A new chapter

Many of you know by now that I will be leaving Arts & Sciences this summer to become president of the University of Richmond. The opportunity to serve as president of an institution dedicated to so many of the things to which I am devoted — undergraduate education, civic engagement, the integration of the liberal arts into a broad education — is compelling, and the University of Richmond promises to be a wonderful new home.

It is hard to believe that I’m leaving the University of Virginia. The whole of my professional life has been invested here, and in 26 years in Charlottesville I’ve made friendships I will always treasure. In these past five-plus years as dean, I have been privileged to travel to meet many alumni on their home turf and to thank them for their great affection for and loyalty to the University.

Until I make the move, I am committed to continuing the momentum we’ve established. And this issue of the Arts & Sciences magazine focuses on an area that continues to grow and become stronger — film, whether it’s celebrating and discussing film at the Virginia Film Festival, teaching and making films as part of our curriculum, or recognizing some of the remarkable number of alumni who have contributed to this art form. It would take many more pages than we have here to examine all these in detail, but I hope you will enjoy this sampling and go online for more.

I appreciate all the kind messages you have sent since the announcement of my move, and I look forward to seeing many of you in the months ahead.

Edward L. Ayers
Hugh P. Kelly Professor of History
Dean of the College and Graduate School
of Arts & Sciences