From the President

President Reveley gets to know students in the class he teaches each fall on the American Presidency.
President Reveley gets to know students in the class he teaches each fall on the American Presidency.

Recently, I attended the memorial service for Martha LeStourgeon ’46, someone whose tenure at Longwood predated my own, but who was among the many great faculty and staff who made long careers here, impacting generations of students. Martha provided an extraordinary link spanning Longwood history, graduating in the last year of the presidency of Joseph Jarman, who had taken office in 1902. She worked in the library from 1948 until her retirement in 1991, serving 19 years as director. Martha was committed to the importance of access to library resources, and to her colleagues and Longwood students.

One of the most important things that happens at a place like Longwood is a mixing of the generations. The combination of acquired wisdom from faculty and staff who build careers here, and the youthful energy of those who follow, is powerful, with benefits flowing to all involved. For many of you, as for me, great mentoring has been hugely consequential in life and work. It happens every day in every corner of Longwood’s campus. In a way, mentoring is a microcosm of the full Longwood experience, which is why we’ve devoted this issue of the magazine to the subject, and to sharing some stories that illustrate mentoring’s life-changing power.

In this age of fracturing institutions, there are fewer such opportunities for this generational mixing—and for genuine, in-person mentoring relationships. Residential campuses like Longwood matter more and more in this regard. Our role is to assemble the ingredients for mentoring relationships and encourage their formation. The tools we use include small classes, support for research experiences, and making sure we hire faculty and staff who are eager to teach and mentor. The result is lives transformed down through the generations, as Longwood mentees grow into mentors someday themselves.

By far the most important ingredient is people. About 85 percent of what Longwood spends money on is people—faculty, staff and coaches, for whom mentoring is at the heart of the job. And, of course, we have to invest in students, too, to make sure they are able to come here and reap the benefits of mentoring. That is why fundraising for scholarships is our top philanthropic priority.

All of which is to say, when you support Longwood, you are supporting people. You are making possible the relationships like those described in this magazine. You are transforming lives, now and into the far future.

My best wishes,

Taylor Sig Transparent

W. Taylor Reveley IV

President

  • Woman at podium

    Getting Personal

    November 01, 2019

    Dr. Emily Heady has an economy-size carton of individually wrapped cheese crackers on the bottom shelf of the bookcase in her office.

  • Longwood’s peer mentor program puts the experts on the front lines of helping new students. This is the summer 2019 crew, many of whom are also working this fall.

    Been There, Done That

    November 01, 2019

    SOME OF THE BEST mentors at Longwood are just a year or two older than the new students they’re helping adjust to college life.

  • Dr. Madison Humerick ’09 (left) has relied on the advice of Dr. Consuelo Alvarez from her freshman year at Longwood through medical school and starting a family (Photo by Jack Looney).

    Way Finders

    November 01, 2019

    Dr. Humerick and Dr. Alvarez Humerick remembers well that soccer game freshman year, when she first started to see there was something different about Dr. Alvarez.

  • What Mentoring Means to Me

    November 01, 2019

    I see mentoring as an effective way to transfer my knowledge and experience, not only on scientific research but also on academic and everyday life, helping my mentees to discover their passion.

  • Students on Campus

    Matchmakers

    November 01, 2019

    Funding a scholarship for a deserving Longwood student is now easier than ever before, thanks to an innovative initiative by the Office of Institutional Advancement

  • N.H. ‘Cookie’ Scott ’72 at the 2013 dedication of a center for diversity and inclusion named in her honor (Photo by Andrea Dailey).

    A Unique Perspective

    November 01, 2019

    A history-making Longwood graduate has returned to campus as a member of her alma mater’s governing board.

  • 2019 Dos Passos Prize winner writes books that challenge, provoke and bewilder

    November 01, 2019

    Rabih Alameddine, a Lebanese-American fiction and essay writer known for his diverse and multifaceted storytelling, is the 2019 winner of the John Dos Passos Prize for Literature.

  • Students working

    Reading Between the Numbers

    November 01, 2019

    There is plenty to make the Longwood community feel proud in the latest college rankings.

  • Sarah Elsakr’s PRISM project

    A Different Kind of Fun

    November 01, 2019

    The lure of the research lab was what one group of Longwood student scientists found irresistible this past summer—not the beach.

  • STEM Money

    November 01, 2019

    Longwood faculty members were recently awarded two grants from the National Science Foundation—totaling more than $1.2 million.

  • Dr. Kevin Doyle

    $50,000 grant to expand services for students who are in recovery

    November 01, 2019

    A TWO-YEAR GRANT of $50,000 will help Longwood Recovers, the university’s collegiate recovery program.

  • Call Them ‘Mister’

    November 01, 2019

    If you visited the typical elementary or middle school in Virginia, you might notice that the teachers are mostly women—and that male minority teachers are virtually absent from those classrooms.

  • Tangier Island sign

    Crash Course

    November 01, 2019

    ISCI 310: Stewardship of Public Waterways

  • James Bennett ’21

    An Irresistible Force

    November 01, 2019

    When James Bennett ’21 was growing up, he thought he didn’t want to follow in the professional footsteps of his parents—both of whom are teachers.

  • Panelists Nino Milanese (left) and Dave Stafford

    Protecting private data discussed by experts on Cyber Security panel

    November 01, 2019

    FOUR CYBER SECURITY experts convened on campus in October to discuss the biggest challenges facing the global IT community and what citizens can do to protect their private data from cybercriminals.

  • In Print

    November 01, 2019

    Turk, historian of the U.S. Marshals Service, described this as “a completely new take on Billy the Kid.

  • 1924 Basketball Team

    In the Beginning

    November 01, 2019

    One hundred years ago, the Longwood women’s basketball team began a new chapter in the story of the institution.

  • Opportunities to Celebrate

    November 01, 2019

    AS PART OF this year’s 100th Season Anniversary of Longwood Athletics, Longwood will host a pair of on-campus celebrations recognizing the historical achievements of Lancers past.

  • Emilie Kupsov ’20

    Lancer Roundup

    November 01, 2019

    Women’s soccer forward Emilie Kupsov ’20, an exercise science major, has lit up the scoreboard since her freshman year, and the senior recently joined elite company by reaching the 20-goal plateau.

  • Members of the women’s basketball team

    Craziness on the Court

    November 01, 2019

    Longwood fans got their first look at the 2019-20 Lancer men’s and women’s basketball teams during the annual Lancer Madness season tipoff event Oct. 22.

  • Senior Amadeo Blasco ’20

    The Making of an Ace

    November 01, 2019

    It would be an understatement to say Amadeo Blasco ’20 didn’t make a good first impression on his new head tennis coach, Jhonnatan Medina Alvarez.

  • Women’s softball coach Kathy Riley

    Tell All

    November 01, 2019

    In her 22 years as head coach of Longwood’s softball program, Kathy Riley has inspired hundreds of student-athletes.

  • Elwood

    Want to spend a night (or weekend) in the renovated Frazer?

    November 01, 2019

    Alumni Weekend, scheduled for May 29-31, 2020, will feature the best of past events while adding flexible pricing options for alumni to participate in all activities or just a few.

  • Kids cheering

    Alumni Family Game Day set for Jan. 4

    November 01, 2019

    ALUMNI FAMILY GAME DAY promises to offer an afternoon of fun and excitement for all ages.

  • Career Prep Week Speaker talking

    Event puts students and alums on the fast track to job-search savvy

    November 01, 2019

    Alumni and Career Services continues to ramp up its efforts to help Longwood students and alums find rewarding careers, holding Longwood’s first Career Prep Week in October.

  • Career fair

    Career fairs open to alumni

    November 01, 2019

    ALUMNI WHO ARE SEEKING jobs or recruiting employees are invited to attend three upcoming career fairs.

  • If Walls Could Talk

    November 01, 2019

    One group of parents moving their freshmen into the newly renovated Frazer Hall this fall must have felt at least a smidgeon of déjà vu.

  • Julie Blake ’99 helps camper

    Happy Camper

    November 01, 2019

    Julie Mock Blake ’99 doesn’t think she’ll ever get too old for summer camp—at least not the camp where she’s been volunteering since she was 12.

  • Class Notes

    November 01, 2019

    Joan Perry Brock ’64 was appointed by Gov. Ralph Northam to a five-year term on the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts’ Board of Trustees in February.

  • In Memoriam

    November 01, 2019

    Kathleen McCann Hanawalt ’38 July 6, 2019, Elizabeth Carrington Pendergrass ’42 June 20, 2019

  • Visit Farmville

    November 01, 2019

    It’s a Saturday in downtown Farmville. You can see the historic architecture and savor the views of campus.

  • Dr. Erica Brown-Meredith ’95 and Darius Baskerville ’20

    Someone in His Corner

    November 01, 2019

    “I believe you can make a difference in his life. I need you to make sure he graduates.”

  • Author/illustrator Todd Parr

    Word Power

    November 01, 2019

    Bigger than The Hungry Caterpillar’s appetite. More beguiling than The Cat in the Hat. More fun than a day with Pinkalicious.