University of Mary Washington
Mission Statement
The University of Mary Washington is committed to being a premier public
institution of higher education, cultivating an environment of academic excellence,
fostering lifelong learning, pursuing knowledge, and providing service to its constituent
communities. The University provides the framework within which multiple colleges,
schools, and affiliated organizations can accomplish their distinctive purposes. The
University will be responsive to the changing needs of the student populations and the
communities in which it thrives. All members of the University community—students,
faculty, and staff—are expected to participate in service to the institution and encouraged
to engage in service to the larger community and to society.
The University’s undergraduate, residential college of arts and sciences, Mary
Washington College on the Fredericksburg campus, emphasizes excellence in liberal
learning through freedom of inquiry, personal responsibility, and intellectual integrity.
Instructional and experiential programs provide students a strong general education, an
understanding of their responsibilities as citizens in the broader, diverse community, and
the skills necessary for creative and productive lives. To achieve these goals the college
requires its undergraduates to pursue broad studies in the arts, the humanities, and the
sciences as a necessary supplement to a concentration in a particular field. The college
regards the provision of high-quality instruction as its most important function. Through
an active and professionally engaged faculty, the college supports ongoing research
appropriate to the development of student abilities and faculty interests. It especially
encourages the participation of undergraduates in research.
The University’s College of Graduate and Professional Studies on the Stafford
campus supports lifelong learning, professional advancement, and regional economic
development by providing accessible, quality education tailored to the needs of adult
learners, professionals, and members of the business community. The College values
integrity, open-mindedness, and fairness and has excellence in teaching as its highest
priority. The faculty actively participate in the applied, intellectual, and scholarly
developments of their academic disciplines and emphasize the integration of theory and
practice in the classroom.