Feature Stories

At the 2026 SPCS Commencement ceremony on May 9, adjunct assistant professor Jennifer J. Smith‑Slabaugh urged graduates to pair lifelong learning with generosity to create lasting community impact, drawing on two decades of nonprofit leadership and a decade of night‑school perseverance to model what it means to keep growing.

At the University of Richmond School of Professional and Continuing Studies Commencement on May 9, 2026, Gibb Family Distinguished Alumni Award recipient Tavorise M. Marks, C’18, challenged graduates to lead from lived experience, keep learning with courage, and give back through the Spider network.

At the University of Richmond School of Professional and Continuing Studies Commencement on May 9, 2026, student speaker Margaret “Meg” Baly, W’88, L’92, GC’25, shared a message of gratitude, advocacy, and connection shaped by her return to earn a Master of Teaching.

This month’s Sustainability Champion is Kerry McGowan, Senior Grants Administrator at The Conservation Fund. She graduated from the University of Richmond in 2016 with a degree in International Studies and continues to apply what she learned at UR in her professional work. 

Campus special diets program caters to student safety by creating meals for those with food allergies.