An aspiring neuroscientist who wants to study brain disorders through the lens of genetics, a metal band lead guitarist who plans a career in cybersecurity and a surfing instructor who dreams of one day sharing his passion for the violin by teaching high school music.
The Longwood Alumni Awards annually honor graduates and friends for their outstanding contributions to the university, community, and society. The 2025 recipients, selected by the Alumni Board, exemplify the values of citizen leadership.
Eli Stark ’26 spent the first half of his summer working with Dr. Julian Dymacek using non-negative matrix factorization, a technique that helps extract useful information from large sets of data, to find patterns in transient bird movement.
Inspiration. Service. Community. Achievement. These are not just words— they are the powerful and enduring themes woven through the life stories of the 2025 Longwood Alumni Award recipients.
Mira Strong ’28 got the opportunity to build an electrospinner, a device that uses electrical force to produce small fibers from a polymer solution.
Math and research aren’t two words that seem to fit together quite as well as science and research.
Longwood University was recently recognized on Money magazine’s list of the Best Colleges in America for 2025, a distinction that reaffirms the university’s commitment to offering a high-quality education that’s affordable.
Longwood is proud to recognize more than 1,100 students named to the Dean’s List and President’s List for the 2025 spring semester.
Taylor Blount ‘26 has always loved to talk. Even from an early age, she said, people would comment on her gregarious nature.
Lalisha Fitchett ’00, M.S. ’03, has been named the 2026 VBCPS Citywide Teacher of the Year. The middle school English teacher says Longwood gave her the foundation to become a compassionate, effective educator dedicated to helping students grow in the classroom and beyond.