Since arriving on Grounds in the fall of 2021, around 4,000 undergraduates making up the University of Virginia’s Class of 2025 have spent their years getting to know the University, their professors and their classmates. So UVA Today, partnering with Cavman (who provided the hype) and the UVA Bookstore (providing the gift cards), wanted to see how quickly students could use that knowledge to complete surprise tasks.
We put Cavman on the Lawn near the Rotunda and asked him to hold a sign that implored fourth-year students to first deliver a professor and, later, a varsity athlete.
What we didn’t fully consider was the obvious Lawnie factor.
UVA founder Thomas Jefferson planned an institution more than 200 years ago where students and professors would live together side-by-side. Fast forward to now, and that same living arrangement exists. So, Lawn resident Brendan Gamor had a distinct advantage as he sauntered up to Cavman.
The first challenge, to bring Cavman a professor, sent Gamor scurrying to locate a faculty member; not surprisingly, he turned to a neighbor.
Chloe Edwards, right, collects her UVA Bookstore gift card for bringing Cavman a varsity athlete as part of a scavenger-hunt-style game. She located Tommy McNeal, a lacrosse player and fellow Lawnie, and hustled him to Cavman. (Photo by Mike Mather, University Communications)
Professor Michael Suarez was in his Pavilion III kitchen when he heard some banging. At first, he thought it might be the sounds of a nearby work crew. But Gamor was persistent.
“Wait, that’s someone knocking at the door. That’s not the construction,” Suarez said. He opened the door to find a student on the steps. “He’s my neighbor.”
Gamor collected his gift card, and Cavman and UVA Today shifted to the next challenge: Produce a varsity athlete.
Chloe Edwards, another Lawn resident who saw how the first challenge went, had a laser focus on this one.
There are just 54 rooms on the Lawn. Being selected to live in one is not only a significant honor, but it also builds a tight-knit community unlike perhaps any other at the University. And Edwards knew one of her neighbors was the only varsity athlete living on the Lawn.
