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UVA Batten is proud to announce the graduation this year of 119 Bachelor of Arts students and 75 Master of Public Policy students. On Saturday, May 17, Batten dean Ian H. Solomon welcomed the graduates, their family members, and friends for ceremonies at the historic Paramount Theater in downtown Charlottesville. “I applaud you, class of 2025, as a force for good in the world," he told them.

Hewing to the Batten School’s tradition of service learning, more than 110 students volunteered earlier this month at a local nonprofit that serves people with autism. It was part of their class, “Lead from Anywhere: From the Classroom to the Community,” taught by professor Kirsten Gelsdorf. Said one of the students, “You really do feel like you’re making fundamental change on the ground.”

Two UVA Batten MPP students who are graduating this week had the opportunity to collaborate with alumnus Cameron Haddad (MPP '19) this semester on a project for the World Bank, providing them hands-on experience in policy work. As a student, Haddad worked on a World Bank project with professor Lucy Bassett, who connected the three in February.

More than 140 people attended the 2nd Annual Peacekeepers Awards Ceremony, hosted by UVA Batten's PEGLLLLab to celebrate the firefighters, police officers, violence interrupters, and other first responders who serve the Charlottesville and Albemarle County communities. This year, 37 students from area schools were also recognized with a Peacekeepers Award for their actions to help keep their schools safe.

Alinor Smith originally planned to attend another Virginia university and major in engineering. After several changes in direction, Smith found her home at UVA Batten and graduates this month with a double major in public policy and leadership and in English literature. A poet at heart, she has received UVA’s Rachel St. Paul Poetry Prize for Best Group of Poems.

On this episode of our "Grounds to Listen" podcast, Tim Tassopoulos joins UVA Batten dean Ian H. Solomon to talk about his journey from part-time hourly Chick-fil-A employee to president and chief operating officer of the iconic chicken sandwich chain. Tassopoulos shares his thoughts about what makes a great leader, the power of mentorship, and the importance of creating a strong culture.

Colin R. Gray, Head of the Scottish Government Office in the United States, reflected on his wide-ranging diplomatic career, the value of persistence, and the enduring power of connection in international relations in an event held in the Great Hall last week for students, faculty, staff, and community members.

As the academic year closes, the UVA Batten honors several exemplary students who have been nominated by peers, faculty, and staff for their consistent and superior work and dedication inside and outside the classroom. These awards are based on principles and traits exemplary of and important to our founder, the late Frank Batten, Sr.

The health economy is one of the most extensive and complex systems in modern life, impacting people on a deeply personal level. UVA Batten is honored to have three outstanding faculty members whose research expertise is focused on various policy aspects of the field, including Medicaid and Medicare, COVID-related mortality rates, and other topics.

Begun in the spring of 2024 by UVA Batten students, the Dialogue Dinners program has grown this year to almost 50 Batten graduate and undergraduate participants who gather every other week to share a meal and get to know each other on a personal level, and then discuss pertinent policy topics on which they may or may not agree. The practice, said one, "gives me a lot of hope."

At Batten Hour this week, three groups of students gave presentations about their work over the past academic year with nonprofit organizations in the Charlottesville-Albemarle area. The initiative is the focus of the Formative Change Group, a pro-bono, student-led consulting club that enables Batten students to apply their leadership, policy, and analytical skills to real-world challenges while making a difference in the local community.

UVA Batten associate professor Alex Bick — an expert on national security policy and international affairs — served as a moderator for a panel discussion at the Miller Center’s 2025 William and Carol Stevenson Conference titled “The Future of American Financial and Economic Statecraft.” The conference examined how the Trump administration, as well as future presidencies, might use the levers of economic power.