Inaugural festivities look to past, present and future

The University will inaugurate Edward L. Ayers as its ninth president April 10-11 during two days of festivities that will include a historical symposium, installation ceremony, environmental awareness activities, campus open-houses, cultural events and musical celebration.

Ayers' inauguration will coincide with the University's annual Reunion Weekend April 11-13 so that both local and out-of-town alumni can participate in both events.

"New Perspectives on the American Civil War," a symposium featuring Ayers and two other noted historians of the American South-Drew Gilpin Faust, president of Harvard University, and Gary W. Gallagher, the John L. Nau III Professor of the American Civil War at the University of Virginia-will kick off the inaugural celebration April 10 at 4:30 p.m., at Camp Concert Hall.

The three historians will discuss various dimensions of the war and its consequences. A reception and book-signing will follow. The symposium is co-sponsored by the American Civil War Center at Tredegar, Museum of the Confederacy, Library of Virginia and Virginia Historical Society. The symposium is free and open to the public, although online registration is required.

All other inaugural events are reserved for students, faculty, staff, alumni and friends of the University who register online. Additional information and registration can be found at inauguration.richmond.edu.

Faust will introduce Ayers at the installation ceremony on April 11 at noon in the Robins Center. In his inaugural address, Ayers will reflect on the University's past, present and future, emphasizing themes that connect alumni, students, parents, staff and faculty across the generations. Representatives of colleges, universities, seminaries, learned societies and professional organizations will attend the installation, dressed in academic regalia.

A picnic will follow the ceremony, with entertainment by Jack's Flat Bluegrass. Throughout the afternoon, performances and exhibitions near Millhiser Green and at designated areas across campus will showcase students' musical and dance talents, academic and community engagement, and cultural and ethnic diversity.

At 3 p.m. on Millhiser Green, Ayers will announce the winner of the Eco-Spider Challenge, a student contest to design and create a spider out of recycled materials from Richmond's campus. The contest will emphasize the campus-wide commitment to environmental awareness. Ayers recently signed the American College and University Presidents Climate Commitment, a pledge to make the campus more environmentally friendly by tracking and reducing its greenhouse gas emissions.

Following the announcement, Trip Pollard, director of the Land and Community Program at the Southern Environmental Law Center, will lecture on "The Environmental Imperative: Working Toward a Sustainable Future," at 4 p.m. in the Tyler Haynes Commons Think Tank. Pollard will highlight the environmental challenges facing national, state and local communities.

The inaugural celebration will conclude with "Fifty Years of Rock, Jazz, Soul, and Rhythm & Blues," an outdoor dance party under a tent on Millhiser Green from 7:30-11 p.m. Ayers will serve as special guest disc jockey, spinning tunes from his personal collection and complementing the live performance by the group Horizons.

Other events taking place on campus throughout the inauguration and Reunion Weekend include: campus open houses by the schools of arts and sciences, business, continuing studies, law, and leadership studies, and at the Bonner Center for Civic Engagement; University Players performances of The Meeting; and art exhibits at the Joel and Lila Harnett Museum of Art, Lora Robins Gallery of Design from Nature, and Joel and Lila Harnett Print Study Center. The Virginia Baptist Historical Society will present an exhibit, "The Richmond Adventure: A Historical Overview of the University of Richmond."

Admission to all exhibits is free and open to the public. Tickets to the play are for sale at the Modlin Center Box Office.

President Ayers, Drew Gilpin Faust, president of Harvard University, and Gary Gallagher, professor of the American Civil War at the University of Virginia, will discuss various dimensions of the Civil War and its consequences April 10 at 4:30 p.m. at Camp Concert Hall. To register, go to inauguration.richmond.edu.