H&S: Alumnus named poet laureate of Virginia

Ron Smith (M.A.’85/H&S), an award-winning poet and a 1985 graduate of Virginia Commonwealth University’s Creative Writing program, was named the poet laureate of Virginia. Read more.

H&S: VCU leads effort to improve AIDS drugs access

A $4.4 million grant from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation is giving VCU School of Engineering and collaborating research universities an opportunity to supply developing countries with affordable access to AIDS drugs. Read more.

H&S: Student named Prince William County poet laureate

Alexandra “Zan” Hailey, an English major and creative writing minor in the Virginia Commonwealth University College of Humanities and Sciences, has been named one of the first two poets laureate of Prince William County, sharing the honor with poet, author and high school English teacher Robert Scott. Read more.

H&S: $2M grant aims to improve melanoma treatment

Jason Reed, Ph.D., an assistant professor at Virginia Commonwealth University, has been awarded a roughly $2 million grant with a collaborator at the University of California, Los Angeles, to develop a new method to rapidly determine how a cancerous tumor responds to a battery of candidate therapies and then to pick the agents that are most effective for treating the patient’s particular disease. Read more.

H&S: Biology professor receives Fulbright award

James Vonesh, Ph.D., a biology professor at VCU, has received a prestigious Fulbright Scholar award to study a globally invasive frog species in South Africa. Read more.

H&S: Professor, alumna named national award finalist

Tracey Gendron, Ph.D. (M.S.’95/AHP; M.S.’12/H&S; Ph.D.’13/H&S), an assistant professor of gerontology in the VCU School of Allied Health Professions, is one of 10 finalists for the 2014 Ernest A. Lynton Award for the Scholarship of Engagement for Early Career Faculty. Read more.

Robertson: Alumna is first black, female CMO of NBA

Pam El (B.S.’83/MC) has been appointed the new chief marketing officer of the National Basketball Association, according to a statement released by the NBA. El is the first African-American and the first woman to hold the position. Read more.

Wilder: Alumna named president of Fort Hays State University

The Kansas Board of Regents announced Mirta Martin, Ph.D. (Ph.D.’97/GPA), as the ninth president of Fort Hays State University.  Read more.

News from Development and Alumni Relations

Many colleagues are talking about the rigorous RFP process that Development and Alumni Relations and VCU Technology Services have been leading over these past six months to select a replacement for our 30-year-old database — an enterprise CRM (constituent relationship management) fundraising database solution. Read more.

Brandcenter: The scream seen around the world

You might not know his name, but you definitely know Mike D’Amico’s (M.S.’07/B) face. Better known as Teddy Goalsevelt, D’Amico is the World Cup fan who shot to fame by emulating the rough-riding 26th president of the United States. Read more.

Take a live look at VCU’s newest buildings

Want to check up on the progress of VCU’s newest buildings under construction? Read more.


 

VCU Libraries: Best-kept secrets of VCU’s comics

In the 1970s, VCU Libraries began amassing what has grown into one of the country’s most impressive and academically significant collections of comic books and comics-related materials. Read more.

Boise-area alumni cookout 5:30-8 p.m. Aug. 9

Ram Spirit Walk5-5:30 p.m. Aug. 19

VCU Alumni Day at Nationals Park4-7 p.m. Aug. 23

Alumni Charity Challenge 5-8 p.m. Sept. 17

VCU Broad Street Mile10 a.m.-2 p.m. Sept. 20