Month: November 2022

With both the men’s and women’s teams coming off Big South Championships and March Madness appearances, Longwood home basketball games are a hot ticket this season.

Now there’s even more reason to head to Farmville for a weekend basketball game—and we’re not just talking about the opportunity to get an in-person hug from your Lancer (though that is certainly an important selling point).

The Alumni Office has come up with an impressive package of lodging, activities and amenities for a price that’s just as impressive—and it’s available to all parents!

The package is available for any men’s or women’s home game weekend in January or February. Get in on this deal early (limited number of rooms available), and treat yourself or someone on your holiday list to a great weekend.

Cost is $150 with one night’s lodging or $300 with two nights’ lodging. Here’s what is included:

• Accommodations for one or two nights at Hotel Weyanoke (king or double queen), the stunning boutique hotel across High Street from campus
• Up to four basketball home game tickets for that Saturday
• Hors d’oeuvres and an open bar at the Shentel season ticket hospitality suite before the game
• Game-ready gear, including rally towels, face tattoos and limited-edition Go Wood T-shirts
• An exclusive VIP tour of the Joan Perry Brock Center (the future home of Longwood basketball, currently under construction) on the Friday afternoon before the game
• Optional guided campus tour
• $10 gift certificate for North Street Press Club, one of Farmville’s dining hot spots

Check out go.longwood.edu/bballvip for available dates, then make your reservation for one of the best weekends in the new year. Package cost includes the one-room accommodations and amenities for up to 4 people.

 If you have questions or need to customize your package, contact the Alumni Office at 434-395-2044 or alumni@longwood.edu.

—Sabrina Brown

 

If you’re thinking about what to give your Lancer this holiday season, you might want to consider a Longwood class ring.

In addition to being a lasting memento of one of the most pivotal times of their lives, a class ring gives your junior or senior Lancer—as well as their invited guests—the opportunity to participate in Longwood’s Ring Ceremony. It’s a cherished tradition where Longwood President W. Taylor Reveley IV and a member of the Alumni Board present students with their rings, which have spent the previous night in a special locked chest in the Rotunda.

The next Ring Ceremony is set for Saturday, March 25, 2023. The final date to purchase a ring in time for it to be presented at the 2023 Ring Ceremony is Feb. 9, 2023. Everyone who purchases a ring by Feb. 9, 2023, will receive an invitation to the ceremony.

Balfour is the only company to offer the official Longwood ring. Visit the Balfour website to see options and costs.

More information is available online about purchasing a ring and the Ring Ceremony. Or contact Alumni and Career Services at alumni@longwood.edu.

—Sabrina Brown

Student life has been in full swing this fall, and we’ve got the photos to prove it.

From Family Weekend in September to Oktoberfest, from Lip Sync to Halloween and everything in between, your Lancers have been making the most of their extracurricular college experience—always secondary to their academic studies, of course.

Check out the photo albums below, and you might catch a glimpse of your student!

Lip Sync Battle

What could be better than singing and dancing the night away with a group of friends? Add some friendly competition among Greek organizations, and you’ve got a Longwood tradition that rocks.

Nursing White Coat Ceremony

When Longwood nursing sophomores are cloaked in their bright new white coats, they mark an important transformative moment in the life of any pre-service nurse: entrance into clinical practice. The white coat ceremony symbolizes the deep-rooted mission of both the Longwood and the nursing program: commitment to the community and humanistic care.

The Halloween Scene

Have your students outgrown Halloween? One look at these photos will give you the answer to that question. With haunted houses, the baseball team’s Spooky Slugfest, pumpkin carvings and more, students stretched out their Halloween celebration for maximum effect this year.

A Friendly Game of Football

For more than a decade, Longwood’s top intramural flag football team and its counterpart at Hampden-Sydney College, located just down the road, have engaged in a friendly rivalry, alternating hosting duties each year. This year was Longwood’s turn to stage the game on its home turf at Lancer Park, making the Lancers’ victory all the sweeter. Intramural basketball teams from the two schools have a similar annual matchup in the spring.

Oktoberfest

Concerts, Color Wars and Klowns, oh my! Thanks to Hurricane Ian, Oktoberfest 2022 stretched over two weekends, and students made the most of the elongated schedule.

Here Come the Klowns and Other Oktoberfest Merrymakers

Color Wars

“Cowboy Boogie” with Blanco Brown

Oktoberfest Service Walk benefiting Longwood’s Service Dog Training and Education Program

Family Weekend

Students shared their love of campus and Farmville during Family Weekend, which this year coincided with the Heart of Virginia Festival.

—Sabrina Brown

You can be sure your students are counting the days until Thanksgiving break. It’s been a busy semester!

Before I get into some logistical information about the break, I would like to wish you and your family a happyThanksgiving. I think I’m speaking for everyone here when I say that we are very thankful for this wonderful Longwood community we all share. We care deeply about providing your student with a college experience that prepares them for a successful and meaningful life as a citizen leader.

If your student lives in Longwood-managed housing and is staying on campus during the break, they need to fill out an Intent to Stay form, which is available through the Student Housing Gateway.

It’s important to note that any student who needs access to their residence between 6 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 22, and noon Sunday, Nov. 27, must fill out an Intent to Stay form—even if they won’t be on campus for that entire time.

The Intent to Stay form must be submitted no later than 11:59 p.m. on Monday, Nov. 21.

If your student lives in Longwood-managed housing and is coming home for the holidays, they should be sure to do the following before departing campus:
—Remove all trash and perishable food.
—Thoroughly clean their assigned living area, including the bathroom and common spaces.
—If applicable, adjust their room thermostat to a low/medium setting.
—Take valuables and important items with them (medication, eyeglasses, wallet, etc.).
—Shut down and unplug all electronics, except personal refrigerators or apartment appliances.
—Turn off all lights.
—Close and lock all windows.
—Lower all window blinds/shades.
—Lock all doors.

If your student lives in Moss or Johns hall, you will be able to load and unload vehicles on Spruce Street for the break. Pickup is set for 8 a.m.-8. p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 22; drop off is noon- 8 p.m. Sunday, Nov. 27. Similar to August move-in and fall break, please be sure to access Spruce Street by taking Wynne Drive to Pine Street and then turn onto the sidewalk in front of the Fitness Center. You will not be able to turn onto Spruce Street from the entrance across from McDonald’s; that access is closed for construction.

If your student asks, please let them know they should not cancel any academic or other personal obligations during the time there will be limited access to Longwood-managed housing. Instead, they should fill out the Intent to Stay form.

Below is some additional important information about the break that has been shared with students.

• All residential communities will remain locked (24/7) during the break. Students who filled out the Intent to Stay form will continue to have access to their assigned buildings through the card reader(s) on their building (where applicable).
• The dining hall will close after dinner on Tuesday, Nov. 22, and re-open for dinner on Sunday, Nov. 27.  Regular hours of operation resume on Monday, Nov. 28. Up-to-date hours and information for all other Longwood Dining-managed food venues can be found at https://longwood.campusdish.com/ .
• Farmville Area Bus service (FAB) will end at 5 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 22, and will resume at 1 p.m. Sunday, Nov. 27. There is no bus service for travel to Lancer Park during the break period.
• Residence hall rooms and apartments are subject to entry during the break; limited work orders and/or facility safety inspections could occur.
• Campus offices will be closed Nov. 23-25.  
• For general assistance from Campus Police during the break, students can all 434-395-2091. In case of emergency, students should call 911.  Students who need help with a non-life-threatening medical issue can call the Nurse Advice Line at 805-858-3117.

 —Sabrina Brown

Longwood is taking the opportunity next week to recognize its first-generation college students in connection with national First Generation College Celebration Day on Nov. 8.

Representatives from Longwood’s First-Generation Student Success Working Group of faculty and staff will be greeting students and handing out information and treats at a table on Brock Commons on Monday, Nov. 7, and Wednesday, Nov. 9, between 11 a.m. and 1 p.m.

If your student is “first-gen,” defined as the first person in a family to receive a bachelor’s degree, encourage them to stop by for a dose of heartfelt support and encouragement. If your student is not first-gen, this is an opportunity to find out more about some of their fellow students who may face different challenges from those whose families broke the path to college for them.

The inaugural First-Generation College Celebration was held in 2017 as an initiative of the Council for Opportunity in Education and the Center for First-Generation Student Success. Since then it’s become an annual event on Nov. 8, the anniversary of the signing of the Higher Education Act of 1965, which included programs designed to help first-generation college students be successful.

Support for first-gen students at Longwood is available on a daily basis in many forms, including from the more than 60 faculty and staff members who have self-identified as “First Gen Allies,” a number of them first-gen college graduates themselves.

Of course, Longwood is committed to the success of all of its students and makes numerous resources available to everyone, including the Center for Academic Success, which offers tutoring, writing assistance, coaching groups and more.

“I say regularly that we were all first-gen at some point in our family experiences,” said Dean of Engagement Cheryl Steele, who leads the First-Generation Student Success group established about six years ago. “We want students, faculty and staff to recognize and celebrate the presence of our first-gen students and for those students to feel recognized and affirmed.”

—Sabrina Brown