Category: What’s New @ UMW

Free Gallery Admission for “Add Your Voice,” Saturday, Jan. 15, 10 a.m. – 5 p.m.
Gari Melchers Home and Studio invites the public to react and respond to its “New Reality:  The Frontier of Realism in the 21st Century” exhibition in a dynamic and fun way. What do you think about a particular painting?  Write it down, record it, or photograph it, and let your voice be heard!  Respond to other people’s posts to create a real-time, interactive display.  Appropriate for all ages; reservations not necessary.
224 Washington St., Falmouth. 540/654-1015; garimelchers.org.

Preschool Palette is a new early childhood program especially for children ages 3-5.  The workshop introduces art and art museums to young children through developmentally appropriate activities, including a visit to Gari Melchers’ studio and art gallery and a chance to explore ideas through a variety of materials and techniques. 

Printable Flyer and Schedule:
http://www.umw.edu/gari_melchers/education/documents/preschoolpaletteflyer.pdf

Torre Meringolo, Vice President for Advancement and University Relations, has announced a reorganization of Alumni Relations that is in line with feedback received at regional alumni events across the country and supportive of a key recommendation of the UMW Strategic Plan to “actively recruit alumni to participate in . . . the life of the University, and maintaining a strong, active relationship with the alumni as invested and on-going partners in the institution’s identity and future.”
The position of Director of National Alumni Engagement has been created following the model found in other leading universities and colleges. The primary purpose of this position will be to develop local alumni networks in regions of the country with large UMW alumni populations. Core groups of alumni volunteers will be identified in these areas in order to build a strong, national network. The impact of the initiative will be multiplied by this volunteer network as new opportunities for alumni engagement are identified in areas such as admissions, career services, and fund raising.
Cindy Snyder has agreed to serve as the University’s first Director of National Alumni Engagement. She brings to this position a deep appreciation and knowledge of the UMW alumni community. A national search will be commenced early in the new year for a new Director of Alumni Relations, and Cindy will remain in her current position until the search process is complete.
Additionally, in order to gain greater organizational efficiencies and support for the totality of alumni responsibilities, both positions will report to Ken Steen, Associate Vice President for Advancement.

UMW Libraries is pleased to announce the digitization of the university’s yearbook The Battlefield. Volumes from 1913-2010 are now in full color and searchable from cover-to-cover. The public can view the digital format of The Battlefield online through the Internet Archive.

Alumni and the campus community will have ready access to former college days through these online volumes with pages relating to sports, clubs, faculty members, advertisements, and Mary Washington traditions. Campus and historical events affecting students and the local community can now also be easily researched online. Only editions for 1908-1912 and 1918 are unavailable online as The Battlefield was not published during those years.

The site allows for multiple methods of researching the history of the university. The user can page through a book choosing the “read online” option, download the entire yearbook in PDF format, and search the full text version.

This exciting project was made possible through the LYRASIS Mass Digitization Collaborative, a Sloan Foundation grant-subsidized program, LYRASIS’ scanning partner Internet Archive, and UMW Libraries. LYRASIS is the nation’s largest regional non-profit membership organization serving libraries. Through this collaborative partnership, digitization is easier and affordable for libraries and cultural institutions across the country.