The University of Virginia (UVA) is a public research university in Charlottesville, Virginia, United States. It was founded in 1819 by Thomas Jefferson and contains his Academical Village, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The original governing Board of Visitors included three U.S. presidents: Jefferson, James Madison, and James Monroe, the latter as sitting president of the United States at the time of its foundation. As its first two rectors, Presidents Jefferson and Madison played key roles in the university's foundation, with Jefferson designing both the original courses of study and the university's architecture. Located within its historic 1,135-acre central campus, the university is composed of eight undergraduate and three professional schools: the School of Law, the Darden School of Business, and the School of Medicine.
The Darden School of Business is the graduate business school of the University of Virginia, a public research university in Charlottesville, Virginia. The school offers MBA, PhD, and Executive Education programs. Darden is consistently ranked as being among the top business schools in the U.S. and in the world.
The Seven Society is the most secretive of the University of Virginia's secret societies. Members are only revealed after their death, when a wreath of black magnolias in the shape of a "7" is placed at the gravesite, the bell tower of the University Chapel chimes at seven-second intervals on the seventh dissonant chord when it is seven past the hour, and a notice is published in the university's Alumni News, and often in the Cavalier Daily. The most visible tradition of the society is the painting of the logo of the society, the number 7 surrounded by the signs for alpha (A), omega (Ω), and infinity (∞), and sometimes several stars, upon many buildings around the grounds of the university.
The Z Society is a secret society that was founded at the University of Virginia in 1892.
The Cavalier Marching Band (CMB) is the marching band at the University of Virginia. The band's original director, William "Bill" Pease, was the first full-time marching band director in the history of the University of Virginia. The Cavalier Marching Band made its debut on September 11, 2004, after a considerable donation was made by University of Virginia benefactors Carl and Hunter Smith to found the band in 2003. The CMB uses a mixture of both DCI style glide step and high step in its performances. Of its 200 members, all seven undergraduate schools at the University of Virginia are represented.
The Jefferson Literary and Debating Society is the oldest continuously existing collegiate debating society in North America. The society was founded on July 14, 1825, in Room Seven, West Lawn at the University of Virginia. Named for the founder of the University, Thomas Jefferson, the society regularly meets on Friday evenings at "The Hall" in the Lawn.
Brown College at Monroe Hill is one of three residential colleges at the University of Virginia. Originally named Monroe Hill College, Brown opened in 1986 as the first modern residential college at the University of Virginia. It was renamed Brown College at Monroe Hill in recognition of the endowment donated by the Brown family in 1994. The college is led by James Coan, Principal, and John T. Casteen IV, Director of Studies. A number faculty fellows from many departments and schools of the university maintain close ties to the college.
John Thomas Casteen III is an American educator. He served as president of the University of Connecticut from 1985 to 1990 and as Professor of English and president of the University of Virginia from 1990 through 2010.
Secret societies have been a part of University of Virginia student life since the first class of students in 1825. While the number of societies peaked during the 75 years between 1875 and 1950, there are several newer societies and six societies that have been active for more than 100 years, including Seven Society, Z Society, IMP Society, Eli Banana, T.I.L.K.A. Society, and The 13 Society. The earliest societies, Eli Banana and T.I.L.K.A. Society, function as social clubs, while the Z Society, IMP Society, and Seven Society have a record of philanthropy and contribution to the university. Some of the more recent societies focus on the recognition or disapprobation of positive and negative contributions to the university.
Frank Loucks Hereford Jr. was the president of the University of Virginia from 1974 to 1985. He died in 2004 at the age of 81. Among the hallmarks of his presidency were a major capital campaign, which increased the university's endowment from $97 million to more than $250 million; and ending the traditional Easters Weekend party.
The Virginia Glee Club is a men's chorus based at the University of Virginia. It performs both traditional and contemporary vocal works typically in TTBB arrangements. Founded in 1871, the Glee Club is the university's oldest musical organization and one of the oldest all-male collegiate vocal ensembles in the United States. It is currently conducted by Frank Albinder.
The Philip Merrill Award for Outstanding Contributions to Liberal Arts Education is an annual prize given by the American Council of Trustees and Alumni to an individual who has “made an extraordinary contribution to the advancement of liberal arts education, core curricula, and the teaching of Western civilization and American history.” The award is named for the late public servant, publisher, entrepreneur, and philanthropist Philip Merrill.
John Lloyd Newcomb was an American educator. He served as the second president of the University of Virginia, ascending to the position after the death of Edwin Alderman. Newcomb, a member of the engineering faculty of the university, oversaw the university through the Depression and the Second World War and managed its physical expansion, including the building of Scott Stadium, the Bayly Art Museum, and Alderman Library.
Edgar Finley Shannon Jr. was a professor of English and president of the University of Virginia from 1959 to 1974. The University’s main library was renamed in Shannon’s honor in 2024.
Gilbert J. "Gilly" Sullivan was the longtime director of the University of Virginia Alumni Association for 35 years. Appointed to the position in 1958 after the retirement of J. Malcolm "Mack" Luck, Sullivan remained in the position until his retirement in 1993. During his years at the Alumni Association, he helped develop the Virginia Student Aid Foundation and significant expansion of the Jefferson Scholarship Program.
Bascom Sine Deaver Jr. is a retired American physicist known for his research into superconductor applications, and a professor and assistant chairman for undergraduate studies of the physics department at the University of Virginia.
Ernest Campbell Mead Jr. was professor of music and former head of the McIntire Department of Music at the University of Virginia.
The history of the University of Virginia opens with its conception by Thomas Jefferson at the beginning of the early 19th century. The university was chartered in 1819, and classes commenced in 1825.
The University of Virginia has an honor code, formally known as the Honor System, is intended to be student administered.
Fraternities and sororities at the University of Virginia include the collegiate organizations on the grounds of the University of Virginia in Charlottesville, Virginia. First founded in the 1850s with the establishment of several fraternities, the system has since expanded to include sororities, professional organizations, service fraternities, honor fraternities, and cultural organizations. Fraternities and sororities have been significant to the history of the University of Virginia, including the founding of two national fraternities Kappa Sigma (ΚΣ) and Pi Kappa Alpha (ΠΚΑ).
