News

The VCU Convergence Team Planning Grant Program is reserved for projects of three or more full-time faculty from at least two different schools or colleges that focus on problems that defy single-discipline solutions. (Adobe Stock)

VCU Convergence awards nearly 70 faculty members $150,000 in seed grants

Aug. 26, 2026

The projects supported through the grants bring different perspectives together to tackle complex, ‘wicked problems’ that no single discipline can solve.

The goal of VCU’s new AI literacy course is to give students the tools to make informed choices without giving up their privacy, judgment or creativity. (Getty Images)

New AI literacy course takes VCU students behind the screen

Aug. 21, 2026

The interdisciplinary offering helps them ‘evaluate what AI produces and make informed choices.’

Hands-on Chemistry, one of the College of Humanities Sciences Summer Camp offerings this year, offered dynamic labs, such as growing crystals using borax and building a spectroscope for a chromatography activity. (Contributed image)

Summer camps give middle and high school students an authentic college experience

July 22, 2026

Weeklong sessions from the College of Humanities and Sciences range from AI and chemistry to genealogy and primatology, providing campers an on-campus education with VCU faculty and facilities.

Alex Pola said his best experiences in Paris have been spur of the moment or come from the people he has met – not by studying social media as a guide. (Contributed photo)

Postcard From … Alex Pola in France

July 7, 2026

We caught up with the VCU mass communications major for a quick report on his study abroad experience.

The “Humanity of the Heart” mural, located in the VCU School of Medicine’s McGlothlin Medical Education Center, was designed by interior design students in the mOb studiO working in partnership with Richmond artist Hamilton Glass. A new minor at VCU is designed for students with an interest in careers at the intersection of health, nonprofits, public agencies and creative organizations. (File photo)

Students can choose from three new interdisciplinary minors with an arts emphasis this fall

May 13, 2026

Creative technology instruction, public health and the arts, and screenwriting offer fresh options for students majoring in a variety of disciplines.

As the owner of the cleaning business Mop & Bucket, Savannah Setzer has put the PR skills she learned at VCU into practice. (Contributed image)

Class of 2026: Savannah Setzer applied the lessons of the classroom to build a business

May 6, 2026

The new Robertson School grad has a cleaning company that is thriving thanks to Setzer’s savvy approach to communications.

VCU alum Alex Coyle before the Super Bowl LX halftime show. Coyle was assigned to one of the handheld camera operators responsible for filming the production. (Contributed Photo)

From Marvel to the Super Bowl, VCU alum has worked on the crews of some high-profile productions

May 1, 2026

Alex Coyle recently was on the field for Bad Bunny’s historic halftime show, and she also has been a part of the camera team on projects such as ‘The Gray Man’ and ‘Black Panther: Wakanda Forever.’

(Photo by Dean Hoffmeyer, Enterprise Marketing and Communications)

Scenes from a (very) RVA Renaissance Faire

April 22, 2026

VCU students, faculty and alumni teamed with community members to help put on a new event that celebrated both the distant past and what makes the Richmond area so special today.

Brian G. Smith has been named director of VCU’s Richard T. Robertson School of Communication. He will begin his role July 1. (Contributed photo)

Brian G. Smith named director of VCU’s Richard T. Robertson School of Communication

April 1, 2026

At the University of Mississippi, he has chaired the Integrated Marketing Communications department.

At VCU, Manuella Escobar said, “I have taken on every opportunity, endeavor and project I stumbled upon to grow as a professional and as a human being.” (Dean Hoffmeyer, Enterprise Marketing and Communications)

How I found my research: Manuella Escobar dives deep into the Latino college experience

April 1, 2026

Escobar, a Colombia native, gravitated to her line of study when her classmates’ questions about her cultural background transitioned from ‘Narcos’ and drug cartels to Bad Bunny, J Balvin and Latin music.