President Troy D. Paino. “Civic learning and student engagement are where our schools live their public purpose, while offering our students a chance to explore what gives their lives meaning and purpose.”
The annual event, just in its second year, brought together some 75 higher education leaders to share ideas. The goal was to explore best practices for community and civic engagement, including ways to foster respectful dialogue on campus. Participants also explored issues related to evaluating civic engagement and strategies for engaging students in this important work. Read more.
Filiz Tabak joins the University of Mary Washington July 10, 2023, as dean of the College of Business.
Organizational leadership isn’t just a scholarly discipline for Filiz Tabak. It’s also a specialty she has successfully practiced over the past 28 years in the College of Business & Economics at Towson University – as a faculty member, graduate program director, department chair and, most recently, acting associate dean.
Now Tabak brings that expertise to the University of Mary Washington, where she’ll become dean of the College of Business (COB) starting July 10.
She already has a plan for her first few months on campus – to learn the strengths, experiences and passions of the faculty she’ll lead and the UMW students she’ll help educate. At the same time, she plans to connect with the COB Advisory Board, the deans of UMW’s College of Arts and Sciences and College of Education, and others in the campus community, “to see what we can accomplish together.” Read more.