Darden Prof. offers free course online

The University plans to participate this semester in a trial program launched last week called The Faculty Project, which allows professors to record their lectures online and make them available to the general public for free. The Faculty Project is one of the programs marketed by Udemy, a for-profit organization which uses videos, discussion boards and article archives to teach online courses. "Our target audience is anyone who is interested in lifelong learning, such as business students, students who want to attain their MBA or students that would like to take courses that they weren't able to before," Faculty Project Director Tim Parks said.

Student attacked on Wertland St.

Multiple assailants assaulted and robbed a University student and a visiting friend around 3 a.m. Saturday morning on the 1000 block of Wertland Street. Charlottesville Police identified one suspect as 22-year-old Andre Maurice Jackson. Jackson fled the scene after the robbery.

Jodi Kantor, the author of "The Obamas," an insider account of the Obama family, visited the Miller Center of Public Affairs yesterday evening to discuss her best-selling book. Kantor, a reporter for The New York Times, spent five years working on the book, which focuses particularly on the first lady. "The narrative that runs through the heart of this book is the story of [Mrs. Obama's] turnaround," Kantor said.

Court sentences C-ville Occupiers

The Charlottesville General District Court Friday morning found 17 Occupy Charlottesville protestors guilty of trespassing in Lee Park. The protestors had been camped out in the park under a special events permit since mid-October.

Board of Health discusses abortion law

The Virginia Board of Health discussed Friday whether the emergency regulations passed last December by Gov.

Honor reviews retraction

The Honor Committee yesterday evening heard Batten School Representative Michael Karlik's proposal for an "informed retraction" which would allow students to avoid formal honor trials, even after their offenses had been recognized, by accepting the punishment advocated by the affected party. Karlik's proposal differs from the informed retraction the Committee discussed last semester because the Committee itself would not sanction the guilty party, leaving it to the victim of the honor offense.

AG disputes redistricting suit

Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli asked the Virginia Supreme Court Wednesday to overturn a lower court ruling made the previous day which held that six Virginia residents had grounds to sue the state for its current redistricting legislation. "Given the impending elections and deadlines associated with the federal Voting Rights Act, my office is seeking immediate intervention by the Supreme Court of Virginia," Cuccinelli said in a statement. Also on Wednesday, Gov.

Huguely: judge sets jury process

Charlottesville Circuit Court Judge Edward Hogshire decided the jury selection process for former University student George Huguely's upcoming murder trial at a hearing yesterday. Huguely faces first-degree murder charges for the May 3, 2010 death of his ex-girlfriend, Yeardley Love. Jury selection begins Feb 6.

Declaration newsmagazine to print every other week

[caption id="attachment_49299" align="alignleft" width="234" caption="The managing board of the publication plans to reinstate weekly print editions through advertising.

Faculty discuss MLK legacy

University Law professors Tomiko Brown-Nagin and Risa Goluboff discussed the legal implications of Martin Luther King, Jr.'s protest methods and how they have shaped social change yesterday evening at the Chapel. The discussion, hosted by the University Office of Engagement, focused on legal lessons taken from the Civil Rights Movement in major cities like Montgomery and Birmingham. Brown-Nagin said one of the main conflicts of the Civil Rights Movement was disagreement about the definition of civil equality presented by the U.S.

City, County to share dam cost

The Rivanna Water and Sewer Authority approved an agreement between the City of Charlottesville and Albemarle County yesterday to share the cost of a new dam aimed at increasing the size of the Ragged Mountain Reservoir. The City will pay 15 percent of the cost of the dam, while the county will be responsible for the remaining 85 percent. The project will cost $21.5 million and will be funded by both the City and County through water utility bills, RWSA Executive Director Tom Frederick said in an email. Thalle Construction Company of Hillsborough, N.C.

School teams up with Peace Corps

[caption id="attachment_49248" align="alignleft" width="300" caption="The Medical School announced a new master's program yesterday combining public health and service in the Peace Corps.

Study links critical thinking to job placement

Students who do not exercise critical thinking skills and are not civically engaged in college have greater difficulty finding jobs, according to a study released yesterday at the annual meeting of the Association of American Colleges and Universities. The study, "Documenting Uncertain Times: Post-graduate Transition of the Academically Adrift Cohort," used the Collegiate Learning Assessment, a standardized testing evaluation of higher education, to compare the academic strength of 925 students to post-graduate success. The study comes about a year after University Asst.

Proposed bill would offer faculty benefits

A Virginia lawmaker is pushing for legislation which aims to retain university professors in Virginia by offering a 50 percent in-state tuition reduction to dependents of public university faculty. State Sen.

Office rebrands patent program

The Office of Research announced yesterday the creation of U.Va. Innovation

Delta Gamma avoids University investigation

[caption id="attachment_49156" align="alignleft" width="300" caption="Delta Gamma sorority is conducting an internal investigation of a chapter member who leaked offensive lyrics in an email last week.