The Board of Visitors voted yesterday afternoon to approve the renovation and expansion of Newcomb Hall, a project estimated to cost between $16 and $18 million.

“We are going to make it a more efficient and inviting space,” said Colette Sheehy, University vice president for management and budget. “Newcomb Hall is a main entry point for many of the University’s visitors who park in the garage [underneath the Bookstore] on Grounds.”

A single-floor extension leading to the University Bookstore will be built across the side of the building facing Emmet Street. University architect David Neuman said this extension will create space for a roof-top terrace with seating areas and gardens accessible from the Newcomb Hall Ballroom.

In its current state, Newcomb Hall “is not well-oriented to the first-time visitor, so our goal is to create a main, central entry [on the west side] that is noticeable and accommodating,” Neuman said. He added that a welcome and information center will be placed inside the main entrance to make the site more visitor-friendly.

The renovation and expansion project also will increase the seating capacity in both Newcomb Dining Hall and Pavilion XI.

For breakfast and dinner, many students eat at dining halls closer to residence dorms, such as Observatory Hill and Runk, said Leonard Sandridge, executive vice president and chief operating officer. During typical lunch hours on weekdays, however, Newcomb “is where all of the students and visitors come to eat, so the Newcomb facilities are under tremendous burden,” he said.

The project will increase seating capacity in the dining hall and Pavilion XI by about 45 percent, Sheehy said.

Beginning the renovation project now is advisable, Sheehy said, to take advantage of the current financial climate. Because of the economic recession and the associated housing crisis, construction materials are fairly cheap at the moment.

Moreover, the University already has plans to renovate other parts of Newcomb Hall, including the basement, this summer.

“We’re already doing another $15 million renovation in the student-related spaces in Newcomb,” Sheehy said. “There is benefit of conducting the two projects at the same time, so there will be effective coordination of work and minimal interruption for students.”

The project involves 34,000 square feet of renovation and 16,000 square feet of construction, Sheehy said.

The Board approved $13.5 million of tax-exempt debt for the project. The remaining $4.5 million of the project’s proposed cost will come from dining fund reserves. Any incremental operating and maintenance costs related to this project will be funded by dining operations, according to the proposal.

Currently, there is no permanent timeline for the project. The Board will approve the schematic design in June, University spokesperson Carol Wood said, before construction commences in June 2011.

Local business owners are optimistic about the future of Charlottesville’s economy, according to the latest survey from the Charlottesville Regional Chamber of Commerce.

“Our survey indicates that our members are looking at the business environment as being half-full. That’s the little touch of optimism,” said Danielle Fitz-Hugh, vice president of the Charlottesville Regional Chamber of Commerce.

According to the survey, 25.7 percent of the member enterprises anticipate expansion of their businesses, compared to just 23.68 percent last year. Similarly, 51.3 percent of business owners expect to see an increase in their revenue, compared to 40.2 percent in 2009. About 19 percent of businesses expect their revenue to decrease, while the 27.27 percent felt the same last year. The expectation for higher profits stands at 44.3 percent, which is significantly higher than the 30.14 percent in 2009.

“Our member enterprises are showing incremental optimism,” Chamber of Commerce President Timothy Hulbert said.

Although the United States seems to have left the recession, Hulbert said, enterprises are still cautious.

“If someone says to you we’re out of a recession, and yet you see a national news report show 10 percent unemployment, you are still a little uneasy,” he said.

An increase in expectations is inherently linked to an environment for secure investments and increased employment, he said.

The chamber has experienced negative effects from the economic crisis of its own, losing 200 of its 1,200 members during the last year, Hulbert said. The retention rate for members for 2010 is estimated at 77.9 percent this year, down from 84 percent last year, Fitz-Hugh said.

This is not entirely unexpected, Hulbert said, as there is a kind of ripple effect when one sector suffers from an economic downturn.

“When there is a negative impact on any business, it plays out on that business’s suppliers and the people they buy from and that plays on secondary and tertiary level,” he said.

Despite the slump in membership, the chamber is expecting new enterprises to join during the coming year, Fitz-Hugh said.

“Like our businesses, we are optimistic that we are retaining our members, that we’re getting new members, that we are providing more service to our members so that they can take advantage of them,” she said.

The elected chairmen hope to advance the organization’s goals through their positions by implementing new objectives. Photo by Albin Oh.

The Inter-Fraternity Council elected six new chairmen yesterday night to finalize the organizations’s 2010-11 governing board.

Outgoing President Charles Gamper said he believes the newly elected officials are well-prepared for the challenge of working within a new structure during the upcoming year.

“A lot of positions of the past have been merged,” Gamper said. “Although the governing board itself has decreased in number, we created new committees under each position that will increase the number of people involved in the governing process and boost its effectiveness.”

These changes include the consolidation of the inter-Greek relations position and the diversity outreach position. Faculty relations and alumni relations positions have merged, as well, and the same holds true for the membership education and scholarship chairmanships. The IFC removed its publications position and added the sustainability position, while the community service and public relations spokesman positions remained untouched.

The IFC board governs 28 fraternities and about 1,500 students at the University. Many of the candidates who spoke at the election espoused the need for progress and effectiveness within the IFC community. Candidates proposed to improve the quality of Fraternal Organization Agreement programs and increase communication within the Greek system and among alumni, faculty and University and Charlottesville communities.

IFC members ultimately chose chairmen Dominic Rinaldi for membership education and scholarship, Kayu Mugai for community service, Sam Davies for alumni and faculty relations, Dane Ferré for sustainability, Neil Holby for diversity outreach and inter-Greek relations and Cavalier Daily staff writer David Replogle for public relations to advance the organization’s goals.

The newly elected chairmen focused on specific objectives for their positions.

Davies called for “closer ties between Greek men and faculty members,” while Ferré proposed competition among houses to promote recycling.

Along with a variety of ideas, Gamper said the men represented a number of different fraternities.

“There wasn’t a fraternity that had two guys elected tonight,” he said.

The IFC elected Gamper’s replacement, incoming President Penn Daniel, last week. Daniel said his goals include working toward increasing recruitment through better outreach and improving communication among the 28 chapter presidents of the IFC and the governing board.

The new governing board is made up of “capable individuals” to meet the organization’s goals, Daniel said.

The University awarded Harrison Undergraduate Research Awards to 35 students this year, studying topics as diverse as investigating shipwrecks off the Carolina coast to researching edible rain gardens.

The awards provide grants to support independent study projects during the coming summer. Students receive up to $3,000 to fund their projects, with their faculty mentors awarded a separate $1,000 reward.

This year’s group of scholars first submitted detailed plans to the Faculty Senate for approval. From there, the Senate cut nearly half of the number of hopefuls, awarding 35 grants from 62 applicants. Additionally, two students were given grants underwritten by donors outside of the University.

Students were chosen based on a variety of variety of factors, said Lucy Russell, director of the Center for Undergraduate Excellence. These factors included how well the applicant defined their research questions, the proposed methodologies and whether the student appropriately prepared to conduct the research effectively, she said.

She added that the Senate receives a variety of proposals each year, which is what allows for such a wide spectrum of final projects.

“We do a great deal of advertising to different students, ensuring variety in the proposals,” said Pamela Norris, chair of the Faculty Senate’s Research and Scholarship Committee. “Applicants are funded from nearly every major and every year.”

Third-year College student Michelle Rehme, an environmental thought and practice major, is using the grant to explore agricultural economics through the lens of Charlottesville’s own Morven Farm.
“My project is studying what makes an American medium-sized farm economically viable in today’s world, looking specifically at our region in Virginia,” Rehme said.

In 1796, Thomas Jefferson bought the acreage now encompassing Morven Farm, and Rehme is answering many of the same questions that the founder of the University once did.

“How many acres should an ideal farm be? Where is the labor coming from? What kind of markets are we looking at? It’s fascinating that I’m working with the same parcel of land Jefferson did,” she said. To bring the research full circle, Rehme is working with Assoc. Prof. Scot French, who is providing her with information regarding Jefferson’s 18th-century exploits.

Other recipients, such as third-year College students Heba Tellawi and Avery Paxton, are venturing in different directions.

Tellawi’s research will take her to Amman, Jordan, in a few months to work with women and children refugees from Iraq.

“The project will help with my thesis, which will examine the affects of non-governmental organizations in high risk areas,” Tellawi said. “I cannot wait to have the first-hand experience.”

During her time in the country’s capital, she will work at women’s program centers, assisting arts and crafts programs while offering information to the refugees about their delicate situations. She also will aid the United Nations Relief and Works Agency and the nonprofit organization, American Near East Refugee Aid.

Paxton will work with the National Marine Sanctuaries when she travels to Outer Banks, N.C., this summer. Her research will involve creating a biological baseline from two shipwrecks nine nautical miles off the coast.

“I’ll be inspecting the Jackson and the Advance wrecks, scuba diving to observe fish and invertebrates in the area,” she said.

Russell believes such creative enterprises will be beneficial in the future for these students.

“Undergraduate research on a student’s résumé or graduate school application speaks volumes,” he said. “It means a student took on an in-depth exploration of a particular area, and that takes curiosity, initiative and dedication.”

Sophomore Chris Bocklet scored a team-high four goals against Mount St. Mary’s Feb. 23. Courtesy Pete Emerson | Media Relations.

The No. 2 Cavaliers face the Seawolves of Stony Brook today, which are coming off a 21-goal offensive showing against Siena during their season opener Feb. 20.
“They looked very impressive on tape,” Virginia coach Dom Starsia said of the game.

Junior Jordan McBride scored eight goals for the Seawolves during the contest, while junior Kevin Crowley netted four and chipped in five assists.

This evidently high-powered offense will serve as an early test for the Virginia defense, which has struggled this season. During the Cavaliers’ season opener against Drexel, the squad allowed four goals during the first quarter.

“I thought we were a little tentative on defense,” Starsia said. “Ryan Nyzolek is not playing; Mikey Thompson wasn’t playing in that game. So two of our starters on defense didn’t play in the game at all, so we had two freshman in their place — that’s not an excuse though.”

Another weakness that could lead to more defensive challenges is Virginia’s struggles controlling face-offs. Though the team has won 54.2 percent of face-offs this year, it only won 10-of-23 against Drexel — one of two ranked opponents the Cavaliers have faced. Moreover, the division of responsibilities for face-offs among three players has compounded the issue.

“I do think from all indications we are going to be good facing off,” Starsia said. “More traditionally, you would have one great face-off guy. We have a little bit of a three-headed monster right now.”

Even though Virginia had a similar face-off situation on its 2006 National Championship team, Starsia acknowledged that with three possibilities to take the face, it will take more attuned coaching to recognize who to send in.

Initially, it seemed as if Virginia’s offensive effort would encounter challenges, as well. Perhaps surprisingly, however, the attack line has pulled through impressively.
“Right now, everybody is reacting to who they think we are,” Starsia said. “They are either sliding earlier to our middies or they are switching defensemen out to our middies, and our attack has been generally efficient in terms of finishing those opportunities. The question is: If they can cover our midfielders, are we dangerous enough at attack? And that’s still a question to be answered.”

Expecting a potent midfield from the Cavaliers, teams have brought one, or in some cases, two long-pole defenders from their normal positions guarding attackmen.

So far, Virginia’s attack line, composed of two sophomores and one freshman, has responded well to opposing teams’ strategy. The three starting attackmen — sophomore Steele Stanwick, freshman Connor English and sophomore Chris Bocklet — are the top three scorers on the team, combining for 14 of the team’s 26 goals.

“I think each game, we get a little bit more comfortable,” Stanwick said at the season’s start.

After facing Stony Brook Saturday, the Cavaliers will take on defending national champion Syracuse March 7.

The Cavaliers, riding a six-game losing streak, look to reverse their fortunes tonight against No. 5 Duke. Photo by Toby Lowenstein.

In the midst of a six-game losing streak, the Cavaliers face ACC-leading No. 5 Duke Sunday at John Paul Jones Arena.

The Blue Devils (23-4, 11-2 ACC), which have won seven straight games — most recently a 70-52 home pounding of Tulsa last night — are led by a dynamic trio of scorers in senior guard Jon Scheyer, junior guard Nolan Smith and senior forward Kyle Singler, who average 18.9, 17.9 and 16.9 points per game, respectively. All three players are shooting better than 39 percent from three-point land, and Singler leads Duke in rebounding, averaging 7.3 per game.

The Blue Devils have not lost since undergoing an 89-77 setback at Georgetown Jan. 30. Within the conference, Duke has lost to Georgia Tech and cellar-dweller N.C. State

Virginia’s six straight losses have often come by wide margins. The Cavaliers were competitive at Miami Tuesday night but still lost by 12. Sophomore forward Sylven Landesberg scored 27 points, senior forward Jerome Meyinsse put up 13 and junior guard Jeff Jones added 11, but the rest of the Cavalier squad did little to help the cause. Junior forward Mike Scott, who is averaging 12.8 points and 7.2 rebounds per game, went 0-for-7 from the field and only grabbed three boards.

Jones has found some consistency as of late, averaging 11 points per game during the last four matchups. But sophomore guard Sammy Zeglinski, at one time averaging double figures in points, has gone dry recently, with only 4.7 points per game during the last six contests.

Virginia likely will need to give a monumental effort to beat Duke, which not only is a tournament team but also is vying for a No. 1 seed. Last season, Virginia lost to the then-No. 1 Blue Devils on the road, 79-54. Virginia last beat Duke during the 2006-07 season when Sean Singletary’s fall-away floater with time almost out lifted the Cavaliers to a 68-66 win in overtime in front of a frenzied home crowd.

Following the game Sunday, Virginia has two contests remaining on its schedule before ACC Tournament play kicks off March 11. The team will face Boston College on the road March 3 before closing out its regular season against Maryland March 6 at home.

—compiled by Aaron Perryman

Monica Wright was named this week as one of the top 30 midseason candidates for the Naismith Trophy, which is awarded each season to the top women’s basketball player in the nation. Photo by Amanda Suardana.

The No. 18 Cavaliers will travel to Durham, N.C. today to face the No. 6 Blue Devils. Virginia is riding a 16-game losing streak against Duke and has not won in Durham since 1997.

The team enters the contest after dropping a tight game at home against Florida State Monday, falling 59-58. During that game, Virginia raced to a 22-6 lead, only to close the first half by giving up a 22-4 run to the Seminoles. The squad later battled back from a 57-50 deficit to take the lead with 20 seconds remaining, but two clutch free throws by Florida State buried the Cavaliers in the end.

“We can’t let these heartbreakers haunt us forever,” senior guard Monica Wright said. “Games like this have a tendency to come back up.”

Letdowns against good teams have resurfaced repeatedly for the Cavaliers. They have a 1-4 record against ranked teams this season, with the sole win coming in double overtime versus North Carolina last week.

If Virginia finds itself in another close contest against Duke, it will look to do a better job protecting the ball on offense and staying alert on defense. Lethargic play on both ends let Florida State back into the game when the Cavaliers had the chance to shut the door early.

“We can’t take possessions off,” Wright said. “Every possession is very valuable.”

Wright leads the Cavaliers on offense and leads the entire ACC in scoring, averaging 22.7 points per game. The Blue Devils’ top scorer, junior guard Jasmine Thomas, is averaging 15.7 points, along with 4.1 assists. Both players are top-30 candidates for the Naismith Trophy this year.

Each team’s supporting cast also will look to play a key role in the contest tonight. Sophomore forward Chelsea Shine and sophomore guard Ariana Moorer are the two leading Virginia scorers after Wright, averaging 8.2 and 7.3 points per game, respectively. The Blue Devils, meanwhile, sport five players averaging more than eight points per game.

Virginia currently finds itself in third place in the ACC and will travel to Greensboro, N.C. March 4 to begin ACC Championship play.

“There’s still a lot to play for,” Virginia coach Debbie Ryan said. “We have come a long way with a very young team.”

Virginia will host the Cavalier Invitational this weekend on a field 150 miles away from home. Charlottesville’s record snowfall this winter has rendered The Park, the Cavaliers’ usual home turf, unfit for use. Instead, the squad will entertain Notre Dame and George Washington at Christopher Newport University in Newport News.

“It’s our first home game, away,” coach Eileen Schmidt joked. “You have to make do with what you have, and I think we’re just excited to play — especially at this time of year. There are a lot of teams who aren’t getting to play.”

The Cavaliers (2-5) enter the contest coming off a trip to Baton Rouge for the LSU Tiger Classic in which they held their own against some of the toughest competition in the country. Although the team went 1-4 at the tournament, they stunned No. 4 Michigan with an upset that propelled them to the tournament’s championship.
“I think we proved a lot,” sophomore shortstop Clara Kendall said. “We proved that we can play with anyone and we can play with the best.”

George Washington (0-0), the team’s first opponent of the weekend, also has not been able to play because of the wintry weather. Friday’s matchup between the Cavaliers and Colonials will be the latter’s first foray onto dirt this season.

“I would expect a pretty high emotional level from George Washington because they’re finally getting out on the field.” Schmidt said. “They haven’t played, so I think they’re excited to get going.”

Virginia’s other opponent, Notre Dame (4-4), has been on a roll recently. Riding the strong arm of junior pitcher Jody Valdivia, the Fighting Irish swept its games at the Mizuno Classic last weekend. Valdivia’s three wins there earned her Big East Pitcher of the Week honors, and she comes to the Cavalier Invitational in top form.

“Notre Dame gets after it,” Schmidt said. “They can swing it and they have a good pitching staff that has been tested against some tough competition.”

The Cavaliers face George Washington Friday morning and Notre Dame in the afternoon before facing both teams again Saturday. They will look to build off the momentum of the team’s upset against Michigan last weekend.

“Last weekend was a really good learning experience for us,” Schmidt said. “We need to take the things we learned this weekend, make the adjustments we need to make and apply them to these games.”

The No. 1 Virginia men’s tennis team will square off in a triple-header tomorrow against Wofford, Liberty and Longwood on its home turf at the Boar’s Head Sports Club.

The team enters the contest after topping No. 18 Virginia Tech Tuesday night and hopes to continue its eight-match win streak, during which the Cavaliers rose to the nation’s top ranking after winning the ITA National Indoor Championship last weekend.

But Virginia coach Brian Boland said the team cannot become too complacent. Even though Virginia’s opponents this Saturday are all unranked in the ITA, the lineup of three matches in one day for the Cavaliers will present a challenge in terms of sheer quantity of matches — potentially testing Virginia’s depth, he said.

Moreover, the Cavaliers must be particularly aware of the doubles lineup. The loss of the doubles point continuously has plagued Virginia recently. Against Tech, freshman Jarmere Jenkins and senior Houston Barrick lost 9-7 at No. 2, and junior Sanam Singh and senior Lee Singer lost 8-4 at No. 3. Sophomore Drew Courtney and junior Michael Shabaz won their match at No. 1 doubles, 8-7 (5), but only after the Hokies already had the point secured.

Boland realigned the team’s doubles pairings prior to the ITA Indoors last weekend, and hope remained that the Cavaliers’s strong singles play would carry into the team’s doubles performance.

“I think these doubles teams are working well, and we can work some more and hopefully get better for the future,” Singh said after the ITA tournament final against Tennessee earlier this month, during which Virginia also lost the doubles point.

Boland said following the Tech match Tuesday that doubles pairings, with time, will improve and perform against the nation’s top teams.

“I really was pleased with our performance at Tech, and I thought we played really well despite our struggle in the doubles point.” Boland said. “We came out strong in singles and without question we’ll be [as big of a] force in doubles with enough time and work.” The team is set to play Wofford at 9 a.m., Liberty at 1 p.m. and Longwood at 5 p.m.

“It’s certainly going to be a long day of tennis, but an excellent opportunity for us to play a lot of matches and look at some of the things we need to work on,” Boland said. “We’ll be able to utilize a number of the players on our roster [and] I know they’re really looking forward to competing.”