In the ’80s, computer science students worked on terminals like this one in Combs Hall’s subterranean “B7.” Professor Ernie Ackermann, Mary Washington’s first director of academic computing, said that back then the terminals were connected by wires to the main computer – a Prime (brand) 750. Mary Washington’s 750 was about the size of a built-in professional-style refrigerator – much taller than the average man and double his width. An upgrade from the college’s Prime 500, the 750 had two to eight megabytes of memory and 1,200 megabytes of disc storage. “We also had a disc drive about the size of a washing machine,” Ackermann said, “and a large, noisy line-printer.” We think many of you will remember the terminals – but can anyone identify the mustachioed user? If you know this student, please leave a comment below or send an email with Get the Picture in the subject line to ntrenis@umw.edu. In the last issue, a 1964 Battlefield photo showed freshmen wielding “pots, … [Read more...]
Ana Garcia Chichester ’76 was 16 when her family moved from Cuba to the United States. She didn’t know a word of English. ESL classes helped, but when she enrolled with her sister, Isabel Garcia ’76, at James Monroe High School in Fredericksburg, she was far from fluent. “It was either sink or swim,” Chichester said. “It was tough, but people helped us.” Now the Spanish professor, who has been on the UMW faculty for two decades, is so comfortable with both languages she sometimes starts a sentence with one and finishes with the other. Her linguistic abilities reach beyond the foreign language department, translating into benefits for the community, where she volunteers extensively. As director of UMW’s Bachelor of Liberal Studies program, Chichester helps adult learners reach their academic goals. But perhaps her greatest gift to others is one she also gave herself – the ability to speak a second language. “I think I had an early calling to teach,” Chichester said. “I’m high … [Read more...]
https://magazine.umw.edu/spring2012/departments/qa/ana-garcia-chichester/
ANALYZE THIS: UMW Offers Undergrads an Array of Research Opportunities
Whether examining the concept of Egyptian monasticism or the correlation between stress and overeating, UMW students stand a chance of making some riveting revelations. That’s thanks to the University’s innovative undergraduate research program, which included more than a dozen initiatives this semester, and to its professors, who are committed to fostering opportunities for cutting-edge exploration. During the 2010-2011 academic year, 166 students in 15 academic departments from art and art history to geography and psychology received awards to pursue an abundance of projects. Formula for success Associate Professor of Mathematics Randall Helmstutler and Claire Gianelle ’14 string equations across a whiteboard in Trinkle Hall. The two, Helmstutler as adviser and Gianelle as student researcher, began work on their project, “Line Integral Arguments for Pick’s Theorem,” last fall. They aim to connect multivariable calculus to the famous geometrical formula put forth by Austrian … [Read more...]
Role Model
Thank you for your article about Farrah Tek ’10 and her work in Cambodia (Pursuit of Justice, Fall/Winter 2011), which was so beautifully written by Kristin Davis, photographed by Reza Marvashti, and designed so spectacularly by the staff at University of Mary Washington Magazine. When our daughter saw the magazine, she asked me to make a color copy of the cover. She already has the photocopy on her wall. Farrah is one of her greatest heroes. Gregory H. Stanton President, Genocide Watch [Stanton, a former UMW James Farmer professor of human rights, was Tek’s teacher and adviser.] … [Read more...]
Remembering Ruby Lee Norris
No one exuded more exuberance for life than Ruby Lee Norris ’36.That’s why news of her stroke earlier this year and subsequent death hit me so hard. I first met Ruby Lee eight years ago at her Topping, Va., home in Virginia’s Northern Neck. As the new Mary Washington magazine editor, I was her invited guest. In her mind, we were kindred spirits, laborers in the thankless but gratifying world of words. We sipped tea while perusing the Pleasant Living magazines on her coffee table – nearly every one with an article or photograph by Ruby Lee. Using a state-of-the-art computer, she was a writer, blogger, emailer, and faithful UMW class agent. As daily inspiration, I keep a snapshot of Ruby Lee – eyes twinkling – on my desk. At a packed funeral service, her pastor and friends tried to find words to capture this 96-year-old who defied description: A lady of great stature Dignified, gracious, enlightened, forthright, and faithful An elder stateswoman A fashion icon A … [Read more...]
Fall Expert Pursues Balanced Life
As a physical therapist, Roberta Ann Newton ’69 has reached the top, but she refused to take the elevator to get there. An internationally recognized leader in fall prevention for older adults, Newton insisted on climbing the steps to her sixth-floor office at Temple University, from which she retired last year as a clinical professor of medicine. Taking the stairs – and any chance for exercise – is serious business for Newton, since staying active reduces the risk of injury in case of falls, a phenomenon that threatens the independence – and lives – of millions each year. For her contributions, Newton received the American Physical Therapy Association’s highest honor last spring. The Catherine Worthingham Fellow award was the checkered flag on Newton’s career, a fast track to professional success that had its starting line in grade school and picked up speed during her undergraduate years. “There was never a doubt for me. Mary Washington was the prime place I wanted to go,” said … [Read more...]
Top Profs
1. Jeffrey W. McClurken • HISTORY and AMERICAN STUDIESTo teach students about the past, McClurken often looks to the future. He weaves Web-based discussions, digital history projects, Twitter, WordPress, and other tools of technology into topics such as women’s suffrage and the Civil War. McClurken doesn’t necessarily want students to believe every word he says about America’s past. Instead, he pushes them outside their comfort zones, urges them to be skeptical of sources, and helps them become “critical consumers of knowledge.” 2. Steve Watkins • ENGLISH For 28 years, Watkins has made his living bringing learning to life. His students don’t just read the material, they breathe it. In his Literature of the Vietnam War class, he divides classes into squads that act as units. Students write about real campus “field exercises” in the style of a writer they’ve studied. The award-winning author brings a wow factor to words, taking students to see musicals like Hair, leading them in pro- … [Read more...]