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News Briefs

Ruffin Ready

Just a few days before the start of the fall semester, Ruffin Hall, the new home of the McIntire Department of Art’s studio art program, opened its doors. The building is designed not only for making art, but also for displaying it. Faculty in each area of study—drawing, painting, sculpture, printmaking, photography, new media and film, installation and performance art—worked with Schwartz/Silver Architects of Boston to create the three-story, 42,000-square-foot facility.

Ruffin Hall Jane Haley

“We have been dreaming about this for a long time,” said Dean Dass, associate chairman of studio art and professor of printmaking. “It’s historic—all studio art programs are together in one building for the first time.”

Funny Woman

Tina Fey (Col ’92) and her television show, 30 Rock, made a big splash at the Emmy awards in September, winning a trio of Emmy Awards for outstanding comedy writing, comedy series and lead actress in a comedy. Those prestigious awards were quickly overshadowed by the attention generated by her Saturday Night Live parodies of vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin in the weeks leading up to the Nov. 4 election. When Fey and Palin appeared together on SNL the show was watched by 15 million viewers, earning its highest rating since 1994.

Top Teachers

For the second consecutive year, the Princeton Review has ranked the faculty at the University of Virginia’s Darden School of Business No. 1. in the “Best Professors” category. “We select schools for this book based on our high regard for their academic programs and offerings, institutional data we collect from the schools, and the candid opinions of students attending them who rate and report on their campus experiences at the schools,” says Robert Franek, Princeton Review’s vice president for publishing. “We are pleased to recommend Darden to readers of our books and users of our Web site as one of the best institutions they could attend to earn an MBA.”

Good Company

Julian Bond Dan Addison

University of Virginia history professor and nationally recognized civil rights leader Julian Bond received a Library of Congress Living Legend award this fall. Bond was one of a group of seven honorees that included race car driver Mario Andretti, musician Herbie Hancock, historian David McCullough, former baseball player and manager Frank Robinson, and journalists Cokie Roberts and Bob Schieffer.

Bond, chairman of the board of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, received the award for the legacy of his lifetime work. In March of this year, Bond donated his personal papers to the University of Virginia Library. The collection holds 47,000 items, including photographs, recordings, drafts of more than 300 speeches, Bond’s correspondence with civil rights activists and memorabilia.