News
BOV to Consider Tuition and Fees in March, With Public Comment Period on Feb. 17
The University of Virginia Board of Visitors will consider 2021-22 tuition and fees for UVA and UVA’s College at Wise during a March 5 meeting, with a workshop and public comment period scheduled for Feb. 17 to gather feedback. Read more.
Newly Renamed North Fork Discovery Park Opens Doors of Innovation, Collaboration
On an expansive tract north of Charlottesville off U.S. 29, the University of Virginia Foundation operates a comprehensive research park that has quietly grown over the years into its current status as place where hundreds of people work, conduct research, study and collaborate. The foundation this week announced a new name – “North Fork – A UVA Discovery Park” – that presents a more accurate description of how it has evolved and where its aspirations lie for the future, according to Deborah van Eersel, chief administrative officer and director of marketing. Read more.
Masons Repoint, Replace Mortar at University Chapel
The University of Virginia Chapel was swathed in scaffolding for the new year. Facilities Management’s historic masons, specializing in historic preservation, have been working on repointing the chapel, replacing or restoring the mortar between the sandstone blocks in a combination of repair and regular maintenance. Read more.
Buildings & Grounds Committee OKs Data Science Building Design
The Board of Visitors Buildings and Grounds Committee on Friday approved the schematic design of the proposed home of the School of Data Science in the Emmet-Ivy Corridor. The School of Data Science building is scheduled to be the first academic building constructed on the 14.5-acre Emmet-Ivy parcel. As designed, the building will face Emmet Street, with an amphitheater and a retention pond between the building façade and the street. Read more.
UVA Leaders Outline Plans for the Spring Semester
University of Virginia leaders have outlined plans for the spring semester, including requirements for students to return to Grounds and plans to test students on a weekly basis. Right now, UVA is planning to welcome students back to Grounds for the spring semester, Provost Liz Magill, Chief Operating Officer J.J. Davis and Department of Medicine Chair Dr. Mitch Rosner wrote Monday afternoon in an email to the University community. Read more.
What We've Learned: Looking Back at a Pandemic Semester
At the beginning of the fall semester this year, questions were much more abundant than answers. The University of Virginia had just come through an unprecedented spring, shifting courses online in about eight days in March as the COVID-19 pandemic hit and normal operations ground to a halt around the world. Even as the spring semester wrapped up, however, University leaders were turning their attention to planning for the fall, carefully ramping up research again and bringing some students back to Grounds. Read more.
UVA's Memorial to Enslaved Laborers Wins Top Design Award
The Architect's Newspaper has selected the University of Virginia’s Memorial to Enslaved Laborers as the Project of the Year in its 2020 Best of Design Awards, and also named it the best in the category of public and social impact.
UVA's Memorial to Enslaved Laborers Wins Top Design Award
The Architect’s Newspaper has selected the University of Virginia’s Memorial to Enslaved Laborers as the Project of the Year in its 2020 Best of Design Awards, and also named it the best in the category of public and social impact. Read more.
UVA's Memorial to Enslaved Laborers Wins Top Design Award
The Architect’s Newspaper has selected the University of Virginia’s Memorial to Enslaved Laborers as the Project of the Year in its 2020 Best of Design Awards, and also named it the best in the category of public and social impact. Read more.
Local Turkeys Among the Options at University's Thanksgiving Meals
The University of Virginia will host two Thanksgiving feasts this year: one for students, and one for the larger University community. Read more.
UVA Facilities Experts Use Air-Handling Systems to Battle COVID-19
A group of specialists is studying how best to use air-handling systems at the University of Virginia to limit the spread of COVID-19 virus. Officially formed in June, this group focuses on identifying and assessing all of the different heating, ventilation and air conditioning mitigation strategies currently available. This includes modifying some of the University’s air-handling equipment. Read more.
UVA Embarks on Ambitious 10-Year Sustainability Plan
The University of Virginia has laid out an ambitious 10-year plan to accelerate the University’s sustainability goals across operations, research, curriculum, accountability and engagement – a framework of stewardship and discovery. The 2020-30 UVA Sustainability Plan includes six goals that UVA’s Board of Visitors approved in December, when the University committed to pursuing carbon neutrality by 2030 in partnership with the College of William & Mary. The full 2030 Plan also outlines strategic actions for success and adds four new goals. Read more.
Sustainability is a Key Element of Alderman Library Renovations
The University of Virginia’s massive Alderman Library, built during the Depression era to house the University’s collections when they outgrew the Rotunda, is undergoing an extensive renovation, based on the Unversity’s own green building standards. The renovations are preserving much of the building and recycling much of what can’t be preserved.
UVA's Wastewater Surveillance System
It’s a messy job, but it can help prevent the spread of coronavirus before people even know they have it. Watch more.
Q&A: What's Included in UVA's Virus Contingency Plans
Leaders managing the University of Virginia’s response to the coronavirus have approved a set of restrictions on University operations that could be implemented if additional measures become necessary to slow the spread of COVID-19. The “Short-Term Restricted Operations” list identifies specific restrictions that could be put into place as UVA continues to navigate changing conditions to ensure the safety of the community. Moving to this status would be short-term, as its name suggests.
Q&A: How UVA's Residence Hall Wastewater Virus Testing Works
With the fall semester getting into a rhythm and residence halls once again housing students, the University of Virginia has implemented new methods to detect the presence of the novel coronavirus. Three approaches announced recently include PCR-based random student testing using nasal swabs, a method that will allow large groups to be tested using saliva samples, and a program that analyzes dormitory wastewater for evidence of COVID-19. These programs are in addition to continued testing of all students, faculty and staff who have symptoms consistent with possible COVID-19. Read more.
Board Votes on 5 Renaming, Landscape Recommendations
On Friday, the University of Virginia Board of Visitors approved five recommendations from UVA’s Racial Equity Task Force regarding changes to UVA’s historic landscape. Read more.
Board Approves Updated UVA Budget, Reflecting COVID Impacts
The coronavirus pandemic has disrupted nearly every facet of higher education during the past six months, and the University of Virginia has been no exception. On Friday, the Board of Visitors heard details about the pandemic’s impact and UVA’s ongoing response, and also revised the University’s current operating budget downward by nearly $90 million compared to the budget originally adopted last spring. The budget for the fiscal year that began July 1 now totals $3.76 billion, revised down by 2.3% versus the blueprint approved in June.
UVA Introduces 'HOOS Health Check' App for Community Safety During Pandemic
A new, personal health assessment phone app and web-based program, “HOOS Health Check,” will become available Monday for use by the University of Virginia community. Students, faculty and staff members will be required to use the app to check for symptoms related to COVID-19 every day that they plan to be on Grounds. Read more.
UVA Delays In-Person Instruction, Move-In for Undergraduates by Two Weeks
The University of Virginia announced Tuesday that it will delay undergraduate in-person instruction and residence hall move-in dates by two weeks in response to an uptick in local and national coronavirus cases. Read more.
UVA Begins Program to Provide Mandatory COVID-19 Testing for Students
The University of Virginia on Monday launched an online portal through which students may order self-administered COVID-19 test kits.All undergraduate and graduate students who are planning to return to Grounds – including those living in UVA residence halls and those living in Charlottesville or Albemarle County who will attend classes or labs, either in-person or fully online – must submit COVID-19 test results to the University before they are allowed to return. Students who do not complete the test and submit their results will not be allowed to return. Read more.
New Scholarship Supports Students Whose Financial Means Are Affected by COVID-19
The novel coronavirus has wreaked havoc across the globe, damaging people’s health and livelihoods. At the University of Virginia, a generous band of donors are funding a new, one-time scholarship for students whose financial situations have been affected by COVID-19. Read more.
After 135 Years, UVA's McCormick Observatory Gets Its First New Dome Rollers
The sliding doors on the University of Virginia’s McCormick Observatory dome are back on track. The observatory’s dome, built in 1884 by Warner and Swasey Company of Cleveland and dedicated in 1885, has three slits that allow the telescope to peer out at the heavens. Each opening is covered by two shutters that ride on a series of rollers at the top and bottom of each shutter. The observer uses a rope to pull the shutters open manually, as has been done since the observatory’s dedication. Read more.
UVA Reconfigures Transportation Options in Face of COVID-19
As the University of Virginia reopens for the fall term, many things will be different, including how people get around Grounds. There will be changes in bus routes, bus use and parking. Read more.
Return to Grounds: Answers to Frequently Asked Questions for Students, Faculty, Staff
A return to Grounds this fall raises many important questions for students, faculty and staff at the University of Virginia, ranging from which courses will be offered online and in-person to how the University will handle important public health measures like face coverings, testing and contact tracing. Read more.