School Roundup Lists Programs, Buildings
Colleges and universities across Virginia are buzzing with innovative new programs and construction projects, including an interactive virtual learning program with university students in Vietnam and an online chat room to advise interested high school students.
These projects and developments give high school students and their parents a window on what’s happening on campuses in the Old Dominion.
The following list of school “notes” has been compiled from information that each college sent to The Times-Dispatch:
New programs, degrees
Rev up those racecars! Old Dominion University began offering an undergraduate motorsports minor within its mechanical engineering curriculum for students who are interested in working in the field of auto racing.
The four-course sequence includes classes on racecar aerodynamics and performance, vehicle dynamics and engines. Students get hands- on experience testing cars at the university’s Wind Tunnel at NASA Langley, where several NASCAR teams have tested their vehicles. They also get to race real cars in collegiate competitions with the Legends and SAE Formula racecar programs.
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High school students, parents and guidance counselors can get immediate answers to questions about programs, application procedures and more through Radford University’s new online advising chat room.
Operated by the university’s College of Education and Human Development, chat room staff answer questions from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday through Friday.
“It’s easier to use than commercial instant messaging,” says Sean Ramsey, RU’s technology coordinator. “Anyone can get to the chat room without going through complicated protocols. You just log in with any user name.”
To check out the chat room, visit
https://eduweb.education.radford.edu/advising/online/.
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Virtual classroom learning is reshaping students’ world views at Eastern Mennonite University in Harrisonburg.
About 20 students in the fall-semester class “Culture and History of Vietnam” use computer-based course work to interact with and learn from students at two universities in Vietnam. Professor Daniel W. Wessner terms the approach “IC3″ Inter-Cultural Communicative Competence.
In the class, EMU students converse by computer with Vietnamese students at An Giang University and Can Tho University, both in the Mekong Delta.
The first day of class, each Vietnamese and American student was asked to write a paragraph of “first impressions” of the other’s country. Students at both ends of the dialog imagined the reality of a distant and former “enemy” nation. Most confessed that what little they knew of the other had grown out of media presentations and was overshadowed by the past Vietnam War.
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Virginia Commonwealth University just introduced a Global Scholar Program in the School of Business at the fall semester. Dr. Robert Andrews is the lead professor on this project.
To be successful in today’s international business market, students need exposure to and understanding of the different cultures that make up the world where they work and live. The new program is designed to help undergraduate students obtain the exposure and necessary skills to be effective leaders in an ever- changing global environment.
This program allows students to take a range of general education and core management education courses, and to interact with the members of the business community through mentorships, internships and special activities.
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Hollins University has added an undergraduate major in environmental studies and a master of fine arts program in dance.
The environmental studies major is designed to provide students with a holistic understanding of environmental issues of local, national and global importance.
The master of fine arts program in dance is in conjunction with the American Dance Festival (ADF), the country’s pre-eminent center for modern dance. The alliance with Hollins marks the first time a college will offer a degree in partnership with the ADF.
Starkie House, formerly a residential hall on the campus, is being renovated to serve as the new home of the university’s nationally recognized English and creative writing department. The building will be renamed Swannanoa Hall in honor of a member of Hollins’ Class of 1911.
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Emory & Henry College began a master of history degree program this year that is aimed at enhancing the teaching of history in Virginia school districts.
The program is funded in part by the federal government, which recognized the college’s undergraduate history program and its ability to reach out to area school districts through its teacher education program.
The program will allow teachers to improve the “cognitive” aspects of history teaching, breathing life into the subject in a way that makes history more relevant to contemporary society.
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Students at Randolph-Macon College have the opportunity to participate in groundbreaking programs. One is the Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship (SURF) program, which awards grants to students to conduct research and then gives them the opportunity to present their findings throughout the nation.
Another program is the First Year Experience (FYE) program, a academic initiative designed to immediately immerse first-year students in college life, as well as set students on the path to integrating knowledge acquired in various disciplines. The FYE is made up of yearlong courses team-taught by two professors, each specializing in different disciplines.
For example, this year psychology professor Kelly Lambert joins humanities professor and pop culture expert Tom Inge to teach “The Human Comedy: Cultural and Neurological Perspectives on Humor.” The course combines neuroscience and humor in an effort to study how humor/laughter positively impacts health. Students in the program also will be required to create a “Laughing Place” — based on the Brer Rabbit tale — at the Richmond Children’s Hospital.
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Christopher Newport University’s Teacher Preparation Program has been fully accredited by the state Board of Education. The program, which had been operating as a pilot program since August 2003, is now accredited to grant the master of arts in teaching degree through its five-year program. The accreditation is good for seven years.
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Washington & Lee University’s Shepherd Program for the Interdisciplinary Study of Poverty and Human Capability has several new initiatives designed to promote awareness about poverty in the United States.
The program helps train students to address and combat issues surrounding poverty after their graduation.
The Shepherd program combines an interdisciplinary curriculum with service learning internships and volunteer work.
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The U.S. Department of Education recently awarded Marymount University $99,200 for scholarships to master of education candidates working toward dual certification in special education (learning disabilities, K-12) and elementary education (PK-6).
The grant underwrites tuition for graduate students preparing to teach special education, an area experiencing a critical shortage of teachers.
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Management Information Systems has been added this fall as a major at the University of Virginia’s College at Wise.
One of only six such programs in the state, the new major combines the unique skill set achieved through a focus on information processing with knowledge of business practices.
Graduates from the MIS program will be prepared for technical positions within a range of business settings, serving as technical expertise for management related positions. They will be capable of administering and supervising data systems, will be knowledgeable about system security and system analysis and configuration, and will understand the need for and use of these systems in the context of business information.
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University of Mary Washington students will see things a little more clearly actually 300,000 times more clearly because of the addition of two new state-of-the-art electron microscopes.
Rarely found on undergraduate campuses, the microscopes will be used across disciplines from the sciences to historic preservation.
Also new this year is the Indoor Tennis Center, which opened in late September. Located adjacent to Mary Washington’s outdoor tennis courts, this $4.2 million facility houses six indoor courts for student, faculty, staff and community use.
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Averett University has two additional services to help students achieve success in the classroom. The university has revamped the Center for Academic Excellence and the on-campus writing center.
The Academic Center is a designed to help students who are having problems in class or for students who wish to maximize their potential. Assistance is available for most majors and courses. In Averett’s writing center, students will find expert help with essays, research papers and other writing projects.
Buildings:
The University of Richmond is renovating and expanding its Gottwald Center for the Sciences. The $37 million project will include state-of-the art labs and classrooms, an organic chemistry lab, biochemistry and neuroscience labs, a quantitative science center, a nuclear magnetic resonance center and a digital biological imaging center.
Physics instruction takes place in “workshops” where pairs of students will collaborate in a unique laboratory setting, rather than in traditional classrooms and labs. Every faculty member will have a new research laboratory. A new auditorium seats about 80.
A center atrium is still under construction and is expected to be completed in mid-October.
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James Madison University opened two major new buildings and completed extensive renovations of one of its historical bluestone buildings this year.
The four-story, 90,000- square-foot Physics and Chemistry Building of instructional laboratories and faculty offices opened for fall classes on JMU’s East Campus.
The two-story, 48,308- square-foot Robert and Frances Plecker Athletic Performance Center adjoining JMU’s Bridgeforth Stadium opened in the summer. The Plecker Center houses most of JMU’s football-related activities, an academic support area for all 28 intercollegiate athletic teams, and state-of-the-art sports medicine and strength-and-conditioning facilities.
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Virginia Union University has three additions to the campus: a 167-seat theater, a state-of-the-art television studio and a new museum.
The theater is housed in the historic Belgian building, where a production of “Take a Giant Step” will run Oct. 20-23, and again Oct. 27-30.
The new television studio is located in the L. Douglas Wilder Library and Learning Resource Center, which also houses the new Virginia Union University Museum. The museum currently features a collection of paintings by African-American folk artist Thornton Dial. The museum also has an extensive collection of African, African-American, and Oceanic art.
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A new 35,000-square-foot student center is scheduled to open in summer 2006 on Averett University’s Danville Campus. The center will include a dining hall, convenience store, snack bar/coffee shop, as well as offices and computer lab areas.
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Longwood University broke ground in April for a new student multi- use recreation center.
The 2 1/2-story, 75,000- square-foot student recreation center will be occupied by the offices of Campus Recreation, the Counseling Center, and the Student Health & Wellness Center, which are now in three separate buildings.
The multipurpose facility will feature two basketball courts; a multi-activity court (slightly larger than a basketball court and suitable for indoor soccer and field hockey); a fitness area; three multipurpose rooms for aerobics; a 30-foot climbing wall; two racquetball courts; a juice bar; and locker rooms.
The mezzanine level between the main floors will contain a four- lane, elevated indoor running track and a suspended lounge area inside the track. From the lounge area, guests will be able to look down into the basketball courts, the fitness area and the lobby.
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Virginia Wesleyan College has opened a new apartment building and town homes for students.
The three-story apartment building houses 92 students. The eight town houses house 32 students.
These new residence facilities allow students an opportunity for on-campus living with an off-campus feel. Unlike the other residence halls, the village assistant and professional staff member oversee the apartments and town houses.
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Bluefield College dedicated its recently renovated Harman Chapel and Performing Arts Center in April. The dedication service marked the completion of the first phase of the most significant overhaul to the Chapel since its creation in 1965.
The Chapel has served as a student and community center for music, drama, performance and entertainment. The multi-phase, restoration project began in 2002, after the college received more than $600,000 in contributions for the overhaul from alumni, friends and arts enthusiasts.
Completed in the initial phase of renovations were development of a new foyer for the building; new stage curtains in the main auditorium; restoration of lower-level classrooms, rehearsal rooms, bathrooms and small auditorium; and the installation of the building’s first air-conditioning system and replacement of its original heating system.
Scholarships/Money:
Virginia students from some lower- and middle-income families will be offered a free education through a new program at the College of William and Mary.
Gateway William and Mary will provide a combination of institutional, state and federal grants for tuition, fees, and room and board for in-state undergraduate students whose families earn $40,000 or less per year. While the students may participate in work- study activities, they will not have to take out loans to complete their education.
William and Mary President Gene R. Nichol said that the college hopes to double the enrollment of undergraduate students from economically disadvantaged homes from the approximate 300 students now enrolled to 600 by 2012.
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Christopher Newport University received a $5 million gift — its largest donation ever — in August from Smithfield Foods Inc. The Newport News university will use the money to establish the Joseph W. Luter III School of Business and a $1 million leadership scholarship program, which will be matched dollar for dollar by CNU.
CNU’s School of Business offers undergraduate programs in finance, accounting, economics, management and marketing. The academic programs recently earned accreditation by the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business.