April 15, 2024

Dear colleagues,

While the academic rankings landscape is a source of debate, W&M’s national standing in our professional schools continues to demonstrate the level of excellence we offer in several major career fields. I invite you to join me in celebrating the many points of achievement shared by W&M News last week, which underscore the university’s commitment to student success.

Here are the Top Five Things to Know this week:

Today, fall course schedules are available to undergraduate students via PATH; Add/drop opens in PATH on Thursday, April 18 at 7 a.m. for students to make adjustments. At that time, field-of-study restrictions will be removed and waitlists will be in effect. Please remember that there are no more maximum-capacity overrides, but the same restraints related to course capacities, prerequisite errors and more remain in place. For more information, please visit the University Registrar PATH site, which contains an extensive library of resources addressing frequently asked questions and explaining add/drop and waitlists. University Registrar staff will be available in Sadler from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. today through Thursday to address student questions and concerns. PATH Registration successfully alleviated the strain of registration placed on Banner, helped reduce student stress and provided comprehensive new data for deans and departments about student preferences and course need. We recognize the new system is a major change for students and faculty so we appreciate your patience and support as we work through the process.
William & Mary has partnered with the American College Health Association to examine health and wellness behaviors within our campus community. This week, faculty and staff should expect an email inviting you to take the National Faculty & Staff Health Assessment survey. As you know, academic stress and wellness is an important topic for me, and I encourage you to participate in the survey so that we have relevant data about faculty and staff health to help us enhance health promotion and prevention programs and services across campus. To ensure confidentiality, email addresses are destroyed by ACHA before data are compiled and shared with William & Mary. The raw data file that is shared with William & Mary will not contain any unique identifiers.
The Society of 1918, an over-600-member W&M women's philanthropic giving society, is accepting grant proposals for projects that engage alumnae and support W&M women’s initiatives, strengthening bonds among members of the university community. The Society of 1918 previously awarded $45,000 in grants to faculty, staff and students for initiatives that supported research, mentoring initiatives, networking, mental health, disability awareness, women in the arts, and more. Applications for the second grant cycle opened April 1 and are accepted until the deadline on May 3. I encourage you to explore the Alumnae Initiatives Endowment Grant Funding Guidelines to learn more and consider submitting an application.
University Human Resources is hosting a Resources Expo in Sadler Center’s Chesapeake Ballroom this Wednesday, April 17, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. In addition to snacks, giveaways and raffle prizes, employees will have opportunities to meet with local businesses, campus departments and benefits vendor representatives and to learn more about the wide range of resources available.
The shout-out for this week goes to all of the faculty, staff and students who welcomed more than 1,200 newly admitted undergraduates and their families during W&M’s annual Day for Admitted Students (DFAS). A special thank you also to the several university offices that participated in the organization of this happy event. DFAS and other opportunities for students to visit W&M communicate to our newest community members that “You Belong Here” and bring joy and enthusiasm to campus. Thank you all for your dedication and hard work in making this year’s event a success!