Future educators began filling its classrooms and meeting spaces this semester, but a ribbon-cutting ceremony yesterday made it official: Seacobeck Hall is the new home of the University of Mary Washington’s College of Education and Office of Disability Resources. A years-long renovation transformed the building – which served as a dining hall for decades – into a state-of-the-art learning facility to primarily nurture budding teachers.

“It’s so much more than a building. It’s about what happens in here,” Virginia Secretary of Education Aimee Rogstad Guidera said during the event. “People gathering, connecting, working together… and helping people prepare for life matters so much to the health of our communities and to the future of the Commonwealth and the future of this world.”

UMW President Troy Paino, College of Education Dean Pete Kelly, Board of Visitors Rector Heather M. Crislip ’95 and Chief of Staff Jeff McClurken also spoke, as did Mary Washington junior Katya Stafira, who is studying special education.

“You’re actually able to put yourself in the space of being a real teacher,” Stafira said of Seacobeck’s specialized rooms and dynamic details that help students see themselves leading a classroom from the start of their education. The Office of Disability Resources, formerly located in Anne Carter Lee Hall, now has more space, including rooms for students who require more time for test-taking. Read more.