Distinctive Programming
Distinctive Programming
W&L’s size, combined with extensive resources and commitment to innovative teaching and interdisciplinary learning, means our students experience remarkable academic and co-curricular opportunities from day one.
We were pioneers in the introduction of practical subjects alongside the classical education. We introduced the concept of journalism education and added courses in business, engineering and law. More recent additions include poverty studies and entrepreneurship.
Our long-standing emphasis on character and values is the basis for a center of ethics. Students need to be versed in all of these areas in order to confront and solve the problems of today. And tomorrow.
Outside The Box
Spring Term
At W&L, the year is divided into two traditional, 12-week terms in the fall and winter. Those are followed by our four-week Spring Term, when you’ll choose one course from more than 100 options, and you’ll immerse yourself in that subject for all four weeks. Our Spring Term courses are hands-on. Interdisciplinary. Intense. And anything but traditional.
Johnson Program
The Johnson Program in Leadership and Integrity aims to impact the campus and academic life of Wa&L through full-tuition merit scholarships to 10% of the incoming class each year, grant funding for current students to engage in self-directed research or independent summer study; support for lectures and programming that bring scholars in leadership and integrity to campus; and endowing faculty positions in disciplines related to leadership and integrity.
The Shepherd Poverty Program
For over 20 years, The Shepherd Program has supported student leadership and service opportunities in the local Rockbridge area and beyond. Understanding the causes, consequences, and most promising remedies of poverty require direct collaboration with community partners.
Washington Term
The Washington Term Program is an undergraduate living-learning experience in Washington D.C., combining full-time internships, college coursework, and a lecture series.
Roger Mudd Center for Ethics
The Roger Mudd Center for Ethics is committed to fostering serious inquiry into, and thoughtful conversation about, important ethical issues in public and professional life. It seeks to advance dialogue, teaching, and research about these issues among students, faculty, and staff across all three schools – the College, the Williams School, and the School of Law.
Connolly Center for Entrepreneurship
The J. Lawrence Connolly Center for Entrepreneurship is an interdisciplinary center intended to help students from across campus learn how to turn their creative ideas into successful business ventures.