George,

There has been negative publicity of the decision to demolish the Beta House. I would hope you would balance criticisms with this news about the good work of the Foundation.

Please note in particular, as you read the release, the Graduate Fellowship Program which has taken a unique approach to identifying, recruiting, and attracting leading PhD, MBA, and JD candidates to the University. This is a relatively new program (currently in its 8th selection cycle) that is gaining momentum.

What makes this program special is the intense focus on identifying great scholars who are also great leaders and knowledge “sharers”. The underlying conviction is that students who possess both the intellectual capacity and the potential to reach out to other scholars and to broader audiences make the University a better institution. This investment in human excellence differentiates the University of Virginia as it builds on the Jeffersonian principal that greater thinkers and communicators, by working as “bulwarks of the human mind”, bring distinction not only to themselves, but to the University, the Academical Village, and, ultimately, the world.

These awards have been announced in the context of a $100 million capital campaign, half of which is being raised to support 65 graduate Fellows across the Grounds. At the same time, the Foundation is building a Center for Graduate Fellows which will be the locus of interdisciplinary scholarship and dialogue.

Thank you for assisting us in applauding the achievements of these special students and the work of this very special Foundation.

Pam Fitzgerald (Electronic mail, June 3, 2008)