University of Mary Washington

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The University of Mary Washington (formerly Mary Washington College) is a coeducational, selective, state-funded, four-year liberal arts college and a member of the Council of Public Liberal Arts Colleges in Fredericksburg, Virginia. Located between Richmond and Washington, DC, the university enjoys and services an emerging dynamic region. The university's beautiful undergraduate campus serves 4,183 students and its graduate campus has 679 degree-seeking students.

[edit] History

Founded in 1908 as the State Normal and Industrial School for Women, the college was renamed Mary Washington College in 1938 after Mary Ball Washington, mother of the first president of the United States of America, George Washington.

In 1944 the college became associated with the University of Virginia as its school for women. Following the university's transition to coeducational status in 1970, the Virginia General Assembly reorganized Mary Washington College in 1972 as a separate, coeducational institution. Today UMW is the nation's only public, coeducational college named after a secular woman.

Effective July 1, 2004, the institution legally became the University of Mary Washington, after approval by the General Assembly of Virginia. The institution sought university status to reflect the addition of master's degree programs and increasing enrollment at its College of Graduate and Professional Studies, formerly the James Monroe Center for Graduate and Professional Studies, located in nearby Stafford County. Students can earn an MBA, M.Ed., MSMIS, MBA-MSMIS dual degree, BPS or other graduate certificates or professional certifications.

On June 30, 2006, Dr. William Anderson retired after 23 years as the institution's president. On February 17, 2006 the UMW Board of Visitors had selected William Frawley, Dean of the Columbian College of Arts and Sciences at The George Washington University, as the next president of the University. Dr. Frawley's presidency began on July 1, 2006. He was officially inaugurated on September 30, 2006.

On April 11th, 2007, Dr. Frawley was arrested on DUI charges for two consecutive offenses. After a unanimous vote from the Board of Visitors, he was dismissed effective immediately.^[2] Currently, Richard V. Hurley serves as Acting President. The Presidential search Committee hopes to announce its choice for president in Spring.

[edit] Campus

Most of the architecture on the Mary Washington campus can be described as neoclassical, Georgian, or Jeffersonian (because of its similarity to Thomas Jefferson's design of the University of Virginia). Beautifully sited, the university showcases panoramas of Fredericksburg while embodying the utopian city on the hill.

The university's grounds are a fusion of multiple Western landscape traditions. Campus Walk, the spine of the campus, is mainly formal, incorporating both French and Italian schools. The highly organized walkway runs from the gym, through an arcade, columnade, several piazzas, and is crowned by the recently completed campanile. Along its sides, numerous meandering paths weave through gardens and woods in an English fashion.

The Greek Doric order is used in the amphitheatre whereas the Corinthian Order supports the cornice of Monroe Hall. The recently restored Dodd Auditorium features richly painted and carved woodwork while murals and domes characterize the lobbies preceding it. Inside Ball Hall, one is greeted by an open domed atrium with curved stairways and multiple parlors, complete with embellished fireplaces. Straddling Ball, two smaller dormitories, Madison and Custis, are linked by gently curving exterior columnades. Nearby Trinkle Hall, once the college's library, now holds several academic departments. Its centerpiece remains the rotunda which incorporates terrazzo floors, a stunning MWC seal, and a stained glass oculus. Behind Trinkle Hall one can find the aforementioned amphitheatre.

Several buildings are named for notable figures in women's rights, and the mothers, wives and daughters of significant figures in American history. Frances Willard Hall is named for the famous temperance leader and crusader for women's rights. Ann Carter Lee Hall honors the mother of Robert E. Lee. Thomas Jefferson's daughter, Martha Jefferson Randolph, is acknowledged by Randolph Hall. Today, the buildings are labelled only by the surnames, although full names can be found on buildings that have dedications plaques.

The University is currently engaged in a number of construction and renovation projects. The Carmen Culpeper Chappell '59 Centennial Campanile was completed in May 2007, and was heard for the first time ringing in the "Centennial Era." Ringing twice a day, the campanile announcement can be heard over a mile away. An overhaul of Lee Hall and an addition on the rear are underway. When completed, the building will be a one-stop-shop for student services. More recently a parking deck was completed, attempting to ease commuter students' parking situation. Soon, Monroe Hall, the oldest academic building, will undergo a much-needed renovation.

[edit] Academics

Academic departments at the undergraduate campus of UMW include:

• Art and Art History
• Biological Sciences
• Business Administration
• Chemistry
• Classics, Philosophy, and Religion
• Computer Science
• Economics
• English, Linguistics, and Speech
• Education
• Geography
• Earth and Environmental Sciences
• Health and Physical Education
• Historic Preservation
• History and American Studies
• Mathematics
• Modern Foreign Languages
• Music
• Physics
• Political Science and International Affairs
• Psychology
• Sociology and Anthropology
• Theatre and Dance

Also, several new certificates have been added:

• Business Language Certificate
• Middle East Studies Certificate
• Instructional Leadership Certificate

Mary Washington prides itself on its honor system, one of its proudest traditions. The system is run entirely by students and creates a sense of trust and mutual respect on the campus. All entering students must agree to abide by and support the Honor System.

[edit] Admissions

UMW reviewed 4,287 freshman applications for the fall of 2006, offered admission to 2,999 candidates, and enrolled 935 first-time freshman for the 2006 fall semester. These students hail from 27 states and eight foreign countries. The average Mary Washington student has a GPA of 3.67 and combined SAT scores of 1226 or above. The strongest Admission factors include Standardized Tests scores, as well as the rigor of secondary school record.

[edit] Athletics/Sports

UMW is an NCAA Division III institution. The University plays in the Capital Athletic Conference, where it has won more conference championships than any other school. To date, the UMW "Eagles" have had more than 100 student-athletes achieve All-American status. Teams and individual athletes have won various state, regional, and even national titles. Men compete in the following 10 team sports: baseball, basketball, crew, cross country, lacrosse, riding, soccer, swimming, tennis, and track and field. There are 12 NCAA women's sports: basketball, crew, cross country, field hockey, lacrosse, riding, soccer, softball, swimming, tennis, track and field, and volleyball. Outstanding facilities are available in Goolrick Gym and outdoors on the Battleground Athletic Complex. These facilities are utilized for intercollegiate competition as well as for intramural and recreational activities. The University also features a number of very popular club teams, including the championship men's rugby club, women's rugby, and synchronized swimming. The women's rugby club recently made their fifth appearance at the national championship tournament.

[edit] Rankings

• Mary Washington is the second-highest ranking Virginia public institution of higher learning within the category Masters Universities-South, according to the US News and World Report 2008 Ranking of America's Best Colleges.
• Mary Washington has one of the preeminent debate teams in the country, having consistently ranked in the Top #20 over the past ten years. The University of Mary Washington Debate Team is currently ranked 1st in the nation. The National Debate Tournament (NDT) rankings place Mary Washington ahead of Emory, Dartmouth College, Harvard, Wake Forest and Northwestern University. ^[3]

• The University of Mary Washington has one of the highest percentages of students volunteering in the Peace Corps. In 2006, Mary Washington ranked #6 among the top Peace Corps producing small schools in the United States in the midst of other prestigious schools. These universities include Dartmouth, University of Chicago, and Wesleyan University.^[4]

• The University of Mary Washington was ranked by Men's Fitness Magazine as being the #24 most fit college or university in the country. ^[5]

• In its 2007 edition of “America’s Best Colleges,” U.S. News and World Report ranked UMW 6th among southern master’s degree-granting institutions in the South and second among public schools in the same category. UMW also was recognized for having the second highest graduation rate in the South.^[6]

• The University of Mary Washington gained recognition from the Washington Post in 2006 for being one of the top 500 schools in the mid-atlantic region.

• In its 2006 edition, The Fiske Guide to Colleges listed UMW as one of the nation’s 300 best colleges and universities, stating that “Mary Washington has gained a reputation as one of the premium public liberal arts colleges in the country". It was also listed in the 2007 edition as one of the best buys in public higher education. ^[7]

• Barron’s Profiles of American Colleges’ 2007 edition placed Mary Washington in its “highly competitive” category, designating the University as one of the 171 top colleges and universities in the nation in terms of academic selectivity.

• In the Voluntary Support of Education 2002 edition published by the Council for Aid to Education, Mary Washington ranked first in Virginia among public institutions for its alumni participation rate in fund raising.

• In the 2004 edition of America's Best Value Colleges published by the Princeton Review, Mary Washington was listed as one of the nation's top 77 undergraduate colleges and universities.

• In the October 2002 edition, Kiplinger's Personal Finance Magazine listed Mary Washington as the country's 20th best public college

• Mary Washington is a member of the Selective liberal arts Consortium.

• Mary Washington is one of the 146 colleges named a Best Southeastern College by The Princeton Review.^[8]

[edit] Notable alumni

• Shin Fujiyama, Founder and CEO, Students Helping Honduras
• Eric Axelson, musician
• Marion Blakey, Federal Aviation Administration Administrator
• Jason Caddell, musician, sound engineer
• Jean Donovan, relief worker martyred in El Salvador
• Rose Likins, diplomat, former US Ambassador to El Salvador
• Judy Muller, journalist
• Aaron Altscher, cast member of The Apprentice, season 6
• Judge Reinhold, Actor
• Toddy Puller, Virginia District 36 Senator

[edit] Notable faculty

• Bulent Atalay, physicist and author of Math and the Mona Lisa
• Claudia Emerson, poet, 2006 Pulitzer Prize Winner
• Joseph Dreiss, art historian, author of "Gari Melchers: His Works in the Belmont Collection", leader in art's relation to neuroplasticity
• James L. Farmer, Jr., Civil Rights Leader
• Stephen Farnsworth, political scientist, author, Fulbright Scholar
• W. Brown Morton III, international preservationist, former principal architect of the Historic American Buildings Survey, led efforts to save Buddha's birthplace, Episcopal priest
• Stephen Stageberg, USA track and field team member, Pan American Games medalist
• Gregory Stanton, founder and president of Genocide Watch

[edit] See also

• WMWC

[edit] References

[edit] External links

• University of Mary Washington
• The Bullet