Academics
Scholarships/Fellowships/Internships
Research Support
Travel Funds
Innovative Projects
Scholarships/Fellowships/Internships
AccessUVA—Scholarships: $100–$36,000
New funding is needed for AccessUVA, an ambitious financial aid program that makes a University education affordable for all qualified students, regardless of their financial means. The annual cost for an in-state student at U.Va. is now nearly $18,000, and for an out-of-state student, nearly $36,000. There is a need both for annual fund gifts and for endowed funds to support students in need.
Center for Children, Families, and the Law—Graduate Research Fellowships: $5,000
Good public policy depends on good information. Graduate students working in collaboration with faculty on research topics help improve the efficiency and effectiveness of services provided to children and families. Funds for general topics would be ideal, but if a donor feels strongly about a particular topic, such as custody or family violence, the center will see that her wishes are carried out. A gift of $5,000 will help support a graduate student's research for a year.
Center for Children, Families, and the Law—Summer Internships at Public Service Organizations: $3,000
Internships allow interested undergraduates to do applied work with children and families in the summer. Many undergraduates are interested in this work, but there are few opportunities available, and even fewer that offer a stipend. Such a program would parallel the center's graduate student fellowship program, which has been very successful. A gift of $3,000 will support one student for a summer.
Office of African American Affairs—Summer Academic Advancement Program: $2,500
U.Va.'s Office of African American Affairs has helped the University achieve one of the best graduation rates of African American students in the country—and the best among public universities. (U.Va.'s rate of 87 percent is more than twice the national average of 43 percent in six years.) But there is more work to do. A six-week, summer bridge program for U.Va. first-years from underprivileged areas will help students secure the mathematical and statistical tools they need throughout their college years. A pilot program for 25 incoming students was rolled out in summer 2007. A gift of $2,500 will support one student in the program. A gift of $75,000 will fund the entire program for one year.
President's Office—President's Fund for Excellence: $25–$2,500
The President's Fund for Excellence provides much-needed support for core academic and student-life programs at the University. It's a vital resource used to sustain a superb faculty, launch new ventures in science and engineering, enrich the humanities, enliven the arts, expand international activities, and foster the University's tradition of student leadership and self-governance.
Rainey Summer Academic Program: $71–$7,100
This program was launched to help AccessUVA students manage the transition between high school and college. The students arrive on Grounds several weeks before regular classes start. They learn about the University's resources, its libraries, its idiosyncrasies, and meet officials they might need to contact later. In addition, they may take up to two classes for college credit during the summer program. About 20 students have participated in this program in each of the past two years. A gift of $7,100 will support one student in this program.
School of Engineering and Applied Science—Graduate Student Teaching Internship: $1,000–$5,000
The Engineering School would like to provide additional funds to graduate students for teaching internships. Under the plan, graduate students will team teach and work with faculty mentors to improve all aspects of their teaching. The training will improve not only the students' teaching skills but also their job prospects. The $1,000 to $5,000 in additional funding will supplement the students' graduate research assistantship or fellowship stipend.
Research Support
Office of Student Affairs—Student-Initiated Research Projects: $5,000
Since 2000, a gift given by the late David A. Harrison III, a retired investment banker and alumnus, has helped to fund innovative research projects by outstanding undergraduate students in a variety of disciplines. But there is always more interest among motivated students than available funding. A gift of $5,000 to the Office of Student Affairs will support an additional student research project.
Studies in Women and Gender—Student Research Support: $500–$2,500
Support for student research on women and gender will enable undergraduate students to pursue independent research projects, working one-on-one with faculty members in this field. The funds also may be used to help advanced graduate students in Studies in Women and Gender pursue their research and write dissertations unencumbered by the simultaneous need to seek employment.
Travel Funds
 College and Graduate School of Arts & Sciences—Huskey Graduate Research and Travel Fund: $500–$2,000
Named in honor of Robert Huskey, the longtime associate dean for enrolled students in the Graduate School of Arts & Sciences, now retired, this fund provides travel support to graduate students for field and archival research and to present the results of their scholarship in professional meetings. A gift of $500 will support travel to a professional meeting. A gift of $2,000 will provide a valuable subsidy toward the cost of international fieldwork.
School of Engineering and Applied Science—Engineering Students Without Borders: $30–$3,000
Engineering Students Without Borders gives engineering students opportunities to put their training to work solving real problems in impoverished regions of the world. The U.Va. chapter has tackled projects in South Africa, Cameroon, Nicaragua, and Mexico. Funding is needed for travel costs, lodging, meals, and materials. It costs about $3,000 for one student and about $30,000 for a group of 10 students to travel overseas to work on a project for several months.
School of Engineering and Applied Science—Graduate Student Travel Funds: $500–$1,000
Graduate students will benefit greatly from financial support for trips to academic conferences to present their research, interview for jobs, and make valuable professional connections. Approximately $500 to $1,000 will send one graduate student to a conference in the United States.
Innovative Projects
Center for Children, Families, and the Law—Divorce Mediation Training: $2,000
Attorneys' fees and litigation increase the cost of a divorce. But when problems are simple and a divorcing couple is willing to work through issues on an amicable basis, divorce mediation offers a better way. The Center for Children, Families, and the Law at the School of Law—a joint project with the U.Va. Department of Psychology—proposes to sponsor divorce mediation training for graduate students who can then add that skill to their toolbox. A gift of $2,000 will cover the program cost for one graduate student.
Studies in Women and Gender—A New Course on Gender, Science, and Technology: $25–$2,500
The Studies in Women and Gender program is working with the Schools of Nursing, Law, and Education to offer new, interdisciplinary courses. The program also is seeking to collaborate with the Department of Science, Technology, and Society in the School of Engineering and Applied Science to develop a teaching and research focus on gender, science, and technology that would enable U.Va. to stake out new academic territory internationally. A gift of $2,500 will provide funds for one new course in this area.
 Virginia Center for Digital History—The Dolley Madison Project: $50–$5,000
The Dolley Madison Digital Edition, which is published by Rotunda, the electronic imprint of the University of Virginia Press, has published more than 500 of the former First Lady's letters, to the year 1836. Funds are needed to cover the cost of proofreading and annotating Dolley Madison's remaining correspondence (there are more than 2,000 letters and invitations that remain) for subsequent electronic publication. The electronic publishing project is directed by research historian Holly Shulman in collaboration with the University of Virginia Press, the Virginia Center for Digital History, and the Papers of James Madison.
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