Patricia Lampkin and Wayne Cozart at Pavilion V
Pavilion V
Patricia Lampkin, vice president and chief student affairs officer
One Lawn family has bounced around a bit more than others. They lived in Pavilion VIII from 1988 to 1992; in Pavilion III from 2005 to 2008; and in Pavilion V since 2008. Their children, born while the family lived in Pavilion VIII, probably consider it normal to have grown up in a UNESCO World Heritage site.
Pavilion V, with its impressive six-columned portico, is by far their favorite—“although I would say, when we were in Pavilion VIII, that it more than suited our needs,” says Pat Lampkin (Educ ‘86). But for entertaining, their current home wins hands down. “It’s the most commodious and the kitchen is on the main floor,” adds Lampkin’s husband, Wayne Cozart, vice president of development for the U.Va. Alumni Association. Pavilion III, which was originally the largest of the pavilions, is now the smallest; it doesn’t have an addition, and a flight of narrow steps connects its basement kitchen with the dining room on the first floor.
Each pavilion is quite different on the inside, but they all possess the same inimitable quality. Tenants often remark on it. “The size and height of the rooms and Jeffersonian features make it a very calm and pleasant environment,” says Cozart. “When I come home, my anxiety level drops by half.”
With their unprecedented record of pavilion hopping, the couple is often quizzed by other faculty who are considering the invitation to live on the Lawn. Says Cozart: “We ask them what they want or enjoy when they come home,” and how they answer that question usually indicates whether they will like or loathe the arrangement.
The couple has always considered their first floor to be public space, available for classes and special functions, some of which have slipped into annual tradition. “The event that we try to do every year is a midnight breakfast for Lawn residents during exam week,” says Lampkin. The menu varies, but not the hungry hordes. “The group usually broadens beyond Lawn residents, but we try to provide a home-cooked breakfast,” she says.
Pavilion VI
Bob Sweeney, senior vice president for development and public affairs
When Bob Sweeney opens his pavilion to visitors, he likes to open all of it—all three floors. “So people get the flavor of it,” he says. There isn’t a careful division between public and private. If he sees a tourist or total stranger looking in, he often surprises them by asking, “Would you like to see what it looks like?”
By his own reckoning, he has hosted more than 60 events in his pavilion this year. “You might think that because of my job it would primarily be donors, but I have almost as many students and faculty groups, programs and classes in my house.”
Equally impressive? “I don’t have a housekeeper,” he says. “I clean up.”
PAVILION FACT
Selection Process
The selection process for the pavilions was originally done by drawing lots. In recent times, it has followed an order of precedence that the Board of Visitors devised for a fair and equitable procedure.
- Priority is given to the provost, the vice president and chief student affairs officer, and any vice president nominated by the president and agreed to by the board. Thereafter, preference is given to academic deans in the order of the founding of their 11 schools, followed by full professors.
- The Pavilion VIII apartments follow a different procedure. Junior faculty are encouraged to apply and a three-person committee (consisting of the secretary of the board, chair of the Faculty Senate and student recipient of the Gray-Carrington Award) nominates a candidate to the board.
Next: Pavilions VII and VIII »
Comments
These are pretty incredible spaces! Thank you for sharing so much about them. I hope to have the opportunity to tour them someday.
Thank you for this interesting, personal insight on the pavilions, which are a unique treasure that are appreciated not just by those who have the honor of living there. This was truly enjoyable for me to read and I'm sure for others.
This is a wonderful article. However, I am extremely disappointed the University is restoring the chimneys in the Lawn rooms. I'm all for tradition when it's not outdated, but I believe the Lawn's cultural and historic status means the only responsible course was to ban student fires. Doing otherwise neglects our responsibilities as stewards of the this World Heritage Site (which the U. shares with Monticello). As such, the U. has "outstanding universal value." How can we allow an outdated tradition to endanger such an irreplaceable site (even when it's somewhat protected by sprinklers?). The importance of the academical village by far outweighs a few individuals' desire for a fire in their room. This is an extremely irresponsible and short-sighted decision.
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