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In 2024, the Roanoke College Environment Center partnered with students who worked on the Bee Campus USA project to install bee and bat houses on the college’s Elizabeth Campus. (Photo by Carissa Szuch Divant)
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Roanoke College's Beekeeping Society (Photo by Brieanah Gouveia)
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Photo courtesy Roanoke College
A’s and Bees
Roanoke College joins 215 Bee Campus USA affiliates in a conservation quest
Virginia colleges are buzzing with excitement about an initiative beyond the classroom.
Roanoke College recently achieved Bee Campus USA affiliation, joining six pollinator-friendly certified Virginia schools (James Madison University, Randolph College, University of Richmond, University of Virginia, Virginia Tech and Virginia Western Community College).
As part of a capstone project on sustainability issues, 18 Roanoke College students devised a plan for invasive pest management and installed native flower gardens and educational signage across the private school’s grounds in Salem. In April 2025, their efforts earned the college BCUSA status, awarded by the Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation. The nonprofit welcomes roughly 50 institutions each year to its Bee City and Campus USA initiatives; BCUSA spokesperson Laura Rost considers Virginia a model affiliate out of the 48-state team.
University of Richmond’s Eco-Corridor Orchard and Food Forest (Photo courtesy University of Richmond)
“There’s been a lot of positive feedback,” says RC environmental science professor Katherine O’Neill. “[Certification] has definitely increased awareness and started discussions within our community about how important pollinators are for things like food production.”
BCUSA certified in 2020, the University of Richmond maintains a pollinator meadow abuzz with Queen Anne’s lace, black-eyed Susans, Partridge peas, sunchokes and buttonbush. “Each native plant plays a role in creating a habitat for pollinating species,” says Rob Andrejewski, UR director of sustainability. “It’s not just [humans] who need to live here. We want to provide a home for the smallest of creatures.” In September 2024, UR opened its Eco-Corridor Orchard and Food Forest, a project brewing since 2022 that grants students and community visitors access to organically grown fruit trees and herbs.
“These areas of campus are so beneficial [to utilize],” says Kate Flanagan, a UR mathematical economics major. “I feel like spending time outside is a necessary part of academics, not just for leisure.” —Anna Kiepke
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Graphs created by Old Dominion University mathematics students visualized performance statistics from the Monarchs’ 2024 season. (Images courtesy Old Dominion University; photo illustration by Ryan Rich)
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ODU Entrepreneurship in Mathematics students meet with Monarch players and pitching coach Mike Marron. (Photo courtesy Old Dominion University)
STEM Steps up to the Plate
ODU’s baseball team gets an assist from its math students
Last fall, the mathematics and statistics department at Old Dominion University in Norfolk debuted a unique collaboration with the school’s baseball team: Entrepreneurship in Mathematics, a class that combines mathematics, statistics and data analytics with the classic sport. Students were encouraged to work with ODU’s baseball team, the Monarchs, after completing the course.
“I got a contact out of nowhere from Nick Murray, who was a director of player development a couple of years ago,” says Bob Strozak, a chief departmental advisor. “He said, ‘We want a data analytics team. Can you put together a team?’” Strozak partnered with senior lecturer Katie Rafferty to develop and teach the class. “I was the why, she was the how,” he explains.
Junior Kylah Davenport, a data analytics major and baseball fan, has fond memories of watching the Richmond Flying Squirrels play throughout her life. “I thought [the class] would be kind of like a perfect way to see if [data analytics] really is for me, and I’m happy to say it is, because I really did enjoy it,” she says.
Fellow student Ryan ONeill, a 2025 graduate who majored in mathematics and physics, says, “During that semester, I was [also] taking Introduction to Web Development, and I saw this very unique possibility while taking this course [to use] the information I was learning there.”
In class, students relied on information obtained from Trackman hardware — technology that measures quantifiable data during games such as a ball’s launch angle, release angle and velocity — as well as statistics taken by hand, like points earned, and used a statistical coding language called R Shiny to visualize the data and create interactive web-based applications.
During the spring semester, when Davenport and ONeill were working with the team, they fine-tuned the graphs to show statistics from individual players and the team as a whole. One graph shows pitch results, including specific symbols for strikes and fast balls, as well as a box to represent perfect pitches. This visual data helps coaches and players understand patterns and create personalized training plans.
“The goal is taking this information, this platform, and then having that have direct implementation into player development planning for our guys,” says pitching coach Mike Marron. “The more we can give objective feedback and not have guesswork, the better it is in terms of how we can give information to provide improvement. The more I can get my opinion out of it, the better.”
Although Marron says he isn’t sure whether or not the data visualizations directly improved the Monarchs’ performance, he plans to continue working with the data analytics team. He also emphasized how much he enjoyed meeting and working with the mathematics and statistics department as well as seeing concrete analytical, quantifiable data for his team. Strozak and Rafferty count that as a success and intend to offer the course in future fall semesters. Davenport aims to continue working with the team for the rest of her collegiate career. —Bailey Miller
Illustration via Getty Images
On Demand
VCU adds to its offerings for forensics and pharmacy students
This fall, Virginia Commonwealth University is introducing a concentration in digital forensics and incident response as part of its master of science in forensic science program. The second of its type in Virginia and one of a small group in the country, the two-year interdisciplinary program combines computer science classes with specialized hands-on, laboratory-based courses to teach students the evidentiary procedures, tools and legal considerations needed to analyze electronic data to help solve crimes. “Organizations that provide digital forensics services have a constant need for personnel that have the knowledge, skills and ability to perform examinations with minimal initial training,” Jesse M. Lindmar, a forensic scientist section supervisor in the Virginia Department of Forensic Science Central Laboratory, said in a statement.
Last year, the VCU School of Pharmacy launched a program to train entry-level pharmacy technicians. “The demand for pharmacy technicians is growing as the role of pharmacists expands to include more direct patient care.” said Barbara Exum, director of both the Pharmacy Technician Training Program and the Center for Compounding Practice and Research, in a statement. To date, 27 trainees have completed the program, and those who also fulfilled the certification requirements are now working for employers including VCU Health, Rx3 Compounding Pharmacy, Main Street Pharmacy, CVS and more. Open to learners with a high school diploma, the part-time, 400-hour program comprises self-paced online learning, hands-on training, virtual simulations and experiential rotation. Applications are open for the cycle starting in February. —Mindy Kinsey
University of Richmond's recently renovated Passport Cafe (Photo courtesy University of Richmond)
Award-Winning Dining
In July, Dining Services at the University of Richmond won three awards for innovation in student dining from the National Association of College & University Food Services. The awards recognized a pop-up lunch series called Chef’s Table, the renovation of Passport Cafe, and the launch of FlavUR, which offers Latin and Mediterranean cuisines. “These awards highlight the partnerships across campus that help the Dining Services team support our students’ well-being with good, nutritious food and community-building events,” Tyler Betzhold, executive chef and interim executive director of Dining Services, said in a statement. —MK
Leadership Changes
Michael E. Hill (Photo courtesy Randolph-Macon College)
Randolph-Macon College in Ashland appointed Michael E. Hill the college’s 16th president, effective Aug. 1. He succeeded Robert R. Lindgren, who retired in July after nearly 20 years. Hill comes to RMC from the Chautauqua Institution, a nonprofit education center and summer resort in western New York, and has worked in nonprofit leadership and education in Northern Virginia and elsewhere. The search committee praised Hill’s excellence in “architecting and delivering a transformative strategic vision.”
The University of Virginia in Charlottesville and Virginia Military Institute in Lexington are engaged in executive searches after tumultuous breaks with their leaders.
In February, VMI’s governing board voted against extending the contract of Ret. Maj. Gen. Cedric Wins, the school’s first Black superintendent, appointed in 2020. Wins’ efforts to increase funding, grow enrollment and improve racial diversity faced backlash from some community members, leading to his ouster. Brig. Gen. Dallas Clark was named acting superintendent in June, and VMI’s board of visitors began interviewing applicants in July.
At UVA, President Jim Ryan stepped down in July after nearly seven years in office following pressure from the U.S. Department of Justice regarding Title VI complaints surrounding diversity, equity and inclusion efforts. Jennifer Davis, UVA’s executive vice president and chief operating officer, is serving as acting president until an interim president is chosen. A presidential search committee was announced at the end of July.
Both searches are taking place amid legal action by Virginia legislators regarding the composition of the schools’ governing boards, who will make the final hiring decisions. The court action also affects George Mason University’s board at a time when the school and its president, Gregory Washington, are under investigation by the U.S. Department of Education Office for Civil Rights for alleged violations related to DEI practices. —MK
