James Urban '96 with Michael Vick during training camp With the National Football League playoffs beginning this weekend, it's a fitting time to note the work that Washington and Lee alumnus James Urban, of the Class of 1996, has been doing as the quarterback coach of the Philadelphia Eagles. When W&L sports information director Brian Laubscher visited […]
When the Touchdown Club of Richmond named Washington and Lee football coach Frank Miriello as the Virginia Division II/III/NAIA Coach of the Year for 2010, it marked the first time that a W&L coach has ever received the honor. It was a special season for the Generals and Miriello. Not only did Miriello pass his […]
By day, Matt Strickler, of the Class of 2003, puts his Washington and Lee public policy major to work as the legislative assistant to Virginia State Senator Ralph S. Northam, a Democrat who represents District 6: the counties of Accomack, Mathews and Northampton and parts of Norfolk and Virginia Beach. But in his spare time, […]
In a time when many daily newspapers are closing their doors, the Columbia Daily Tribune in Columbia, Mo., is staying open, and in the family. First published in 1901, the paper has been owned by the Waters and Watson families since 1904 and is currently owned by W&L alumnus Hank Waters, of the class of […]
When Hermés New York began looking for a different design for the holiday windows of its Madison Avenue store, they turned to Washington and Lee alumnus Charlie Baker, of the Class of 2004. Charlie's work, which uses twigs and felled trees from the beaches of Long Island, is featured in an article in Thursday's New […]
In This Issue: A Day in the Life, By Amy Balfour '89, '93L; Honor Our Past, Build Our Future, By Greg Esposito '00
Michael Clay Thompson, a creator of curriculum in poetics, writing, grammar and vocabulary, and a member of Washington and Lee University’s Class of 1969, has received the Richard W. Riley Award from the South Carolina Consortium for Gifted Education. “The award reflects the unique place Thompson’s language arts curriculum has come to have in gifted […]
Next time you see a story based on polls or polling and distributed by the Associated Press, be sure to check the byline. There's a good chance it will have been written, in whole or in part, by Jennifer Agiesta, a 2000 Washington and Lee alum. In late August, Jennifer began her new position as deputy […]
Two generations of Washington and Lee theatre majors will team up next week for a performance in New York when Jenna Worsham, a 2010 graduate, directs a performance of The Nebraska Dispatches featuring Christopher Cartmill, a 1984 graduate. We wrote about Chris's memoir, The Nebraska Dispatches, earlier this year. Chris and Christine Marie Brown adapted […]
The following post is a reprise of the one we published on Thanksgiving two years ago, but we thought the story should be retold, and we invite you to forward it to W&L alumni, or others, who might not have seen it. Happy Thanksgiving! When you’re comfortably seated in front of your televisions on Thanksgiving […]
At a news conference in Philadelphia later today, the results of a feasibility study to save one of the world's fastest passenger ocean liners will be unveiled. The SS United States, built in 1952 and withdrawn from service in 1969, set a transatlantic speed record on its maiden voyage when it sailed from New York […]
A year after he was killed in Afghanistan, Washington and Lee alumnus Chris Coffland's story continues to resonate in several different ways. Chris was a member of the W&L Class of 1988 and co-captained the 1987 Generals' football team. He had joined the Army Reserve a month before he turned 42, the enlistment cut-off date. An […]
An article in the Nov. 2, 2010, edition of Youngentrepreneur magazine refers to Washington and Lee alumnus Brent Beshore as "a 27-year-old serial entrepreneur." It's an apt description of the 2005 graduate, who has been cited in the What's News blog once before, after being profiled in the Columbia, Mo., Business Times. The Youngentrepreneur article […]
Back in May, we noted that a Washington and Lee alumnus, Bob Doll, of the Class of 1974, had just published his fourth New York Times crossword puzzle of the year. Now it turns out that we can boast of another, newer crossword constructor among the W&L alumni body. Neville Fogarty, who graduated in May, was the author […]
The Cummings' books — Joe's "Bylines" at left; Doug's "The Southern Press" at right. When Washington and Lee journalism professor Doug Cumming holds a book signing on Thursday, Nov. 4, at Lexington's Books & Co., he'll be joined by a fellow author and Southern journalist — his father, Joe Cumming. Joe Cumming will be signing and reading […]
Students, staff and faculty gathered on Cannan Green the evening of Oct. 28 for 8 Minutes to Stop the Hate, a candlelight vigil to honor the memories of Tyler Clementi, Seth Walsh, Asher Brown, Billy Lucas and Justin Aaberg. The suicides of these youths, who took their own lives reportedly because of bullying and harassment […]
In the foreword to "Going to Windward: A Mosbacher Family Memoir," President George H.W. Bush writes this about Washington and Lee alumnus Bob Mosbacher: " made life in Houston, life in Washington — life, period — more enjoyable and meaningful for Barbara and me than mere words can describe. Simply put, we hate to think […]
Big news in the ad world yesterday centered on a Washington and Lee alumnus. Andrew Keller, a 1992 graduate, has been named the CEO of Crispin Porter & Bogusky, one of the country's premier ad agencies. We've noted Andrew's work before in What's News, noting an interview that he did with Creativity in 2009 and […]
Although it won't exactly qualify as an acceptance speech, Washington and Lee alumna Nicole Mooradian did have a brief and heartfelt response to the news that she had won an Emmy Award from the Rocky Mountain Southwest Chapter of the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences. Nicole tweeted: "Holy crap I just won another […]
Boyle Investment Co., a Memphis-based real estate investment company with Washington and Lee connections, made headlines recently by donating 290 acres of land to the Wolf River Conservancy. The non-profit land trust, based in Memphis, is charged with conserving and enhancing the Wolf River corridor and watershed as a sustainable natural resource. Bayard Boyle Jr., […]
When Grace W. Shelton, the U.S. consul general to Bermuda and the first woman to serve in that post, planned an art exhibition for her official residence, she focused on contemporary, American female artists depicting natural settings. One member of that select group of 11 is Staunton, Va., artist Patricia Piorkowski Hobbs, who also happens […]
Beach Vickers, a 1972 W&L graduate, told the Charleston Gazette recently that he used to stage plays for neighborhood kids on his grandmother's back porch in nearby Montgomery, W.Va. Admission was 5 cents, and the cast almost always included a couple of dogs. Beach, a journalism major and former newspaperman, is now living in Los […]
When Christopher Cartmill, Class of 1984, returned to Washington and Lee in the spring of 2009 as the Flournoy Playwright, he produced five plays in six weeks. Included in that lineup was The Nebraska Dispatches, a solo performance by Cartmill based on a research trip he had made to his home town, Lincoln, Neb. He […]
Washington and Lee law alumnus Talcott Franklin, of the Class of 1995, was the subject of a couple of articles in the financial press last week. The focus was on the clearinghouse that he created to allow investors in residential mortgage-backed securities that went bad to pool their claims and, as Bloomberg BusinessWeek reported, "potentially […]
Washington and Lee history professor Ted DeLaney, a member of W&L's Class of 1985, was a keynote speaker for an unusual event this past weekend in the small Ohio River town of Gallipolis, Ohio. Every year since 1864, the people of Gallipolis have celebrated the Emancipation Proclamation in September, because the preliminary issue of the proclamation came on Sept. 22, 1862. The […]
Washington and Lee music professor Terry Vosbein's recent CD, Progressive Jazz 2009, got a nice boost recently when it was the subject of a feature story in the August edition of JAZZIZ Magazine, considered one of the premier publications covering the jazz world. The CD, which was the subject of a previous blog post here, […]
Last month, when Randy Minchew, a member of the Washington and Lee Law Class of 1984, was named deputy counselor and advisor to Virginia Gov. Bob McDonnell, he joined fellow W&L alumnus Mike Reynold, of the Class of 2002, as a member of the McDonnell administration. Mike has been there since last November, serving as assistant […]
For Washington and Lee alumnus Ted Le Clercq, this week's fifth anniversary of Hurricane Katrina marked the successful completion of a significant campaign through which he has helped one of New Orleans' great streets return to its previous grandeur. A member of W&L's Class of 1986, Ted was the guiding force in the effort to […]
When Drew Catanese of the Class of 2004 got his first high school teaching job, he found the process of selecting health insurance plans and 401Ks and home mortgage plans a puzzle for which he was not prepared. "I remember thinking, 'I'm a college-educated adult, and I have no idea what all this is about,'" […]
This summer, as U.S. combat advisers from the Army's 162nd Infantry Brigade began returning from their respective employments to Iraq and Afghanistan, Washington and Lee alumnus Mark Bertolini, of the Class of 1986, the brigade's commander, was on hand to greet them at Ft. Polk, La. (See the photo.) Col. Bertolini took over command of […]
David Elmes, emeritus professor of psychology, has made a habit of calling upon his former students as a resource for the next generation of psychology majors. During the spring semester of 2009, he put together a course called Applications of Psychology Sciences, in which 11 alumni and alumnae with graduate degrees in psychology and allied […]
In January, we blogged about an Automotive News report that predicted that Bright Automotive, the Indiana-based electric hybrid vehicle company of which Washington and Lee alumnus Reuben Munger is chairman and CEO, was about to sign an agreement with a major automaker. On Tuesday, Bright and General Motors announced the new agreement under which GM […]
M. Marcy Jones, a 1995 alumna of the Washington and Lee School of Law, has become a leading proponent of graceful divorces. She knows that that very phrase is apt to be greeted with rolled eyes. Here's what she wrote on a recent blog: "When most people hear the words “graceful” and “divorce” in the […]
Lost your Calyx in your last move? The University Library has felt your pain. This week, it has posted online more than 110 years' worth of Washington and Lee's student yearbook, all digitized. Here is the library's gateway page for the online Calyx: http://library.wlu.edu/details.php?resID=1848. Once you find the volume you want, you can browse it […]
Congratulations to Washington and Lee alumnus Mike Pressler '82, who coached Team USA to a 12-10 victory over Canada in the Federation of International Lacrosse (FIL) World Championship on Saturday in Manchester, England. The victory avenged a loss to Canada in the 2006 world championships. It was the ninth time Team USA has won the […]
Michael Michaeles, an alumnus of the classes of 1965 and 1968L, has been elected to The American Board of Trial Advocates (ABOTA), the national organization whose aim is to foster improvement in the ethical and technical standards of practice in the field of advocacy. Mike, who lives in Boylston, Mass., and practices in Worcester, is […]
As an undergraduate at Washington and Lee, Noelani Love '05 often made homemade jewelry as presents for friends. Before long her friends were getting constant "Where'd you get that?" questions, so Noe set up a table in Elrod Commons and sold her in-demand creations. That was just the start. Next month, Noelani Designs, offering her […]
Earlier this month, we blogged about the stories that four Washington and Lee journalism interns — two seniors and two May graduates — have been reporting this summer on various aspects of the BP oil spill. We just found that they are not the only W&L journalists writing on the subject. There's at least one […]
In This Issue: From DIII to the NFL: Eagles Quarterbacks Coach James Urban '96; At Your Service, By Wendy Lovell '90 and Maggie Sutherland '10; He Always Came to Play: Chris Coffland '88, 1966-2009, By Greg Esposito '00
Since it was originally written in 1910 by an alum and two students, the "Washington and Lee Swing" has been performed in every venue imaginable, from football stadiums to New Orleans jazz clubs. But here's a new one on us: the United Church of Christ First Congregational in Norwich, N.Y., has apparently been using the […]
Each July 4, the Lexington Sunrise Rotary Club, which holds its weekly meetings in Evans Dining Hall on the Washington and Lee campus, joins forces with BB&T to stage the Fourth of July Balloon Rally. Colorful hot air balloons lift off from the Virginia Military Institute Parade Ground and float lazily (usually) over Rockbridge County. […]
Kathryn Sheppard Hoar, a 1997 alumna of Washington and Lee, will be among an elite group competing in what is known as either the "Olympics" or the "Super Bowl" of inshore fishing later this month, in the 10th annual Florida Keys Outfitters / IGFA Inshore World Championship in Islamorada, Fla. Kathy will be competing in […]
Two Washington and Lee alumni played roles in this week's confirmation hearings of Supreme Court nominee Elena Kagan — one at the witness table, the other in the photographers' gallery. Jack Goldsmith, a 1984 graduate, was a witness in the hearings on Thursday. Jack is the Henry L. Shattuck Professor of Law at Harvard University […]
After six years as a spokesman for Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty, most recently as deputy chief of staff, Washington and Lee alumnus Brian McClung, of the Class of 1995, has left that position to start his own public relations company, McClung Communications and Public Affairs, L.L.C., in Minneapolis-St. Paul. As a column in MinnPost.com, noted, […]
Author Sam McLeod, known to his Washington and Lee law school classmates as Steve Johnson of the Class of 1981, has just published his newest book, Big Appetite: My Southern-Fried Search for Life. It's his fourth book, following a trilogy Welcome to Walla Walla, Bottled Walla and Blue Walla. The next edition of the W&L […]
With its W&L Traveller program, the University’s Office of Special Programs tours the world, allowing alumni and other adventurers to explore countries from Vietnam to Turkey, cities from New Orleans to Madrid. What you may not know is that they also make a point of meeting up with other W&L sojourners while they are on […]
Andrea Wallack planned to pursue a career in biochemistry after her graduation from Washington and Lee in 1989. But plans change, and today Andrea is the CEO of NightOwl Document Management Services, the company she founded when she was only 24 and already managing director of two affiliated companies, Miralex and archiving company, ImageXe LLC. […]
Tallahassee artist W. Stanley (Sandy) Proctor, of Washington and Lee's Class of 1961, has forged a impressive reputation in the art world, including election to the Florida Artists Hall of Fame (joining such other luminaries as Ernest Hemingway, Ray Charles, Tennessee Williams, and Zora Neale Hurston). He began as a painter and stone carver, and […]
The Rockbridge Rapids, the summer league baseball team that calls Washington and Lee's Smith Field home, are well into their second season in the Valley League. Washington and Lee alumni Jim Crothers '66 and Ken Newman '71 are the team's president and general managers, respectively. The Rapids are composed of college players from around the […]
Washington and Lee junior Chloe Bellomy is in the news in her hometown of Beaufort, S.C., for a cool project that she has developed there. An English major with a creative writing minor, Chloe is a Johnson Scholar at W&L, and the story about her novel idea in The Island Packet begins by notig that […]
Loranne Ausley, a 1990 graduate of Washington and Lee's School of Law, is racing in Florida. Not only is she running to become the state's chief financial officer, one of three members of the Florida cabinet, but she also competed in the North Florida Olympic Triathlon as part of an unusual campaign fund-raising effort. Loranne […]
As their capstone course in journalism, four teams of students in Washington and Lee's In-Depth Reporting class prepared major projects on topics of local significance.The teams spent the four-week spring term reporting on those subjects and creating interactive websites that included video as well as a series of newspaper stories. You can view the final […]
During the recently completed spring term at Washington and Lee, Nathaniel Goldberg’s students in Philosophy 375 explored the philosophy of time travel: the philosophical possibility and implications. Through the miracle of film, you can join their time-travel explorations. For their final project, the students created their own time-travel movies, and all four are available on […]
Max Adler is on a road trip. He's playing 60 golf courses in 60 days and writing about his travels for Golf Digest. And — they're paying him. This isn't the first time that Max, a 2004 graduate and former member of the Generals' varsity golf team, has combined his writing and playing skills to […]
It's that Pomp and Circumstance time of year, and several Washington and Lee connections are cropping up in commencement exercises here and there. • W&L alumnus Tom Wolfe, of the Class of 1951, was the principal speaker at the University of Alabama-Huntsville last Friday. He told the graduates that America is "in astonishingly good shape." […]
A new interactive map is tracking the plans of the Class of 2010, as its members prepare to receive their degrees next Thursday and scatter to begin their post-W&L lives: class of 2010: post-graduation plans. Constructed by Eric Owsley and Jessica Carter of the University's Web team, the map allows members of the class to […]
On the final day of his four-day visit to the United States last week, Afghan President Hamid Karzai visited Fort Campbell, Ky., where one of the people he met was Col. Arthur Kandarian, a 1986 Washington and Lee graduate who commands the U.S. Army brigade that will lead the coming U.S.-led offensive in Kandahar. Art […]
Four Washington and Lee undergraduates have spent 12 days in Yellowstone National Park this month, but they are not your run-of-the-mill tourists. The four, along with W&L biology professor Bill Hamilton, are conducting some serious scientific research as part of their spring term course, which has the rather unromantic title "Plant Functional Ecology." This is […]
W. Ansel Sanders, a member of Washington and Lee's Class of 2004, is embarking on another fascinating chapter in his work as a young leader in public education. Ansel is program director for the A. J. Whittenberg Elementary School in Engineering, which will open this coming fall in Greenville, S.C. After graduating from W&L, Ansel […]
Members of the campus community may have noticed that some of their male colleagues, student, staff and faculty alike, are sporting a new crop of facial hair. That’s unusual for this warm time of year—it can get hot underneath all that fuzz—but it’s a tradition, and it’s for a good cause: The annual fund-raiser for […]
Christopher Rucker, a 2009 Washington and Lee graduate who is an admissions counselor at W&L, describes himself this way: "I'm Button-Down collar, Four-in-Hand tie, regular button cuff, Slim cut, two button suit, Classic black toe cap shoes, Silver with Leather Strap Watch, iPhone, Mac, Mix and Match, Something Practical kind of guy." Actually, that probably […]
Purchasing Power, an Atlanta-based company that has been ranked on Entrepreneur magazine's list of the Top 100 fastest growing companies, has added to its Washington and Lee connections with the announcement that Chad Delp of the Class of 1993 is the new chief financial officer. At Purchasing Power, Chad is joining fellow W&L alumnus Keith […]
Washington and Lee University’s eighth annual Holocaust Remembrance Week is April 5-9. Organized by Hillel, W&L's Jewish student organization, the week will feature a series of events designed to stress the importance of remembering the victims of the Holocaust.
Evelyn Whitehurst Huntley of Lexington, former first lady of Washington and Lee University, died on Monday, March 29, at her home. She was 78.
Washington and Lee University School of Law has announced the establishment of a fellowship for one qualified German LL.M. student.
Washington and Lee University has submitted its climate action plan (CAP) with a goal of achieving carbon neutrality by 2050 to the American Colleges and University Presidents' Climate Commitment.
A student-run leadership group at Washington and Lee University sponsored the third annual Love Your Body Week at W&L from March 15-19.
A new volume by Julie A. Campbell, associate director of communications and public affairs at Washington and Lee University, provides the first comprehensive narrative of that special relationship, beautifully illustrated throughout by paintings, photographs, historical advertisements and artifacts.
A 2010 ACS-Mellon Faculty Renewal grant for "On Solid Ground: Building the Foundation for Women Faculty and Students in Math and Science," will support the development of a new project at W&L called Women in Math and Science (WIMS), which aims to give students more confidence and life skills to help retain them in these disciplines.
