Beverly McNeill and about 50 other participants, wearing sweatshirts and wool caps to protect against the oncoming October chill, gathered Wednesday evening at the Lawn to participate in the Slave Dwelling Project, an initiative started by Joseph McGill in 2010. The project is part of a symposium hosted by the President’s Commission on Slavery and the University, which was formed in 2013 to research and raise awareness of the enslaved workers at UVA.
Virginia universities shared business best practices today at Virginia Commonwealth University with the hope of finding ways to shave costs and improve the student experience. UVA expects to generate $300,000 extra in parking revenue this year by shifting from the traditional arrangement to a system of metered parking that provides more flexibility as to where and when students park.
New legislation introduced this week by Senator Rand Paul (R-KY) would fundamentally alter how grant proposals are reviewed at every federal agency by adding public members with no expertise in the research being vetted. Two of the witnesses – Brian Nosek of the University of Virginia and Rebecca Cunningham of the University of Michigan – were generally supportive of the status quo, although Nosek emphasized the importance of replicating findings to maximize federal investments.
President Donald Trump accused Barack Obama and other former presidents of insufficient outreach to fallen soldiers’ families. Experts told us it’s not the norm for every family to receive a personal phone call. "For presidents who served in times of lengthy wars, Vietnam and War on Terror, when thousands of service members have been killed in action, it would be impractical to think presidents could call all families," said Barbara Perry, director of presidential studies at UVA’s Miller Center. "I suspect that all presidents at least send letters to the families of fallen service members."
President Donald Trump accused Barack Obama and other former presidents of insufficient outreach to fallen soldiers’ families. Experts told us it’s not the norm for every family to receive a personal phone call. "For presidents who served in times of lengthy wars, Vietnam and War on Terror, when thousands of service members have been killed in action, it would be impractical to think presidents could call all families," said Barbara Perry, director of presidential studies at UVA’s Miller Center. "I suspect that all presidents at least send letters to the families of fallen service members."
The number of physician-scientists is increasing at the UVA School of Medicine. Dean David Wilkes says immunology studies, in particular, are accelerating.
“Recent events have inspired rethinking the American approach, which is more speech-protective than is the case even in the rest of the open democratic developed world,” said Frederick Schauer, University of Virginia law professor. There’s also more conversation these days about costs, he said, a direct result of the reaction of hostile audiences. “So in that sense, the conversation has been changed both by the white supremacist speakers and by those who aggressively protest against them.”
Ed Gillespie often insists that the gubernatorial election in Virginia should mainly be a dialogue about the deeply researched policy papers he’s put out on seemingly every topic under the sun. And while that may be true, the Republican’s campaign might be best known at this point for a series of TV ads in which photos of heavily tattooed Latino men are displayed as the words “KILL, RAPE, CONTROL” flash across the screen. “That ad has aired, to my knowledge, far more than any other ad,” said political sage Larry Sabato, director of UVA’s Center for Politics.
Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe (D) ripped President Trump's "foolishness and shenanigans," but stopped short of confirming that he would oppose the New Yorker in 2020. McAuliffe, a longtime ally of Bill and Hillary Clinton, was asked about his 2020 prospects, but punted the question to UVA political scientist Larry Sabato. "Yes. That's a one-word answer," Sabato said of McAuliffe, who co-chaired President Clinton's 1996 campaign.
Demographers at UVA’s Weldon Cooper Center for Public Service have warned that the populations of the coal counties will decline even faster than they have been. Right now, the coalfields are losing about 600 people a year just through the natural process of deaths outnumbering births. People moving out simply add to that.
As confusion about political values and media literacy grows, a symposium sponsored by Common Law Grounds at the UVA School of Law hopes to shed light on the importance of democracy in the current media environment.
The University of Virginia is shining a light on slavery through a unique experience. Wednesday night, students and others spent their night sleeping outside as part of "The Slave Dwelling Project Experience on Grounds."
As tensions rise amid a North Korea nuclear threat, UVA’s Miller Center is taking a close look at the circumstances. The discussion “Assessing the North Korea Threat” is part of the Miller Center's “American Forum” public affairs program. Wednesday, a staff writer with the New Yorker magazine, Evan Osnos, joined host Douglas Blackmon in this talk.
The fourth annual Stay Healthy, Stay Happy initiative is being organized by Dr. JoAnn Pinkerton, director of UVA’s Midlife Health Center. The event features women’s health professionals from the UVA Health System and the community who will present current information on healthy living and eating, mental health, addiction, heart attack prevention and menopause.
(Commentary by Geoffrey Skelley of UVA’s Center for Politics ) While November’s political spotlight will shine brightest on the gubernatorial contest at the top of the ticket, there will also be many interesting races down-ballot in the Old Dominion on Election Day. The General Assembly’s lower house will probably look a little different after Nov. 7, but the question is, how different?
UVA is trying to help experts get a handle on the opioid crisis sweeping the commonwealth. Virginia Secretary of Health and Human Resources Dr. William Hazel Jr. helped break down the crisis during a talk at UVA Wednesday.
Here is what is at stake: The Founding Fathers wrote a clause into the Constitution saying U.S. officials cannot accept "any present, Emolument, Office, or Title" from foreign governments without the consent of Congress. Trump's critics say that by refusing to sell off his global businesses, the president is failing to uphold the Constitution. "I definitely have the view that no one has standing to bring an Emoluments Clause challenge," said Saikrishna Prakash, who teaches constitutional law at the University of Virginia Law School. He said emoluments are for Congress to consider.
If we want to inspire our students to believe they can achieve more, we cannot afford to praise them cheaply. “To motivate students – especially older students who are more discerning and better able to appreciate the differences between what is said and what is meant – teachers need to avoid praise that is not truthful … or has not been earned,” writes Daniel T Willingham, a UVA professor of cognitive psychology.
As far as value-based care goes, experts say, unwarranted medical assessments are a clear bust. “Despite strong evidence for the negative effects of routine daily laboratory testing on patients, there remains a need for improved implementation of this high-value measure,” says Andrew Parsons of the UVA School of Medicine and the senior author of the paper, published in JAMA Internal Medicine. “We want to do things for patients, not to patients.”