Fall 2021
Features
The Class of 2025 in Their Own Words
Excerpts from admission essays for incoming first-years
The Legend of UVA’s First Olympic Medal
A tale of performance-enhancing good manners, how nice guy James Rector had his 100 meters dashed.
UVA Sports Comes Back a Winner in Year of COVID
After a season shortened by COVID-19, UVA sports came back to claim multiple national championships and extend the post-season to Tokyo.
The Newest ’Hoos: Who They Are and How They Got Here
How admissions officers built the Class of 2025—by the numbers, by the essays and by the seat of their pants.
’Hoos in Tokyo
Here’s a look at our most recent Olympians: current and former UVA athletes and coaches who competed in the delayed 2020 Olympic Games.
New Faces at the Helm
With plans to extend UVA’s reach beyond Grounds, new deans are leading three UVA schools.
UVA Takes Down a Statue, Takes Up Free Speech
A series of Board-approved actions seeks to reclaim the historic landscape and the higher ground on civil discourse.
When Student Activist Sabato Dug in for Clemons
The grassroots campaign that convinced the General Assembly to fund a badly-needed new library.
From President Ryan: Bridging Distances on Grounds
The Emmet-Ivy Corridor, a parcel of land larger than the Lawn, will bridge Central and North Grounds and the Athletic Precinct, and become the University’s new geographic center.
Study improves understanding of rare seizure-caused deaths
Researchers now have a better understanding of why this rare complication often occurs during sleep.
New evidence of bias found in predictive healthcare tools
Tools used in intensive care units overestimate the risk of death for all patients, but particularly for Black and Hispanic patients.
High-quality tutoring effective at offsetting pandemic learning losses
Frequent tutoring with experienced teachers or volunteers, personalized instruction, and a positive, mentoring relationship between tutor and student can close learning gaps for students from lower-income families.
Following minds where they wander
Freely-moving, undirected thoughts have a distinct electrophysiological “signature” which can be seen by measuring brainwaves.
Autism spectrum disorder looks different in girls’ and boys’ brains
Researchers advise caution in drawing conclusions about girls from research conducted primarily with boys.
Adding complexity when we should be subtracting it
Less is often more, but not when it comes to problem-solving and solution-seeking, when our brains default toward additive rather than subtractive changes.
Dean of Students Allen Groves leaves legacy of enthusiasm, compassion
After touching the lives of tens of thousands of students over more than a decade, Groves left in June for a new adventure.
Letters to the Editor: Fall 2021
Readers share their thoughts on past issues.
From the Editor
Editor Richard Gard provides a preview of the Fall magazine.
What was your favorite movie while you were on Grounds?
From across the decades, the flicks that resonated most with alumni during their time on Grounds.
