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Alumna Propels UMW’s Beyond the Classroom Endowment Past $1 Million Mark

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Renee Kuntz ’85 can still remember the advice that Distinguished Professor Emeritus Jack Kramer gave her before she graduated from Mary Washington with a bachelor’s degree in international affairs and a focus in Russian studies.

Renee Kuntz '85 (center, chatting with friends at Reunion Weekend in 2022) recently made a pledge that helped UMW's Beyond the Classroom Endowment pass the $1 million mark to help Mary Washington students engage in high-impact learning experiences like study abroad, internships, and undergraduate research. Photo by Karen Pearlman.
Renee Kuntz ’85 (center, chatting with friends at Reunion Weekend in 2022) recently made a pledge that helped UMW’s Beyond the Classroom Endowment pass the $1 million mark to help Mary Washington students engage in high-impact learning experiences like study abroad, internships, and undergraduate research. Photo by Karen Pearlman.

“He encouraged me not to stay in one position,” said Renee, who spent nearly four decades rotating through various roles in the National Security Agency, putting her foreign policy background and language skills to work to protect American intelligence. “Mary Washington was truly foundational for my life and career.”

A dedicated donor to UMW’s Beyond the Classroom Endowment (BtC), Renee wants current and future students at the University of Mary Washington to have access to experiential learning opportunities that will ensure success in their own careers. She recently made a pledge that pushed the College of Arts and Sciences (CAS) initiative over the top in its quest to raise $1 million in gifts and pledges to help students pursue study abroad, internships, independent research, and travel to academic conferences.

“Accomplishing this milestone in just four years is simply amazing,” said College of Arts and Sciences Dean Keith Mellinger, who established BtC after student research proposals climbed to twice the CAS budget to pay for them. “It means we will be able to support our students in perpetuity and can make an annual commitment to these learning experiences that can really change lives.”

More than 1,363 gifts have been made from 677 donors since BtC’s inception to help undergraduate students enhance their liberal arts and sciences education. Some examples include:

  • Jay Boudreau ’23 studied treatments for antibiotic resistant “superbugs.”
  • Madeline Killian ’23 conducted research on female scientists in 18th-century Spain while studying abroad in Madrid.
  • Devin Thigpen ’23 participated in the Southeastern Division of the Association of American Geographers and competed in the World Geography Bowl.
  • Nathaniel Huff ’24 went on the UMW Theatre in London trip, where he attended 19 professional theatre productions in three weeks.
  • Ariana Adamek ’25 traveled to Denmark and Greece to take a course titled “Tasting Culture: Nordic and Mediterranean Food, Tradition, and Nutrition.”
  • James Rollison ’25 took “The Business of Football,” a course taught by UMW College of Business faculty in London.
  • Grace Gower ’26 went on a faculty-led trip to Paris to study the urban and architectural history of the City of Lights.
  • BtC helped 10 students complete professional internships in summer 2024.
Nathaniel Huff ’24 (center, green shirt and glasses) and his classmates visit Westminster Abbey during the UMW Theatre in London trip in summer 2023. Nathaniel was able to take the trip because he received the Beyond the Classroom Education Abroad Scholarship, which was awarded for the first time last year. Photo courtesy of UMW Theatre.
Ariana Adamek ’25 received the Beyond the Classroom Education Abroad Scholarship, which helped her study the food culture of Greece and Denmark (seen here in Denmark) last summer. Photo courtesy of Ariana Adamek/College of Arts and Sciences.
Madeline Killian ’23 received funds from UMW’s Beyond the Classroom Endowment to travel to Madrid to conduct research on Spain’s first civic organization for women. Photo courtesy of Madeline Killian/College of Arts and Sciences.
James Rollison ’25 received the Beyond the Classroom Education Abroad Scholarship, which helped him take the UMW faculty-led course, ‘The Business of Football,” in London this summer. Photo courtesy of James Rollison/College of Arts and Sciences.

Dean Mellinger also acknowledged alumni and friends for their contributions, including CAS Advisory Board members Cathie Woteki ’69, Karen Laino Giannuzzi ’71, Mary Bradley MacPherson ’71, Beth Craig ’77, and Phyllis Quinn ’77, who all sponsored challenges in the last four years. Renee said it was “humbling” to be included in the company of these alumnae who achieved success despite overcoming the challenges women often face in their careers.

“When I first started out, I never thought I would financially be in a place where I could contribute in this way,” Renee said. She considers Karen Laino Giannuzzi an influential mentor during her career, which sent Renee to far-flung locales across the globe, including England, where she and her husband lived for several years.

Recently retired, Renee previously served as a member of UMW’s Alumni Association Board of Directors and currently leads the Baltimore Regional Alumni Network. A giving ambassador who has made gifts to her alma mater since she graduated, she’s also inspired by the generosity of her former professor.

Dr. Kramer said the same of Renee. Describing himself as a “stalwart supporter” of BtC, he has sponsored several challenges to encourage his UMW colleagues to donate to the initiative on Mary Wash Day.

“I’m delighted to learn that BtC will be able to carry on its critical work in furthering UMW’s educational mission,” said Dr. Kramer, who taught at Mary Washington for nearly five decades. “It’s especially gratifying that it was the contribution of Renee, one of my former students, who made this milestone possible.”

Learn more about Beyond the Classroom or make your gift. For information, please contact Jeremy Vaughn ’08 in the Office of University Advancement at jvaughn@umw.edu or 540-654-2063. 

-Article written by Assistant Director of Advancement Communications Jill Graziano Laiacona ’04 

Beyond the Classroom Endowment Brings the World to UMW Students

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University of Mary Washington senior Nathaniel Huff ’24 attended 19 professional theatre performances in the span of three weeks – more than most patrons see in a year – on the UMW Theatre in London trip last summer.

A theatre major, Nathaniel grew up in a small town with limited access to his chosen field. He said that going abroad exposed him and his classmates to a wide variety of plays and musicals, including several world premieres.

“There is no doubt that the productions I witnessed are influencing my work and giving me ideas on how to engage with the creative process,” said Nathaniel, who is currently directing a play he discovered at England’s National Theatre for his senior project.

UMW senior Nathaniel Huff received the Beyond the Classroom Education Abroad Scholarship to go on the UMW Theatre in London trip last summer. Alumna Mary T. Bradley MacPherson ’71 has sponsored a challenge, which will unlock $10,000 for study abroad if 200 gifts are made to Beyond the Classroom in the month of November. Photo courtesy of Nathaniel Huff.
Nathaniel (back row, third from right) saw 19 productions during the three-week trip, including the Royal Shakespeare Company’s production of Maggie O’Farrell’s ‘Hamnet’ (a fictional account of Shakespeare’s son) in Stratford-upon-Avon. Photo courtesy of UMW Theatre.

Nathaniel’s participation in the six-credit course, which also took students to the Globe Theatre and other Shakespearean sites, was made possible by UMW’s Beyond the Classroom Endowment (BtC). The initiative, founded three years ago, supports experiential learning such as study abroad, undergraduate research, internships, and travel to academic conferences. Now, the Beyond the Classroom Education Abroad Scholarship, first awarded last year, has given students like Nathaniel the funding to study overseas.

“BtC was started to provide access to those learning experiences that make such a critical difference in the education and lives of our students,” said College of Arts and Sciences (CAS) Dean Keith Mellinger. According to UMW’s Center for International Education, one in three students study abroad while attending Mary Washington. “These opportunities set our students apart from others in a very crowded and highly competitive work environment,” Dean Mellinger said.

Generous donors have raised more than $600,000 for the initiative, which is already being used by UMW students. The long-term goal, Dean Mellinger said, is creating a $1 million endowed fund, which will generate tens of thousands of dollars for students each year.

Mary T. Bradley MacPherson '71 (right) with President of Slovakia Zuzana Čaputová. Photo courtesy of Mary T. Bradley MacPherson '71.
Mary T. Bradley MacPherson ’71 (right) with President of Slovakia Zuzana Čaputová. Photo courtesy of Mary T. Bradley MacPherson ’71.

Mary T. Bradley MacPherson ’71 has sponsored a challenge, which will unlock $10,000 for study abroad if 200 gifts are made to Beyond the Classroom in the month of November. The timing coincides with International Education Week, Nov. 13-17. Donations made on Giving Tuesday, Nov. 28, will also count toward the total.

“It’s enriching to see how other cultures live and to be exposed to different perspectives,” said Mary, who majored in American Studies at Mary Washington. Her liberal arts education prepared her for a career promoting organizational capacity building, educational exchange, and entrepreneurship, which brought her to 45 countries across the globe. Since 2010, she led the Slovak-American Foundation, strengthening business partnerships between the two countries, until the nonprofit ceased this year after reaching its final goals.

Mary T. Bradley MacPherson, as a junior at Mary Washington, in the Battlefield Yearbook. Photo courtesy of UMW Special Collections and University Archives.
Mary T. Bradley MacPherson, as a junior at Mary Washington, in the Battlefield Yearbook. Photo courtesy of UMW Special Collections and University Archives.

A longtime CAS Advisory Board member, Mary has supported BtC since its inception and said she hopes her challenge will inspire her fellow alumni to give. “A small amount of money goes a long way in helping students have life-changing experiences.”

That’s true of sophomore Grace Gower ’26, a historic preservation major who went to France last summer for a course taught by UMW Professor of Historic Preservation Andréa Livi Smith and offered through the MICEFA consortium of French universities.

A Paris native, Dr. Smith led Grace and her classmates through the urban and architectural history of the City of Lights, touring museums, cathedrals, city parks, catacombs and world-famous sites like the Eiffel Tower and the Palace of Versailles, which Grace captured through photography.

“The Beyond the Classroom Endowment helped pay my tuition fees for the course when my family was in a bit of a rough patch,” said Grace, who plans to pursue a career in historic preservation and urban planning. “I’m very grateful that it relieved some of the costs so I could take advantage of this unique opportunity.”

UMW sophomore Grace Gower (fifth from left) received the Beyond the Classroom Education Abroad Scholarship, which enabled her to go on a faculty-led UMW in France trip to study historic preservation in Paris. Here, she and her classmates visit the gravesite of Eliza Monroe Hay, daughter of President James Monroe. Hay was born in Fredericksburg and died in Paris. Photo courtesy of UMW Professor of Historic Preservation Andréa Livi Smith.
Grace’s photo of the Musee d’Orsay, an art museum in Paris housed in a former train station. Photo by Grace Gower.
Grace’s photo of the Cité de l’Architecture, an architecture museum in Paris. Photo by Grace Gower.

Learn more about Beyond the Classroom or make your gift. For information, please contact Jeremy Vaughn ’08 in the Office of University Advancement at jvaughn@umw.edu or 540-654-2063. Visit UMW’s Center for International Education to learn more about study abroad opportunities at Mary Washington.

Article by Assistant Director of Advancement Communications Jill Graziano Laiacona ’04 

Summer Science Students Earn Perkins Research Awards

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As temperatures soared near triple digits last Wednesday, the weather formed a compelling case for Ava Spencer’s research on how extreme heat impacts Fredericksburg’s most marginalized communities.

“I wanted to look at these issues from a sociological perspective, in a way that could help people,” said Ava, a rising senior majoring in environmental science at the University of Mary Washington.

She was one of a pair of students who took home the top prizes at UMW’s Summer Science Institute (SSI), which engages undergraduates in an intense 10-week research experience with professors and peers. At a public symposium held in the Hurley Convergence Center’s Digital Auditorium, she and physics major Kevin Leong were chosen by a panel of faculty judges to each receive a scholarship award through the John C. and Jerri Barden Perkins ’61 College of Arts and Sciences Student Research Endowment. The funds will help the students continue their projects through the upcoming school year.

Participants in Mary Washington’s 2022 Summer Science Institute pose for a picture with their professors and peers. “I have witnessed the power of SSI to transform lives and send students down career paths that they would have never considered before,” says Associate Professor of Chemistry Randall Reif (front row, center), who led this year’s cohort with Assistant Professor of Mathematics Jeb Collins. Photo credit: UMW’s Summer Science Institute.
Last Wednesday, UMW students, faculty, staff, family and friends came to the Hurley Convergence Center to listen to presentations delivered by participants in the 2022 Summer Science Institute. Photo credit: UMW’s Summer Science Institute/Ava Spencer.
Students presented their posters to professors and peers in the Hurley Convergence Center. Photo credit: UMW’s Summer Science Institute/Ava Spencer.

Second place winners were Curtis Kasiski for his research on determining the dietary diversity of bumblebees, and Orianne Mbuyi Mujinga Kazadi for her work identifying fungal strains that can destroy invasive spotted lanternflies.

“I hope this award inspires them to open their minds to possibilities in life,” said Dr. Jerri Barden Perkins, who watched the presentations via Zoom. She was amazed at the variety and relevance of topics, she says, from fighting antibiotic resistance with phage therapy to using sockets to create video games. “The liberal arts and sciences education students find at Mary Washington broadens their perspectives and prepares them for the real world.”

Dr. Perkins earned a bachelor’s degree in chemistry at Mary Washington and a M.D. from the Medical College of Virginia. She went on to conduct her own trailblazing research into rheumatoid arthritis and approved one of the first FDA drug therapies to combat AIDS. Her endowment, one of several she established at UMW, is in honor of her late husband, Cal, who practiced internal medicine.

“The Perkins scholarship award will allow us to recognize UMW students demonstrating exemplary performance,” said College of Arts and Sciences Dean Keith Mellinger. “This elevates SSI to a professional level.”

Rising senior Kevin Leong, a physics major, presented his poster detailing how he created a solar-powered cell phone charging station for the homeless with Assistant Professor Desmond Villalba. Photo credit: UMW’s Summer Science Institute.
Rising senior Ava Spencer, an Earth and environmental science major, presents her research on how extreme heat impacts Fredericksburg’s most marginalized communities, which she conducted with Assistant Professor Pamela Grothe. Photo credit: UMW’s Summer Science Institute.

Kevin, a rising senior, received the “Best Poster” award for his creation of a solar-powered cell phone charging station for homeless people. Working with Assistant Professor of Physics Desmond Villalba, he used a 3-D printer, and created and programmed circuits, to assemble a functioning prototype he hopes can be replicated in Fredericksburg.

“I feel so honored to have won the Perkins award,” said Kevin, adding that SSI has inspired him to pursue a career or further education in research. “The entire experience has been fantastic.”

Ava, who won the “Best Presentation” award, collaborated with Assistant Professor of Environmental Science Pamela Grothe ’06 and a team of volunteers to map temperatures across Fredericksburg.

They discovered that some neighborhoods historically zoned for African Americans were up to five degrees warmer than others due to lack of tree canopy and green spaces. “Research like this has been performed in larger cities, but not smaller communities like ours,” Ava said.

Receiving the Perkins award, she said, will help her continue the research through the fall semester. She hopes her findings will eventually aid local officials with the city’s climate action plan. “It’s a great feeling to be recognized for a project you’ve poured your time, energy and love into.”

For information on endowing scholarships at the University of Mary Washington, please contact the Office of University Advancement at advance@umw.edu or 540-654-1024.

– Article written by Assistant Director of Advancement Communications Jill Graziano Laiacona ’04