Dept: President's Letter
Remaking the University0
Spring 2013
In the last issue of Virginia Magazine, I described the strategic planning process that was just beginning in Charlottesville. A few months later, we are seeing the first fruition of this work. Working groups drawn from faculty, staff, students, alumni and parents have reported their initial priorities in seven areas: faculty recruitment and retention; student life; technology; streamlining; resources; synergies; and what it means to be a public university in this century. We have held open forums on Grounds to encourage members of our community to express their ideas, and alumni and friends have submitted comments through the...
What’s Next for U.Va.?0
Winter 2012
In August 1818, Thomas Jefferson and several prominent colleagues gathered in a Rockfish Gap tavern in the Blue Ridge Mountains to produce a comprehensive plan for the University of Virginia. The Report of the Commissioners for the University of Virginia, commonly known as the Rockfish Gap report, spelled out the broad purposes of the institution, the location and physical arrangement of its buildings, the academic courses that would be taught by its professors, and other details of the University's future. Virginia's General Assembly reviewed the report that winter and, on January 25, 1819, formally established the University of Virginia...
Taking Stock of Summer0
Summer 2012
As you relax on a sunny beach or shady porch to read this summer issue of Virginia Magazine, you may suppose that the University closes its doors and takes a vacation at this time of year. We do encourage our students and faculty and staff members to take some time to rejuvenate during the summer months, but the Grounds still bustle with a broad range of academic, research, and recreational activity. Each summer, the University offers a rich selection of courses to thousands of students and lifelong learners through its Summer Session program. The Summer Session takes place...
Everything is Connected0
Spring 2012
One of the stories in this issue of Virginia Magazine describes the complex societal problems we are facing in our country and around the world as the human population surpasses seven billion. Another story describes the emergence of the University’s newest school, the Frank Batten School of Leadership and Public Policy, and its work to prepare a new type of policy leader through rigorous training in analysis, advocacy and leadership. Read the stories back to back, and you will understand why the Batten School is essential: our country and our world need a new generation of...
Shaping the Future0
Winter 2011
Teresa A. Sullivan Photo by Luca DiCecco One of the energizing aspects of daily life at U.Va. is the constant exposure to astonishing research, scholarship and other creative activities. Our faculty members are working at the leading edge of discovery to develop solutions to societal problems and to drive innovation in a multitude of disciplines. This work has real-world implications for all of us, because efforts under way now at U.Va. have the potential to improve human health, restore our environment, respond to natural disasters, and generally enhance the future that we—and our children and grandchildren...
The Second-Story Walk0
Fall 2011
Teresa A. Sullivan Photo by Luca DiCeccoThe cover story in this issue of Virginia describes the experience of living in the pavilions in the Academical Village. These original buildings, designed by Thomas Jefferson, give us a physical connection to the earliest days of the University, when the first professors and students converged on Charlottesville to give life to Jefferson’s great experiment in higher education. By Jefferson’s design, the first floors of the pavilions served as the classrooms, where faculty members and their student-neighbors came together to learn. Each of the early professors taught in a specific field —law,...
Balancing Priorities0
Spring 2011
Photo by Luca DiCeccoAlthough we are still feeling winter’s effects in Charlottesville, the spring semester is well under way. Students and teachers have returned to their classrooms and laboratories, while those of us with administrative duties are working to ensure a well-planned, productive 2011 for the University. Part of our work this year will focus on the alignment between the University’s priorities and the priorities for higher education identified by Virginia Governor Bob McDonnell. The thousands of alumni, parents and friends who live outside Virginia may know little about the governor’s work on this issue. The following paragraphs...
A Culture of Caring0
Winter 2010
In August, when I became the University’s eighth president, I joined a community whose culture and traditions are unique among American universities. Part of what attracted me to the job is the distinctive quality of the student experience here. A clearly defined group of core values characterizes life on these Grounds. Honor and ethics, leadership and service, diversity, and collaboration in the pursuit of knowledge—these are the foundational values on which our community is built. These values permeate every aspect of student and faculty life. By living these values, our students learn to become ethical, engaged public citizens....
HIGHLIGHTS
Charlottesville Then & Now
An interactive feature that compares scenes from the same spots in Charlottesville, nearly 100 years apart.
Make It Stick
Physics professor Lou Bloomfield sets out to fix a wobbly table and discovers a substance that might do much more.
Top 5 Lists
Want to know the top 5 hidden gems around Grounds? The all-time leading sports scorers? Top foods at the dining hall?
Unearthing Slavery at the University of Virginia
Recent discoveries on Grounds raise questions about the history of slavery.
Ed Roseberry’s Charlottesville
Look through a few of the thousands of photographs Ed "Flash" Roseberry has taken of Charlottesville since the 1940s.
Blue Books
The agony and ecstasy of final exams (including excerpts from real blue book exams).
Rethinking the Way We Learn
Professor Daniel Willingham knows why students don't like school— it's all in how the brain works.
Holsinger’s Charlottesville
Rufus W. Holsinger photographed Charlottesville at the turn of the 20th century, capturing the Rotunda fire and much more.
War Stories
Generations of alumni reflect on military life over the past century, sharing stories of world wars and major American operations in Asia and the Middle East.
What We Talk About When We Talk About Money
Logan Sachon (Col '05) writes openly and honestly about finances, a subject once considered taboo, on the website The Billfold.
