Newest Eagles Move In Supplies and Mix of Emotions

August 20, 2026

Lisa Chinn Marvashti

A girl puts a clear stack of drawers into a residence hall room, while another comes through the door carrying a couple of bathroom caddies — First-year University of Mary Washington student Ana Saravia (walking through door) gets situated in her new room in Randolph Hall, assisted by members of the Move-In Day crew. UMW welcomed about 1,100 new students, including first-years and transfers. K Pearlman Photography.

Surrounded by pink – a pink clothes hamper piled high with stuffed animals, a full-length mirror inside a pink frame, two pink rugs rolled up tight – Ana Saravia spoke into her phone. The conversation, held outside her new Randolph Hall room, was with her mom, who was just down Campus Walk helping her other daughter, Lexi, move into Virginia Hall.

“Every time I was here, I felt like I was wrapped in a warm hug,” said Ana, whose pop of color was mirrored in the hot-pink T-shirts worn by volunteers who helped families with the heavy lifting yesterday during the University of Mary Washington’s Move-In Day.

The Saravia sisters, from Henrico County, Virginia, are among the nearly 1,100 new students UMW welcomes this year, the 600 or so who registered for on-campus housing and the majority who come from the Commonwealth. First-years and new transfers hail from 30 more states, including California, Montana, Texas and Tennessee, and from overseas, as far away as the Philippines, India and Australia.

SUVs, pick-ups and compact cars lined Mary Washington’s normally traffic-free areas, with friends and families helping haul copious college-life commodities into Randolph and other first-year residence halls, Ball, Virginia and Willard. Upperclassmen, including Move-In Day volunteers, plus peer mentors dressed in purple and resident assistants donning green, answered questions and provided support. So did UMW President Troy Paino and wife Kelly, who drop into rooms each year to welcome new arrivals and their families.

Students stand outside on a university campus wearing hot-pink T-shirts and holding big purple bags, while other bags surround them

A father, mother and two sisters stand posing for the camera inside the doorway of a college residence hall

Five people - one man and four women - stand in a hallway talking

A young man puts together a clear multi-drawer unit, while an older man points to the bunkbed in the backrgound

Upperclassmen volunteered to be part of a Move-In Day crew, helping first-year students move into their new residence hall rooms at the University of Mary Washington. K Pearlman Photography.

First-year UMW student Cara Davis (second from left), who hopes to major in historic preservation, stands with her father, mother and sister. K Pearlman Photography.

Each year on Move-In Day, UMW President Troy Paino (right) and wife Kelly (left) stop by first-year residence halls to personally welcome new students and offer help and support. K Pearlman Photography.

Jude Cook of Alexandria, an incoming University of Mary Washington student and lacrosse player who hopes to major in business administration, moves into his new room in Virginia Hall. K Pearlman Photography.

Cara Davis of Waynesboro, Virginia – one of more than 300 new transfer students – said she felt like she’d brought “half my room” to her new digs in Ball Hall, recently renovated for accessibility. Beginning her UMW career on a merit scholarship, Cara plans to major in historic preservation and pursue a certificate in GIS. That’s after she hits up Club Carnival next week, hoping to find information on joining medieval renaissance and art history groups.

In Willard, Jackson Wallace of Stafford County, settled in with longtime friend, fellow hoops lover and new Mary Washington roommate Darius Sharon. Jackson, who’s set to bounce into a point guard position on UMW’s NCAA Division III men’s basketball team, was awed by the dynamic buzzer-beating basket that won the Eagles the national title last spring. But that isn’t what brought him to Double Drive.

Five people - four men and one woman - stand in a hallway talking

A young man stands outside a closet in a residence hall room with an array of items - paper towels, bottled waters, suitcases - in the foreground

Several students dressed in hot pink T-shirts stand in front of a brick building with columns, with large gray rolling carts in front of them

A man stands in the doorway to a room, while a young woman works on putting together a bed frame and another looks on

University of Mary Washington Head Men’s Basketball Coach Marcus Kahn (left) talks to parents while Jackson Wallace (third from left), a first-year student who landed a position on the national championship team, prepares to move into his new room in Willard Hall. K Pearlman Photography.

First-year UMW student Darius Sharon, who plans to study cybersecurity, stands inside his new Willard Hall room, where he’s already added an XBOX game system and an autographed basketball. K Pearlman Photography.

Upperclassmen who volunteered to be part of the Move-In Day crew were in abundance during the University of Mary Washington’s Move-In Day. K Pearlman Photography.

University of Mary Washington President Troy Paino pops into a residence hall room to welcome incoming students. K Pearlman Photography.

“I knew where my heart was before that; not going to lie,” said Jackson, who plans to major in business. “But [the championship win] made me even more excited to be here.”

Back in Randolph Hall, Gene and Mary Carter helped daughter Olivia unpack. “This place is amazing,” Gene Carter, who served nearly two decades in Richmond law enforcement, said as he peeled tape off a stainless-steel mini fridge. “I’ve been blown away by the level of care UMW extends to its students.”

A man wearing a "Mary Washington Dad" T-shirt hugs his daughter

Four people stand in a college residence hall room, surrounded by bags that they're unpacking

A woman lies on a top bunk while a woman who's standing reaches up to touch her wrist

A student walks down a hallway carrying a purple foam mattress pad

Gene Carter hugs his daughter, Olivia, a first-year Mary Washington student on Move-In Day. K Pearlman Photography.

First-year UMW students Lilly Holloman (blue shorts), who plans to major in biomedical sciences, and Ava Harrison (yellow T-shirt), who plans to study psychology, talk to family members as they move into their new corner room in Virginia Hall. K Pearlman Photography.

Two moms help their daughters, both new UMW first-year students, unpack and get ready for the school year ahead during Move-In Day. K Pearlman Photography.

UMW student Allie Davis (right) helps new Eagles get situated in Ball Hall as part of this year’s Move-In Day crew. K Pearlman Photography.

Virginia Hall roommates Lilly Holloman and Ava Harrison of Henrico, friends since sixth grade, felt like they’d won the lottery with a third-floor corner room they planned to set up as a bedroom/living room combo. “I literally walked on campus and got a vibe,” said Lilly, who brought lots of Legos from home and hopes to major in biomedical sciences, minor in neuroscience or history, and become a NICU doctor.

Down the hall, President Paino popped into a room where Jaiden Comfort of Louisa was making her bed. Set on becoming a teacher, Jaiden said she chose Mary Washington for its beauty and size, the reputation of its education program and as a “really good way to have one-on-one connections with professors.”

A man wearing a Mary Washington T-shirt stands in a residence hall room with a female college student

Two guys dressed in hot pink help another guy in a gray hoody load supplies to move into his residence hall room

A student sits on the floor of a residence hall, pulling something out of a drawer under the bed

Three people stand inside a college residence hall room

UMW President Troy Paino talks with first-year Mary Washington student Amiya Lee of Northumberland, whose mother, father and brother helped her move into her new room in Virginia Hall. K Pearlman Photography.

Members of the Move-In Day crew help a first-year student get his things into Randolph Hall. K Pearlman Photography.

A new UMW student unpacks on Move-In Day. K Pearlman Photography.

Talise Alvarez of Annandale (left), who will play on UMW’s women’s basketball team, stands aside while roommate Isabelle Philippe of Reston (middle) wheels a suitcase into their Randolph Hall room. K Pearlman Photography.

She and roommate Amiya Lee of Northumberland, who loaded lotions, laundry detergent and other toiletries into a closet caddie, met through the college community app ZeeMee and kept in touch through the summer on Instagram. “I’m excited. I’m nervous,” said Amiya, who plans to major in communication and digital studies. “All of the above.”

Emotions ran high, as well, for parents and siblings preparing to leave their loved ones behind to build their college careers.

“I’m excited to see her spread her wings,” Tracy Davis, the mother of Cara, the transfer student from Waynesboro, said when asked how she felt about heading home without her daughter. “Ask me that again when I pull away.”

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