{"id":2698,"date":"2025-12-16T17:47:24","date_gmt":"2025-12-16T22:47:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/aig.uvaalumni.org\/qva\/?p=2698"},"modified":"2025-12-16T17:47:24","modified_gmt":"2025-12-16T22:47:24","slug":"qva-fall-weekend-recap-an-exciting-new-scholarship","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/aig.uvaalumni.org\/qva\/qva-fall-weekend-recap-an-exciting-new-scholarship\/","title":{"rendered":"QVA Fall Weekend Recap + An Exciting New Scholarship"},"content":{"rendered":"

All,<\/p>\n

What an unforgettable Fall Weekend. It was energizing seeing more than 100 of you back in Charlottesville! Thank you for bringing your spirit, your stories, and your support. Please enjoy these photo highlights<\/a>!<\/p>\n

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We began the weekend by honoring Cedric Rucker (Grad<\/abbr> class of <\/span>\u201984)<\/strong>, our Bernard Mayes recipient and recently retired Dean of Students. His fireside chat reminded us why community matters, especially now. He shared wise words from his grandmother for when times are tough:<\/p>\n

\u201cDon’t be bitter, be better.\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n

QVA is proud to carry this message forward with purpose. Even amid the significant pressure higher education is facing, our commitment to UVA\u2019s queer community remains unwavering, and our scholarships, advocacy, and community building events continue unabated.<\/p>\n

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We concluded the weekend celebrating a milestone: Professor Charlotte Patterson\u2019s retirement after 50 years at UVA.<\/strong> Charlotte is a pioneering scholar and was among the first researchers to study children growing up in same-sex parent families. At a time when laws and policies wrongly insisted that children do best with a heterosexual mother and father, Charlotte boldly did extensive, peer-reviewed research and proved that children raised by same-sex couples do just as well. Her research shaped law at the highest levels and has been cited in:<\/p>\n