Around the Lake

Mark your calendars: Upcoming 175th anniversary events

Then & Now: Dementi Studio
Photographs of the University of Richmond
Jan. 21 – May 6
Marsh Art Gallery and the Joel and Lila Harnett Print Study Center

This exhibit pairs historical photographs with contemporary scenes of the campus and its community. Dementi Studio, founded in 1924, has captured vibrant images of the University’s students, faculty, buildings and activities during decades of changes and achievements.

Verbum Vitae et Lumen Scientiae:
175th Anniversary Print Portfolio
Feb. 15 – March 4
Marsh Art Gallery

“Verbum Vitae et Lumen Scientiae,” the University’s motto, means “word of life and the light of
knowledge.” To celebrate the University’s 175th anniversary, University Museums commissioned a portfolio of prints by 12 contemporary artists.

Founder’s Week
Feb. 28 – March 4
Campuswide

The week will include a birthday cake and celebration for all students in Heilman Dining Center on March 1. Students also will place a time capsule in the University’s archives.

Open House
April 2

The open house will feature fun for the whole family, including children’s activities, concerts, lectures, exhibits, international films, trolley tours of the campus, and a baseball game. The Robins School of Business will host an exhibit on the history of Richmond’s business community, and Dr. Doug Hicks, director of the University’s new Center for Civic Engagement, will moderate a discussion on the University and the Richmond community.

For a complete listing of anniversary events and more information on the open house, visit the 175th anniversary Web site at http://175.richmond.edu.

Margaret Thatcher visits Jepson School

How better to learn about leadership than by talking with leaders? Former British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher shared her insights with students at the Jepson School of Leadership Studies during a visit to the University in August.

Thatcher, prime minister from 1979–1990, traveled to the Jepson School at the request of leadership studies and political science professor Dr. Gary McDowell. Before joining the University last year, McDowell directed the Institute of United States Studies at the University of London. Thatcher served on the institute’s board, and they have maintained close ties.

“Having her here was a very special opportunity,” he says. “The Jepson School is about leadership studies, and one of the best ways to explore that is actually to talk to great leaders. One of my favorite moments was when a student asked, ‘How, as a prime minister, did you consider leadership?’ She responded, ‘You don’t consider it; you just get on with it.’”

Thatcher, 79, no longer gives public speeches, so sessions with students were small and conversational, and students described her as warm and approachable.

“Knowing her reputation for having an iron fist, we were all a bit surprised to realize that she truly is human,” says Allison Kirk, president of the Jepson Student Government Association.

But the iron fist slipped out of the velvet glove when senior Zachariah Dorey-Stein asked Thatcher about the experiences that have shaped her political beliefs. “She responded that the six-year war [World War II] was instrumental,” Dorey-Stein recalls. “Her country thought that evil was completely subdued by the end of it, and they thought another war would never be fought. She said that building a strong military is very important for any nation, particularly after a major war.”

Thatcher gave students a brief overview of her university experience and her many encounters with world leaders, but she also inquired about their interests and opinions. “There is no doubt in my mind,” says senior Adrienne Benson, “that each individual who met [her] will forevermore have a vivid picture of the strength and charm of such an influential woman.”

By Megan Marconyak, ‘05

Striving to help homeless people

Prior to attending Richmond, seniors Lauren Johanson and Jill Fasching never seriously thought about social justice issues.

Now the two students have developed a program that has reduced homelessness in the Richmond area.

Their creation, “Project Strive,” has helped more than 100 homeless men and women develop work-readiness skills, obtain jobs and, for many of them, find permanent shelter.

The idea for the project began with a class, Analyzing and Making Policy, that the two students took as sophomores in the Jepson School of Leadership Studies.“The focus of that class and of the leadership school that year was on homelessness,” says Johanson of Camarillo, Calif. She and Fasching looked at the inherent problems of day labor pools—the traditional source of employment for homeless people—and came up with a plan to help the homeless find better employment and housing.

When the leadership school hosted a summit on homelessness, they presented their plan, which caught the attention of Peter Prizzio, executive director of The Daily Planet, a service agency for homeless people in the Richmond area. The Daily Planet ended up scrapping its existing vocational program and replacing it with Project Strive.

“We had people willing to work with us and consider us peers in the project,” recalls Fasching of Mount Joy, Pa. The students met with The Daily Planet’s board and business leaders as well as members of Homeward, a coordinating body for homeless services “to convince them of the merits of the program.”

Project Strive combines education with job training to give the homeless the necessary skills to obtain employment. Participants can earn a GED, learn how to fill out employment applications, interview and dress appropriately for work, complete a paid internship at The Daily Planet and obtain a job.

The success of the program became apparent when The Daily Planet received a $226,000 grant from the Department of Housing and Urban Development to implement Project Strive on a permanent basis. In a trial period, 90 of 97 people who started the program got jobs, according to Prizzio. After 30 days, 68 percent were still working, and of those, 70 percent had moved into permanent housing.

“We hope these results will justify continued funding,” Prizzio says. “Lauren and Jill have gained some valuable experience, but even more exciting is the fact that [Project Strive] is having such a positive impact on the people we serve.”

One Project Strive graduate, Joseph Henry, is a house painter who moved to Richmond from Baltimore. After becoming homeless in Richmond, he tried working, but ended up angry, hungry and cold most of the time.

He went to The Daily Planet for help. His case manager recommended Project Strive, and after completing the program, he obtained employment with a painting contractor, moved into a townhouse and bought a car. “One thing about being in the Strive program,” he says, “they guarantee you shelter. It would have been impossible to sleep out on the streets and then come in and educate yourself.”

Henry’s goal is to remain self-supporting. “There’s nothing like making it on your own,” he says.

Penny Dortch agrees. Still in the program, she has set her sights on managing a fast-food restaurant.

“When I first became homeless, I didn’t know which way to go,” she recalls. “I have little to no education. I thought the doors were shut for me. Project Strive let me know that there are still opportunities.”

She credits Johanson and Fasching personally. “They let me know that it’s not over,” she says.

Those comments have made the long hours of work worthwhile for the students. “Having been involved in the Jepson School and specifically having worked with an amazing group of people on Project Strive, I will graduate with an entirely different perspective on the world,” Johanson says. “This school has encouraged me to think critically about my surroundings and will inspire me to contribute to my community.”

Fasching also learned valuable lessons from Project Strive. “I was given the unique opportunity to experience a piece of the public policy process that students usually only read about in textbooks,” she says. “In the future, I hope to pursue a career that encourages creative problem solving and that allows me to participate actively in the community.”

Their instructor, Dr. Thomas Shields, is proud of their accomplishments. “The real application of leadership studies begins when the students get their hands dirty in helping our local community,” he says. “In terms of academic learning, Lauren and Jill were excellent students, but they also learned that the ideal of moral leadership occurs through action. Project Strive embodied the mission of Jepson—to educate people for and about leadership.”

By Linda Evans, W‘71

Students help staff weather storm

When the remnants of Hurricane Gaston pounded the campus in September, 60 trees lost their grip on the squishy soil and came crashing down, blocking roads and crushing cars.

Comprehensive insurance policies replaced most of those cars, but two dining hall employees, Margaret Bethune and Sharon Knox, seemed to be out of luck: no coverage, no cars.

That’s when several student organizations formed the Gaston Relief Fund to help the employees replace their ruined vehicles. Dozens of students raised money by knocking on every door of every residence hall and every apartment building on campus. They also collected donations from students, faculty and staff at a table in Tyler Haynes Commons.

In just nine days, students raised more than $9,000. They gave Bethune and Knox $3,000 each plus $100 in gas money. They used some of the funds to host a luncheon to thank the facilities staff for doing a great job cleaning up the campus after the storm, and they donated the remaining money to an employee emergency fund administered by the Office of the Chaplaincy.

The co-chairs of the Gaston Relief Fund—seniors Kristen Emerson, Melanie Mayhew and Ken Kraper—met Bethune and Knox for the first time at an emotional reception in Tyler Haynes Commons.

“We all heard your story, and we know that you are always here doing things for us, and we wanted to do something for you,” Mayhew said. “What you do so often goes unnoticed. The professors and the deans get lots of credit, but you are just as important. You are an integral part of this University.”

Bethune and Knox clearly were overwhelmed with emotion, and they both pledged to pass on the students’ generosity to others in need down the road.

“You are all my children, even though I know that you are all grown up,” Bethune said. “As a mother, you always feel that longing to mother.”

Knox choked back tears and struggled to say, “I don’t know how to thank you.”

The room was silent until Len Goldberg, vice president for student development, said, “I think you just did.”

By Karl Rhodes

Center for Civic Engagement combines ideas, advocacy and action

It’s a place for debate, ideas, hope and action for social change.

Dr. Doug Hicks, director of the Corella & Bertram F. Bonner Center for Civic Engagement, presented that description of the center at its dedication Sept. 14. With it, the dream of countless students, faculty and staff is coming alive in Tyler Haynes Commons.

The center is designed to bring campus and community leaders together in collaborative study, reflection and research to address social issues in Richmond and the wider world.

Hicks said the center must then put the resulting ideas into action. “Problems will not be solved in an ivory tower or in a bubble,” he noted. “If we are seen only as a coordinator of community service, or alternatively, as a closed-minded, narrow research center, then we will have failed this challenge of an integrated vision.”

According to other speakers, failure is unlikely.

President William E. Cooper said there is a “true spirit here of effective engagement, trying to leverage what we do as an academic community with the Richmond community, and in some cases, with communities well beyond Richmond, in a way that really brings home results.”

The Rev. Wayne Meisel, president of The Bonner Foundation, which sponsors the Bonner Scholars program on campus and is a benefactor of the center, told those gathered for the dedication that community service must be tied to civic engagement.

“Community service that is not connected to civic engagement, while being well-meaning and perhaps providing some benefit, falls short of what a democracy expects and requires and holds out as a possibility.” He said that by engaging in advocacy, “we speak up in a way to make sure that other voices are heard.”

Prior to the dedication, the center sponsored three concurrent seminars on social issues. One featured panelists from the Democratic and Republican parties, electionline.org and Richmond Crusade for Voters in a discussion of the November 2004 election. A second seminar examined the politics of housing and homelessness, while the third looked at international development and the responsibility of the United States.

Trustees approve tuition increase

The Board of Trustees voted in October to set the 2005–06 total cost of attendance for entering first-year and transfer undergraduate students at $40,510, an increase of 26.9 percent from the current academic year. Returning undergraduate students will see a 5 percent increase to $33,510.

Total cost of attendance includes tuition, fees, room and board. Recognizing that currently enrolled students and their families already had budgeted for their college expenses based on the existing tuition rate, the board decided to exempt them from the larger increase.

To ensure that a Richmond education remains affordable, the board dedicated a sizeable portion of the additional tuition revenue to continuing its policy of meeting 100 percent of a student’s demonstrated financial need. That policy, which began in 2002, places a $4,000 cap on loan and work-study funding per year with the balance of demonstrated need met with need-based grants that do not have to be repaid.

Richmond is the only university in Virginia, and one of fewer than 40 universities in the country, to meet 100 percent of undergraduate students’ demonstrated need and offer a “need-blind” admission policy. Applying or qualifying for need-based aid is not a factor in Richmond’s admission decisions.

Tuition at Richmond is the primary revenue source for annual operations, as it is at most private universities. Although the University’s endowment is sizeable, it accounts for only 27 percent of the institution’s total operating budget. While the ongoing Transforming Bright Minds campaign is expected to secure financial support for many institutional priorities, its success will have only a marginal impact on the University’s annual operating budget.

The additional tuition revenue will allow Richmond to accelerate many of its strategic initiatives that will greatly enhance the undergraduate experience and directly benefit students. These initiatives include increasing the amount of need- and merit-based scholarships, hiring additional faculty in a variety of disciplines, updating technology resources throughout the campus and re-engineering classrooms to better facilitate discussion-based learning. Other initiatives include renovating or expanding existing buildings such as the science center, library, business school and dining hall, as well as constructing new facilities.

When the tuition increase is implemented, the total cost of attending Richmond will be comparable to other selective private universities with which Richmond competes for top students, including Duke, Vanderbilt, Georgetown and Colgate.

“For the past several decades, the University of Richmond’s tuition rate has been comparatively low and does not accurately reflect the high quality of our faculty, academic programs and campus resources,” says Otis D. Coston Jr., rector of the Board of Trustees. “We are in the process of building one of the nation’s great universities, and increasing tuition revenue will provide the resources needed to propel Richmond to the top echelon of academic excellence. We have a responsibility to our students and the nation to provide the highest quality educational experience within our reach.”

The vast majority of Richmond alumni supports this position. In a 2003 alumni survey, 95 percent of respondents said it was important for the University to pursue its vision to “become one of the finest small private universities in the nation.”

Prior to the trustees’ vote on the tuition increase, President William E. Cooper met with the Alumni Association Board to brief its members on the issue and seek their input.

“After careful consideration of all of the facts, the Alumni Association Board strongly endorsed the tuition proposal,” says Board President Bob Seabolt, R’77. “We are pleased to have been consulted prior to the decision, and we look forward to dialogue in the future on issues critical to the University’s future.”

Weinstein Hall wins environmental award

Weinstein Hall, the University’s social sciences building, has been named one of the most environmentally friendly structures in the world.

The U.S. Green Building Council awarded the building its Leadership, Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) certification. At the time of the award, only 115 structures in the world were LEED certified, and just four of those buildings were in Virginia.

Completed in July 2003, Weinstein Hall incorporated a major expansion and renovation of the former Political Science Building. Architects and contractors followed the council’s guidelines throughout construction of the 53,000-square-foot building, whose many environmentally friendly features include a system that monitors and adjusts fresh air entering the building.

Other environmental amenities include special parking for carpool participants and drivers of alternative-fuel vehicles, including receptacles for recharging electric car batteries. Builders used recycled steel, and they selected other materials, such as paint and carpeting, that have low “volatile organic compounds” to reduce potential allergy-related problems for faculty, staff and students. The building even has special mats at primary entrances to remove particles from shoes.

Richmond senior conquers Everest

Dan Lochner, a senior from New Canaan, Conn., has conquered Mount Everest, the sixth leg of his extraordinary quest to climb the highest mountain on each of the seven continents.

Lochner savored his moment on top of the world, but he was disappointed that he could not achieve his goal to be the youngest person to reach the seven summits.

Unbeknownst to Lochner, Britton C. Keeshan, a Middlebury College student, simultaneously was attempting to become the youngest to climb all seven. Lochner also didn’t know that he and Keeshan scaled Everest at the same time but on different sides and that Everest marked Keeshan’s seventh summit. Lochner later discovered that Keeshan, the grandson of TV’s Captain Kangaroo, lived only 15 minutes from Lochner’s home.

Keeshan’s climb meant he held the new record, and to break it, Lochner would have to reach the summit of Vinson Massif in Antarctica on or before Nov. 2. Lochner considered an October mission to Antarctica, but financial constraints and extreme weather stopped him.

Lochner reached the top of Everest on May 18. He called it an eye-opening experience for him and climbing partner Dan Meggitt. In his summit report, he described the three steps, or rock formations, they tackled: “Between the first and second step, the climb is extremely exposed with the use of old frayed rock that could have snapped at any moment. I was very scared at this section because if my crampons did not bite into the rotten rock below, I would have slipped to my death. Or if I had merely broken a limb, I would have still been left for dead as it is next to impossible to save [someone] at this altitude.”

“To put Everest in perspective,” he continued, “a day after I made the summit, six climbers died on their summit bid, either for reasons of exhaustion or a fall. Even a member of my team and a friend of mine almost died the day after I made the summit. … A member on my permit and I mounted a rescue attempt to save this man, who remained at 27,200 feet, dazed in his tent after making an oxygen-less ascent. To save his life, we pleaded with two Sherpa to search for him, and he was found in his tent at Camp Three almost dead. We met the two Sherpa and him at the North Column and assisted in bringing him down.”

Although Lochner has raised money, he also has maxed out six credit cards in climbing Everest, Mount Kosciusko in Australia, Mount Kilimanjaro in Africa, Elbrus in Europe, Mount McKinley (Denali) in North America and Aconcagua in South America.

Back at Richmond for his senior year, he hopes to raise enough money to climb Vinson in December during the winter break. His goal is to raise $1 million for prostate cancer research.

After Vinson, Lochner will consider the Adventure Grand Slam—climbing the seven summits and trekking to the North and South Poles. No American has ever done it.

In the meantime, Lochner seems to be getting over the disappointment of missing the seven summits record. “It’s not about winning,” he explains. “It’s about trying.”

By Randy Fitzgerald, R‘63 and G‘64

To contribute to his cause, visit www.oath7.com or www.prostatecancerclimb.com/sponsorship.htm.

Carver wins top ROTC award

Master Sgt. James I. Carver III, an ROTC instructor at the University, has been named national instructor of the year by the U.S. Army Cadet Command.

Carver was selected from 626 instructors teaching at 272 Army Senior ROTC programs nationwide. First he was named most outstanding instructor in the 4th Brigade, which consists of 19 ROTC programs in Virginia and North Carolina. Then he was named best in the Eastern Region and, finally, best in the United States.

A national board reviewed the candidates’ nomination letters, 15-minute videotapes of their teaching, and accounts of their individual challenges and contributions. Specific criteria included tactical and technical knowledge, communication skills, appearance and military bearing, training literature development, research, and publication of articles.

“We are very proud of Master Sgt. Carver and this distinct recognition,” says Lt. Col. Donald J. Lash Jr., Richmond’s professor of military science. “He is an incredible asset to our team.”

Richmond’s ROTC program is ranked 28th for overall performance among 272 in the nation, and it recently was named to the “Commanding General’s Top 15 Percent.”

Urban forum probes town-gown relations

The 2005 Urban Practice and Policy Forum will examine what questions the University of Richmond and higher education in general need to ask to continue to serve both the local and global communities.

Some of the questions might be: What is the purpose of higher education? What goals should colleges and universities pursue? What obligations do colleges and universities have to society?

The forum is sponsored by the School of Arts and Sciences’ Urban Practice and Policy Program. Contributing sponsors include Richmond Quest, the University’s 175th Anniversary Committee, the Office of International Education, and the Center for Civic Engagement.

The University and the Local Community:
What Questions Should We Be Asking?
Feb. 2, 7:30 p.m.
Jepson Hall 118

Speakers:
Dr. David Maurrasse, an assistant professor in the Department of International and Public Affairs at Columbia University. He is the author of Beyond the Campus: How Colleges and Universities Form Partnerships With Their Communities.

Dr. Kenneth Ruscio, dean of the Jepson School of Leadership Studies.

Dr. Harlan Beckley, director of the Shepherd Program for the Interdisciplinary Study of Poverty and Human Capability at Washington and Lee University.

The University and the Global Community: When Do We Know When We’ve Asked the Right Questions?
March 2, 7:30 p.m.
Jepson Hall 118

Speakers:
Dr. Terence P. Dolan, associate professor of old and medieval English at University College in Dublin, Ireland. He was one of the scholars who helped create ERASMUS, a consortium of colleges and universities that promotes international education throughout Europe.

Dr. Uliana Gabara, dean of international education and the Carole M. Weinstein Chair in International Education.

Kathryn J. Monday, vice president for information services.

The University of Richmond and the Richmond community
April 2, 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.
Jepson Alumni Center

Panel discussion moderated by Dr. Doug Hicks, director of the Center for Civic Engagement.

Long-time professors retire

Five professors retired in May with more than 30 years of service to the University. They are listed below in order of seniority.

Dr. Welford D. Taylor, R’59 and G’61, most recently held the James A. Bostwick Chair of English. Taylor began teaching at the University in 1964, and he chaired the English Department from 1978 to 1987. He has written extensively on American authors, including Sherwood Anderson, Ellen Glasgow, Robert Frost and Amélie Rives (Princess Troubetzkoy).

Dr. Ernest C. Bolt Jr. was most recently the Samuel Chiles Mitchell – Jacob Billikopf Professor of History. Bolt started teaching at the University in 1966, and he was chairman of the history department from 1983 to 1989. His teaching and research interests included American diplomatic history, the American peace movement, the Vietnam War and Cuban-American relations.

Dr. Charles W. Johnson Jr., professor of art history, arrived at the University in 1967, and he chaired the art and art history department from then until 2003. Johnson received the Outstanding Faculty Award in 1997 from the State Council for Higher Education in Virginia. His specialties included renaissance and baroque art history.

Dr. John W. Outland, professor of political science and international studies, joined the University’s faculty in 1969. He helped create Richmond’s international studies program in the mid-1980s. Outland received the Faculty Member of the Year Award in 1986 and again in 2004 from the Richmond College Student Government Association.

Dr. Joseph F. Kent III began teaching math at Richmond in 1973, and by 1980, he also was teaching computer programming. He chaired the Department of Mathematics and Computer Science from 1982 to 1992 and in 2000 became associate dean for academic operations of the School of Arts & Sciences. Kent returned to full-time teaching in 2003.

New leadership chair honors Vietnam War hero

The University has established an endowed chair of leadership studies in honor of retired Col. Leo K. Thorsness, recipient of the Medal of Honor, the nation’s highest award for military heroism.

Thorsness, who lives in Saddlebrooke, Ariz., was shot down over Vietnam and survived six years in a prison camp.

On a mission over North Vietnam in 1967, the Air Force fighter pilot and his wingman took out two surface-to-air missile sites. During the attack, the wingman’s plane was shot down, and its two crewmen bailed out.

After shooting down a MiG-17, Thorsness was forced to leave the area because his jet was critically low on fuel. But when he learned that other MiGs were threatening the rescue helicopters, Thorsness ignored his fuel problem and returned to the area. Spying four MiGs, he shot one down and drove the others away before maneuvering his aircraft to the safety of a forward operating base. As he landed, the plane ran out of fuel.

Eleven days after that harrowing experience, he was shot down and captured on his 93rd mission. After Thorsness returned to the United States, President Richard Nixon awarded him the Medal of Honor on Oct. 15, 1973.

Exactly 21 years later, the University hosted a dinner to recognize Thorsness and announce the creation of the Colonel Leo K. and Gaylee Thorsness Chair in Ethical Leadership at the Jepson School of Leadership Studies funded by W. Thomas Matthews, president and CEO of the Global Private Client Group at Smith Barney.

“Col. Thorsness and his wife, Gaylee, have led lives of unselfish service to others, the kinds of lives we hope our students will lead,” says Jepson Dean Kenneth B. Ruscio. “We are honored to have this association with two individuals who personify so many of the highest ideals of the Jepson School.”

For more information about the Transforming Bright Minds campaign or to make an online contribution, visit www.brightminds.richmond.edu.

Move over, Harvard

The Princeton Review has rated the University of Richmond ahead of Harvard for academics in its 2005 edition of The Best 357 Colleges.

Each year, The Princeton Review ranks the top 10 percent of colleges nationally in four categories—academics, campus life, selectivity and financial aid. On a scale of one to 99, Richmond scored 96 for academics, while Harvard scored 94.

Each college’s ratings are based primarily on surveys of its students and administrators, according to the publication: “Factors weighed included how many hours students studied and the quality of the students the school attracts as measured by admissions statistics; we also considered students’ assessments of their professors’ abilities and helpfulness.”

In addition to its impressive academic rating, Richmond earned exceptionally high marks for campus life (94) and student selectivity (97). The University’s financial aid rating was 79.

The University continues to gain recognition in other surveys, too. For the 11th straight year, U.S. News & World Report has rated Richmond No. 1 in its category within the magazine’s “America’s Best Colleges” issue. Richmond topped the “Best Universities-Master’s-South” category by a wide margin, as it has since 1994. The category includes schools in Southern states that offer undergraduate- and master’s-level programs, but not doctoral programs.

U.S. News & World Report measures colleges and universities in seven categories: peer assessment, retention of students, faculty resources, student selectivity, financial resources, graduation rate and alumni giving.

“We are pleased to be ranked so highly by America’s college guides once again,” says President William E. Cooper, “especially in the areas of academic quality, outstanding faculty and students, and loyal alumni.”

Chaplain Installation

For more information about the new chaplain, Daphne Burt, visit the Summer 2004 issue.

Richmond wins national award for alcohol-abuse prevention

The University’s wellness program, collaborating with many other programs and departments on campus, has won an award for alcohol-abuse prevention. The award recognizes Richmond and two other universities for having the best overall alcohol-abuse prevention programs in the nation. Student judges at Fort Hays State University evaluated nearly 300 submissions during the competition, which was sponsored by Coors Brewing Co. and the Inter-Association Task Force on Alcohol and Other Substance Abuse Issues.

Richmond’s multifaceted approach to alcohol-abuse prevention impressed the judges, says Carol Johnson, the University’s director of wellness. The centerpiece of the program is URAware, a required, four-hour workshop that gives students specific guidelines for drinking based on their self-assessment of risk factors. Other key components include: aggressive enforcement by campus police; the University’s Natural High Program, which gives students exciting alternatives to drinking; and a Social Norms Marketing Program that dispels the notion that alcohol abuse is a “normal” aspect of college life.

“You are never going to stop college students from drinking,” Johnson says. “What we are about is harm reduction.”

Fulbright grant takes Larkin to Estonia

Edward Larkin, assistant professor of English, has won a Fulbright Scholar grant to lecture on American studies and literature at Tallinn Pedagogical University in Tallinn, Estonia.

Larkin will teach two classes on American studies and American immigrant literature there. He is one of around 800 U.S. faculty and professionals who will travel abroad to 140 countries during the 2004–05 academic year through the Fulbright program.

“I was thrilled to win the award,” Larkin says, “and my family is delighted at the prospect of this grand adventure. It represents an interesting opportunity to teach American literature, history and culture in one of the newly independent Baltic States that were formerly a part of the Soviet Union.”

Richmond hoopsters reunite in Europe

After four solid years on the University’s basketball team, Scott Ungerer, ’02, got one more chance to impress pro scouts at a three-day hoopfest in downtown Richmond.

Players from big-name schools, such as Duke and UCLA, were among the hopefuls, but Ungerer caught the eye of Herman van den Belt, the head coach of a professional team in The Netherlands.

Now in his third season with van den Belt’s team, Landstede Zwolle, Ungerer is living the dream of pro basketball. “People are actually paying me money to play the game I love,” he says. “I realize just how lucky I am.”

Every basketball player wants to play in the NBA, Ungerer concedes, but “as you grow up, reality starts to set in. I feel totally comfortable playing over here and don’t really give the NBA much of a thought anymore.”

Former Spider teammate Greg Stevenson, ’01, joined Ungerer on the Landstede Zwolle team in early October. Then the team signed another former Spider, Johnathan Collins, ’03.

Collins had been a sales manager at Gold’s Gym in Northern Virginia, where he also was coaching high school basketball. “It was tough dropping everything I was doing back home,” he says, “but the opportunity to play competitive basketball again with two of my best friends was something I couldn’t pass up.”

Stevenson played in Germany during the 2001–02 season and played in France part of the following year. He has spent the past two seasons with minor-league teams in the United States.

“Playing in Germany and France, compared to the USA, was a little different because of the style of play and a slight difference in the rules,” Stevenson says. “There is a little more pressure. You are the ‘American’ who is supposed to make the team that much better.”

The money can be good, Stevenson says, but sometimes teams do not pay their players on time or in full. Another drawback is being away from your family six to 10 months a year. Stevenson says language barriers also can be a problem, but “you get to travel and see different parts of the world.”

Another former Richmond star, Chris Fleming, ’93, played five years in Germany for Quakenbrück and is now in his sixth season as the team’s coach. His interim assistant coach earlier this season was Jimmy Shields, ’92, a former Richmond teammate who played in Germany last year.

Fleming’s team faced the versatile Ungerer in a preseason game earlier this season and came away impressed. “He can play the four (power forward) on defense and the one (point guard) on offense,” Fleming marvels. Last year in 36 games in The Netherlands, Ungerer averaged 13 points, 5.3 rebounds, 5.6 assists and 1.6 steals per game.

Like most Americans playing professional basketball in Europe, Ungerer lives rent-free in an apartment he shares with a teammate. All of Ungerer’s salary is tax-free, and the hours aren’t bad, he says. “I train three hours a day for basketball, which leaves a lot of time, which I fill with weightlifting, coaching younger kids, e-mails and reading.” By staying busy, Ungerer staves off occasional bouts of homesickness, and he credits his Richmond experience with helping him adapt to his new surroundings.

“Richmond was a great preparation,” he says. “When you arrive at school your freshman year, you are thrown into a completely different world with all strangers, and it is up to you to create your own life. Richmond helped to provide me with an open mind, and that is essential for being happy here.”

Other former Richmond players who began this season overseas include: Kinte Smith, ’01; Jarod Stevenson, ’98; Eric Poole, ’98; and Tony Dobbins, ’03. Here’s how they are doing, according to their e-mails and stats from www.eurobasket.com.

Smith has played professionally in England, Germany and The Netherlands. Last season he averaged 14.8 points, 6.7 rebounds and three assists per game for a team in The Netherlands called Fun 4 All Bergen-Op-Zoom. This year he plays in Germany for a team called Cuxhaven.

Stevenson plays for a team in Russia. He previously played in France, Israel and Italy. Last season he averaged 20.9 points per game for a team in Israel.

Poole has played in Sweden, Switzerland, Germany, France and Latvia. Last year he helped his Swiss team make the league finals by averaging 17.0 points and 9.6 rebounds per outing. This season he’s playing for BBC Monthey in Switzerland.

Dobbins recently left a pro team in Turkey. Before moving on, he told the Richmond coaching staff that he and a teammate were the only two black people in a city of 83,000. “It’s so funny when we walk down the street or into restaurants or stores,” Dobbins wrote. “People stop in mid-sentence, mid-bite, mid-drink, mid-whatever and just stare with their mouths open. It’s like we are the eighth and ninth wonders of the world.”

By David Driver

Men's basketball runs for the boarder

Cancún, Mexico, has become a popular destination for spring break—but fall break?

The men’s basketball players spent their fall break amid the sun and sand of this tropical location. The players enjoyed Cancun’s outdoor attractions, but they had even more fun inside the city’s hot, sweaty gyms.

Richmond dominated three contests against university, club and professional teams from the Mexican resort city. Several Richmond players performed brilliantly on the hardwoods. Junior Kevin Steenberge recorded double-doubles (points and rebounds) in each game, while junior Jermaine Bucknor and sophomore Daon Merritt scored consistently.

Richmond unveils new Spidey

Football fans leaped to their feet and applauded as the newest member of the Richmond athletic family emerged from the back of a luxury sport-utility vehicle at halftime of the season opener.

Smiling children surrounded Richmond’s beloved new mascot for the rest of the afternoon as he led the cheers for the Spiders.

Spidey also was a frequent visitor to another new feature at Richmond football games—the Ukrop’s Family Fun Zone. The Family Fun Zone is filled with inflatable play things and other games for children to enjoy throughout the games.

Field hockey team dominates A-10

The nationally ranked field hockey team extended its dynasty by going undefeated in the Atlantic 10 regular season for the third consecutive year. Richmond has won 22 straight matches against conference opponents.

Junior Holly Cram of Glasgow, Scotland, was one of many stars on the squad this season, establishing a new single-season point mark of 67. and the program record for goals in a season with 29. Junior Michelle Swartz of Severna Park, Md., played well as goalie, posting 11 shutouts.

The Spiders qualified for their third consecutive NCAA tournament.

Expectations soar for women's basketball

After missing last winter’s NCAA tournament by a shoestring, the women’s basketball team entered the 2004–05 season with high expectations. Excitement and anticipation overflows when anyone within the program discusses the 2004–05 campaign.

Third-year head coach Joanne Boyle led Richmond to a WNIT berth in each of the past two seasons, but the program’s ultimate NCAA goal has proved elusive. The Spiders won 23 games last winter, advancing to the WNIT semifinals before falling to eventual champion Creighton.

The leaders of last year’s team, senior forward Kate Flavin and junior guard Saona Chapman, are preseason Atlantic 10 all-conference honorees, and Flavin’s reputation stretches even further.

A Street & Smith preseason all-American, Flavin led the Atlantic 10 in rebounding last season and was ninth in the nation in field goal percentage (59.2 percent). She enters the year with 1,299 points, placing her fifth on Richmond’s all-time scoring list. If Flavin matches the 594 points she scored as a junior, she would move into second place behind Karen Elsner, who scored 2,367 points from 1981 to 1985.