Dear Class of 2021 Families,
We are Jenny and Mike Amerson, and we are your Class of 2021 Representatives.
Fall is in full swing at William & Mary, and the campus community is bustling with activity, even though it looks different this year. The highlight of last month was the 54th Annual Family Weekend, which appeared virtually for the first time ever. Even though families were unable to be physically on campus, we enjoyed participating in the traditional Family Weekend events, such as dropping in on classes, watching faculty lectures, and joining the lantern tour of historic campus. It was exciting to experience some of the W&M magic that our son has been enjoying throughout his time at the university.
We encourage you to attend the upcoming webinar events that are happening this month. Dean Janice Zeman will be presenting the “Academic Advising and this Semester’s Pass/Fail Options” webinar tonight at 7pm EST. Other webinars happening this month include, “Get Involved this Election Year with the Office of Community Engagement” on October 22nd and “Explore Externships with the Cohen Career Center” on October 28th. We also encourage you to submit externship and internship opportunities for students to Tribe Careers no later than today, October 1st.
Please don’t hesitate to reach out to us with questions.
Sincerely,
Jenny and Mike Amerson P ’21
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COVID-19 Dashboard: William & Mary's dashboard provides available public data on regional, local and campus trends regarding COVID-19 testing, results and cases.
Healthy Together Checklist: See quickly what you need to do as an employee or student for the fall semester on the healthy together checklist.
Report Feeling Ill: If you're a student, faculty or staff member feeling sick and suspecting you've contracted COVID-19, please visit our resource page for instructions on seeking care during and after normal business hours.
Report a Positive Test Result: If you are a student, faculty or staff member and have received a positive COVID-19 test result, please visit ReportCOVID.wm.edu to initiate case management that will protect your privacy.
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Family Weekend Highlights |
From Thursday, September 24 to Sunday, September 27 we had our first ever virtual Family Weekend! It was great to see and hear from all of you who were able to attend, and a testament to the greater William & Mary community.
We hope you were able to participate in some of our events, but if not, we have plenty of highlights online to check out!
On our website, you can watch the Family Weekend Welcome with President Katherine A. Rowe, William & Mary SINGS!, a virtual a cappella concert, a virtual beer tasting with the Virginia Beer Company, and more!
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W&M Undergraduate Teaching Praised by U.S. News & World Report |
In US News' 2021 ranking of the nation's best colleges, William & Mary tied with Princeton for the 4th best Undergraduate Teaching in the nation!
In that same report, W&M also ranked first for alumni giving among public universities, and 14th among all national institutions.
Rankings can only tell part of the W&M story, but it's always great to see our exceptional community get recognized!
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W&M to hold virtual Homecoming & Reunion Weekend |
Although it pains us to not see our alumni in-person this homecoming, we at W&M are beyond excited to be hosting its first ever virtual homecoming weekend, or weeks!
This year’s Homecoming & Reunion Weekend will be more than a weekend — the festivities have been expanded into two weeks, from October 12-23, to provide the community with expanded access to virtual events.
From the annual Sunset Ceremony to class reunions to career coaching, we're looking forward to the opportunity to host even more events this homecoming.
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William & Mary Virtual Class Ring Sales Event |
In partnership with Jostens, William & Mary has extended virtual class ring sales, with appointment dates available from October 15 to October 18.
New this semester, all students with over 60 academic credits are invited to purchase class rings and participate in the W&M Ring Ceremony (formerly Junior Class Ring Ceremony) in the spring.
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Save the Date for Commencement! |
It may seem far off, but graduation is coming faster than you know it!
Mark your calendars now for May 21 - 23, 2021 and the main Commencement ceremony on May 22. Commencement is an incredible time to celebrate your future graduate's accomplishments, and take part in time-honored W&M traditions.
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Study in D.C. Applications Open! |
Is your student interested in studying in Washington, D.C.? Applications for Study in D.C. are still open!
Students can choose to study in D.C. over winter break, the spring semester, and/or next summer! All majors and interests are welcome and many courses fulfill the COLL 300 requirement. Visit www.wm.edu/studyindc to learn more!
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Food for Thought Faculty Series |
Learn about current research and findings from Arts & Sciences faculty and students. Featured faculty include Alan Braddock (art and art history), Fabricio Prado (history), Silvia Tandeciarz (modern languages) and Tricia Vahle (physics).
All William & Mary alumni, parents, family and friends are encouraged to attend. The series will take place via zoom, through the months of October and November.
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SA Presents: Be the Reason Events & Activities (aka 6-feet-of-fun) |
Student Assembly (the W&M student government) is gathering information from clubs, organizations and departments across campus to bring students a curated list of things to do and still maintain 6-feet-of-fun!
The website is updated weekly on Fridays and a message with the 6-feet-of-fun! Activities are sent to all students on Friday afternoons.
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Virtual Learning Partner Program |
Aren't things always better when you have a partner? Griffin School Partnerships, the Office of Community Engagement and the School of Education have forged a partnership that matches W&M students with WJCC students.
They will provide virtual 1-1 mentoring and tutoring to assist with online learning as a part of the Virtual Learning Partner (VLP) Program. The program will begin in October. Is your student interested in being a partner? Contact Joy Jackson (jpjackson02@wm.edu) to get on the waitlist.
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October Parent & Family Program Webinar |
Don't forget to check out this month's Parent & Family Program Webinar series offerings! It will kick off on Thursday, October 1st with Janice Zeman from the Office of Academic Advising. Later on, we'll have a Study Abroad Webinar, a webinar on getting involved this election year with the Office of Community Engagement, and a webinar on externships hosted by the Cohen Career Center.
As always, our webinars will be recorded and posted on our website afterwards.
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Upcoming Course Withdrawal Deadline |
We’re currently in the midterm grading period, which runs September 28 - October 11. The withdrawal deadline is Monday, October 12.
Students are always welcome and encouraged to meet with the professional advisors in our office if they have questions or concerns.
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The Parents Fund Supports Career Readiness |
The Parents Fund supports William & Mary students as they prepare themselves for their careers.
- Last year, $34,000 in Funding for Unpaid Summer Experiences stipends was provided to 33 students pursuing unpaid internships.
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The Parents Fund provides stipends to enable students to participate in the annual Tech Trek trip to the Silicon Valley to visit such technology companies. The Tech Trek is one of several Career Exploration Trips that benefits from Parents Fund support.
- Last year, the Parents Fund underwrote the cost of chartered bus transportation so that students in-need could travel to the store to purchase clothes through JCPenny’s Suit Up program.
Your gift to the Parents Fund today will help us reach our goal of $1 million by June 30, 2021.
Your donation helps students grow personally, academically and professionally.
This experience allowed me to put myself in the shoes of a doctor for a couple days. I found this to be super valuable as I get closer to entering the field because I had the opportunity to see and talk with an experienced physician about both the highs and the lows of the job. I feel like I now have a better framework for practicing medicine than I did before! -- Relena Turner ‘23, pictured above during her externship at Virginia Oncology Associates
I learned a lot about the financial services industry as well as what it was like to be a Wealth Management Advisor. This was an industry I had never really considered as a career path until my sophomore year so it was very interesting to learn more about it. I had very little knowledge about wealth management before this experience and am now considering it as a possible career. -- Ashley N Eastep ‘22
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P.O. Box 8795
Williamsburg, VA 23187-8795
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