The Great Lives Team
Scott H. Harris
Great Lives Director Scott H. Harris joined the Great Lives team in January 2024 as co-director with his former professor Bill Crawley. Scott is Executive Director of the University of Mary Washington Museums, comprising Gari Melchers Home and Studio, the James Monroe Museum, and the Papers of James Monroe.
Scott received his BA with honors in History and Historic Preservation from the University of Mary Washington in 1983. In 1988 he received an MA in History and Museum Administration from the College of William and Mary.
Prior to his return to UMW in 2011, Scott was previously Director of the Virginia Museum of the Civil War and Director of Historic Resources for the City of Manassas, Virginia. He was also a consulting historian with the Association for the Preservation of Virginia and an historical interpreter with the Colonial Williamsburg Foundation.
He serves on the Accreditation Commission of the American Alliance of Museums and is an editorial advisor and frequent contributor to the White House Historical Association’s journal, White House History Quarterly. Scott and his wife Diann (another of Bill’s former students) reside in Spotsylvania County.
William B. Crawley
Great Lives Founder and Advisor, William B. Crawley earned a BA in Latin from Hampden-Sydney College, where he was elected to Phi Beta Kappa, and a PhD in History from the University of Virginia, where he was a member of the Raven Society. During more than 50 years at the University of Mary Washington he has won multiple awards for excellence as a teacher. He has also been an innovator, largely responsible for founding the program in Historic Preservation, as well as the Great Lives program.
He is the author of a biography titled Bill Tuck: A Political Life in Harry Byrd’s Virginia, published by the University Press of Virginia, and A Centennial History of the University of Mary Washington, published in 2008. In 2016, the Great Lives series was named in his honor.
Ali Gauch Hieber
Ali Gauch Hieber returned to the University of Mary Washington in January 2016 and currently serves as the Director of Community Events. She manages the day-to-day operations of the Great Lives Series and coordinates commencement for the University.
Previously, Ali served as Associate Dean of Admissions at UMW and Dean of Enrollment Services at Germanna Community College. She earned her Bachelor of Science in Business Administration and Master’s degree in Education at the University of South Carolina.
Ali currently resides with her husband Mark and their three children in Spotsylvania County. Rounding out the household is a sweet rescue kitty and Winston “Buddy” the springer spaniel.
Jonathan Windsor
Jonathan Windsor ’24, joined the team in 2023 and currently serves as Media Consultant for the Great Lives Lecture Series.
He graduated with a Bachelor of Arts from UMW in 2024 with departmental honors in Communication and Digital Studies, earning acceptance into the university’s chapter of Phi Beta Kappa and communication honor society, Lambda Pi Eta. Jonathan currently resides in Fredericksburg.