President Katherine A. Rowe sent the following message to the William & Mary community on July 2, 2026. – Ed.
Dear William & Mary Community,
Hello from a steamy Williamsburg in midsummer. I hope this note finds you celebrating July 4th with cookouts, fireworks, and warm fellowship. In the spirit of this season, I am pleased to share William & Mary’s year-in-review video.
Some highlights to savor:
- National championships in the Intercollegiate Ethics Bowl, the Labor and Employment Law Trial Advocacy Competition, and the American Society of Naval Engineers’ 2026 Promoting Electric Propulsion (PEP) autonomous division boat race.
- W&M Women’s Swimming won the CAA Championship.
- Rankings we cherish: W&M earned Gold as a military-friendly university — with the nation’s top military-friendly graduate program — and we again made Forbes’ top list of “New Ivies Employers Love.”
- W&M’s “We the Teachers” national initiative is strengthening K-12 history and civics education, gathering educators from all 50 states this summer at our historic campus.
The values William & Mary honors during this Year of Civic Leadership — respectful debate, free expression, service to others — have inspired the university for 333 years. Amid this week’s hoopla, we hope you will take a moment to affirm and celebrate all the ways the Alma Mater of the Nation cultivates those values today.
Happy 250th,
Katherine A. Rowe
President