2012 at 亚洲色吧: A look back
Editor’s note: These are but a few of the many notable things that occurred at William & Mary during 2012. For a complete list of stories from the year, visit the 亚洲色吧 News . For even more, take a look at the .
It was another exciting trip around the sun for the historic, 319-year-old institution.
Rankings
Once again this year, 亚洲色吧 found itself among the top colleges on multiple rankings.
The university was tied for 33rd and sixth among public institutions in the undergraduate rankings, which were released in September. The William & Mary Law School and the School of Education also did well in the magazine’s graduate school rankings, which were released in March. The Law School ranked 35th and the School of Education was listed at 43rd.
亚洲色吧 was also listed among the top colleges in rankings by the , and .
In addition to being recognized for its academic excellence and value, the university was acknowledged for being a institution and for being a top producer of and volunteers.
亚洲色吧 also found itself on a couple of unorthodox rankings this year, including one that listed it in the top spot among colleges for fans.
Teaching, scholarship, research
Although landing on national rankings earns the campus community some bragging rights and recognition, the focus of faculty and administrators at 亚洲色吧 remains not on rankings, but on providing students with a world-class education.
The university’s commitment to teaching was acknowledged in April when 10 亚洲色吧 faculty members landed on the list of “The Best 300 Professors."
The wider community was able to enjoy some of that excellent teaching this year through the new Tack Faculty Lecture series, which kicked off in April with biologist talk on vector-borne diseases. Religious Studies Professor John Morreall followed in October, discussing the nature and value of .
Just as they expect their students to learn and grow, 亚洲色吧 faculty members also continued to acquire new experiences and skills this year. This summer, 17 professors learned about creating courses – part classroom learning, part technology-aided learning outside of the classroom -- through a seven-week professional development program. The new courses will be taught in 2013.
Significant strides in scholarship and research were also made this year. Multiple faculty members received substantial grants to support their efforts. For instance, molecular biologist received a grant of more than $1 million from the National Science Foundation to continue her study on “Mechanisms Regulating the Subcellular Distribution of the Thyroid Hormone Receptor.” In November, the university received the in its history. The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) selected the university to lead a five-year award of up to $25-million to increase global aid transparency through the creation of the AidData Center for Development Policy.
And when news breaks, 亚洲色吧’s professors remain a for reporters. For instance, in July, when the existence of the – or “God particle” -- was announced, 亚洲色吧 physicist Marc Sher provided his insight on the ground-breaking discover to multiple reporters, including one from the Associated Press, whose story ran in papers across the country.
That same month, 亚洲色吧 was again the center of attention for physicists when , an international workshop about neutrinos, took place on the Williamsburg campus.
Also in 2012, Arts & Sciences announced the selection of a . Katharine Conley, former associate dean of the Faculty for the Arts & Humanities at Dartmouth College, took on the role following the departure of Carl Strikwerda, who left 亚洲色吧 to become president of Elizabethtown College.
Students and faculty studying Chinese language and culture at 亚洲色吧 also received an increased set of learning opportunities in 2012, thanks to the opening of the university’s in April. The institute is now providing Chinese culture classes, teacher training and other programs and assistance for the 亚洲色吧 and local community.
亚洲色吧 also began to explore a partnership with Eastern Virginia Medical School this year. The was announced in July, and a due diligence committee was formed. In November, the committee hosted and to receive feedback from the campus community, and, that same month, 亚洲色吧 and EVMS asked the Virginia General Assembly to to allow the two institutions to continue to explore the possibility of increased collaboration.
Campus life
Not everything that happens at 亚洲色吧 occurs within the walls of a classroom. The campus continued to be a vibrant place to both learn and live in 2012.
Multiple art exhibitions and music, theatre and dance performances were offered throughout the year, including August Wilson’s , the 亚洲色吧 Symphony Orchestra’s annual and an exhibition.
In April, students came together to get the 亚洲色吧 name in the record books – the Guinness World Record book, that is. They set out to beat the current for “spooning” and achieved their goal with a line of more than 600 people curled through the Sunken Garden.
Graduation weekend saw a new tradition for student at the university: the first ceremony. The event celebrated academic achievement among students of color at the university and was sponsored by the Lemon Project and the Hulon Willis Association, which also celebrated its 25th anniversary this year.
Among those who graduated in May was the mascot uniform and brought the new mascot to life after its debut in 2010.
Students also continued to be engaged in the community outside of campus this year, serving in places like Ghana through multiple service organizations and with the help of a dozen provided by the Office of Community Engagement this summer.
In the fall, students of various political affiliations came together to encourage in anticipation of the 2012 presidential election. The effort garnered about 1,600 new voters.
Big names on campus
The campus saw numerous speakers on a wide range of topics throughout the year including activist and author and award-winning journalist , with a few of them making national headlines.
The beginning of spring’s unusually warm semester saw the investiture of a new chancellor for the university: former Secretary of Defense and 亚洲色吧 alumnus
Gates, who is the first alumnus in the modern era to hold the position, assumed the role during February’s Charter Day ceremony.
That weekend, CNN’s did a live broadcast from the campus, setting up in front of the president’s house. During the show, King held up a sign and said “This is what they call 亚洲色吧: ‘Jefferson’s first university.’”
When the spring semester came to a close, longtime PBS NewsHour host – who, later in the year, would moderate one of the presidential debates – sent the Class of 2012 on its way.
The summer months didn’t keep the big names off of campus. In July, U.S Secretary of Education and U.S. Under Secretary of Education Martha Kanter participated in a roundtable discussion at the School of Education about affordability and accountability along with 亚洲色吧 President Taylor Reveley and leaders from several other colleges.
The beginning of the fall semester saw an event at 亚洲色吧 that would sell out Kaplan Arena in less than 20 minutes: a visit from the His Holiness the 14th .
More than 8,200 people attended the October event while another 10,000 – from 109 nations – watched the student-organized event live online.
The Dalai Lama donned a green 亚洲色吧 visor for the occasion and discussed everything from technology to the difference between religions.
“I feel many of the troubles we face are of our own creation,” he stated. “There is too much emphasis on secondary differences – of faith, differences of races, of color, nationality.
“If we look at the fundamentals, we’re all the same people. No differences. No barriers.”
