School of Arts & Sciences

The Heart of the University

The School of Arts & Sciences is the heart of the University of Richmond’s offerings. You can choose from or combine majors from 24 departments and 12 interdisciplinary programs. In the School of Arts & Sciences, you will learn to integrate your classroom experience with your true interests, your calling.

It’s the chance to explore a topic you’ve always been curious about, whether that’s Russian, modern dance, or environmental ethics. It’s getting a different perspective on your favorite subject, thinking through concepts and problems in a way you never have before. It’s satisfying your curiosity and love for learning, and then working to translate that into a career path.

Support A&S

School of Arts & Sciences 2022-23 Dean’s Report

Kelling Donald with his book, "How to solve a problem."

Going Boldly: Purposeful Engagement, Critical Thinking, & Success in College

School of Arts & Sciences Associate Dean Kelling Donald, professor of chemistry, Clarence E. Denoon Jr. Chair in the Natural Sciences, is the author of How to Solve A Problem: Insights for Critical Thinking, Problem-Solving, and Success in College. Donald offers a few simple steps that can lower barriers to college success in this opinion piece in Diverse: Issues In Higher Education.

Two scholars

Meet the 2024-25 Beckman Scholars

A&S students Marcos Hendler, of Rye, New York, and Aine MacDermott, of Lexington, Virginia, have each been awarded a prestigious Beckman Foundation Scholarship to support faculty-mentored student research in the sciences.

Beckman Scholars are selected among undergraduate biology and chemistry students based on commitment to research, strong academics, and potential to become scientific leaders. UR has had 26 Beckman Scholars since 2006.

Hendler, a chemistry major, is studying computational chemistry focused on molecules related to anticancer, which has implications in possible treatments. Hendler’s faculty mentor is chemistry professor Carol Parish. MacDermott, a biochemistry & molecular biology major, is researching ancient DNA under the mentorship of biology professor Melinda Yang. MacDermott is focused on the evolution of the alcohol metabolism gene ADH1B in present-day and ancient East Asian humans.

Symposium Cover Artwork

A&S Student Symposium Poster & Program Cover Artwork

Each year, the A&S Student Symposium program booklet and event poster feature artwork curated from that year’s research presentations.


Faculty Expertise

Do you envision college as a place where your professor’s office hours are spent in deep conversation about topics beyond this week’s assignment? Where you can work side-by-side with a faculty member on cutting-edge research that is published in a professional journal?

In A&S, our faculty are experts on the cutting edge of their fields. While they could work in some of the top research institutions in the world, our faculty chose Richmond because they believe in educating tomorrow's leaders and are passionate about mentoring and sharing their knowledge with students.

A&S Faculty Highlights

Mr. Jeremy Drummond
Drummond Featured in Exhibition

Jeremy Drummond, associate professor of art, presented his film “Dark Holler” as part of the exhibition What Does the Land Know?

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Dr. Jillean McCommons
McCommons Awarded

Jillean McCommons, assistant professor of history and Africana studies, was awarded the 2024-2025 Wilma Dykeman "Faces of Appalachia" Postdoctoral Research Fellowship from the Appalachian Studies Association to support her book manuscript on Black Appalachian activism in the 1960s and 1970s.

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Dr. Eric S. Yellin
Yellin Published

Eric S. Yellin, associate professor of history, published, "Bringing the Constituents Back In: The Politics of Social Security in the 1950s," in the Journal of Policy History.

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Dr. David Lefkowitz
Lefkowitz Published

David Lefkowitz, professor of philosophy and PPEL, published "Political Feasibility and a Global Climate Treaty" in Ethics, Policy and Environment.

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Dr. David Lefkowitz
Lefkowitz Published

David Lefkowitz, professor of philosophy and PPEL, published "State Consent and the Legitimacy of International Law" in Consenting to International Law.

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Dr. Della Dumbaugh
Dumbaugh Appointed

Della Dumbaugh, professor of mathematics, was appointed Robert Edwin Gaines Chair in Mathematics.

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Dr. Timothy Barney
Barney Published

Timothy Barney, professor of rhetoric and communication studies, published “’The Angel of Sarbandan’: Ford Foundation Philanthropy, Transnational Development Rhetoric, and the Scalar Geopolitics of 1950s Iran” in Rhetoric & Public Affairs.

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Dr. Timothy Barney
Barney Published

Timothy Barney, professor of rhetoric and communication studies, published the chapter “The Post-Cold War American Presidency and the Rhetorical Invention of Václav Havel” in Beyond the Cold War: Presidential Rhetoric in Central and Eastern Europe.

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