Friday, Feb. 7, faculty, alumni and community members gathered at Kaplan Arena to celebrate the College of William and Mary’s 332nd Charter Day. The annual event, which commemorates the university’s founding, also served as the official launch of the Year of the Environment, a yearlong initiative aimed at advancing sustainability and conservation on campus and beyond. Spurring this change is the beginning of the Virginia Institute of Marine Science’s marine science major, with ecologist Derek Aday as dean of the emerging program.
“The accelerating pace of global change poses serious challenges to coastal and ocean systems and to billions of people who live near coastlines,” Aday said. “Worldwide, coastal communities face existential threats: rising sea levels, increased storm intensity and flooding, loss of agricultural land and impaired water quality. At this crucial moment, William and Mary will lead the way forward by focusing on science for solutions.”
Emerson Rosenthal-King ’25, who attended the ceremony, appreciated the benefits that come with a major in marine science.
“Very generous donation from whoever the benefactor was and even more generous is the fact that I believe we discussed earlier if you’re a marine science major starting now, you have your tuition, at least for those classes, paid entirely, which is really generous,” Rosenthal-King said. “I know college is definitely not easy to pay for, so it incentivizes people to go into an environmental field of study while also making it affordable. I think that’s a fantastic thing.”
University Architect Dan Pisaniello outlined initiatives that the College has implemented to increase sustainability on campus. These include sourcing 50% of electricity from a local solar farm as of 2024, expanding compost bins to include 10 locations across campus and certifying over one million square feet of certified green building space. The College aims to move towards carbon neutrality, encompassing the operational emissions the school can directly control, projecting a 60% savings in energy use over a traditionally constructed building as a result of localized geothermal heat pumps.
Aside from announcing future plans for the Year of the Environment initiative, Charter Day celebrated the present moment with the crowning of Royal Court student winners.
Elizabeth Wilson ’25 was crowned the Royal Majesty, a title recognizing her involvement in campus life. Nominated as a member of 7th Grade Sketch Comedy, she was proud to represent her group at the ceremony.
“One thing that I really appreciate about William and Mary is that smaller clubs have such a footprint. Like you think about a cappella groups, how they’re very tight knit,” Wilson said. There’s a whole community around them, comedy groups, their six comedy groups, all good friends with each other all around, like a good experience. I hear that from almost every club, when in a lot of places you wouldn’t really hear like, ‘well, sorry, but I’m hanging out with my comedy group.’”
Rosenthal-King was a Royal Court finalist and was honored to receive the nomination.
“My fraternity voted and for some reason I won the poll,” he said. “So they nominated me and, I mean, it’s a great honor both to be recognized by the school and to be recognized by the fraternity. I’ve put in a lot of work into the fraternity, just growing it, getting new members, creating infrastructure and returning on campus next year, actually. So we’re very excited for that. And yeah, I’m just happy to be recognized by both them and the school.”
Students had overall positive reactions to the event, and the changes the College plans to implement.
Avery Pike ’28, a student attendee, shared her thoughts on the College’s environmental aspirations.
“I was really excited when I heard that this year was going to be the year of the environment because I’m interested in double majoring in public policy and environment and sustainability,” Pike said. “So the environment is completely right up my alley and I’m really excited that William and Mary is putting such an emphasis on the environment and I’m really looking forward to seeing the different sustainability initiatives that they have.”
AMP organizer Bryce McHose ’28 reflected on Charter Day planning.
“We try to make tonight’s event as fun as possible and make everything a great celebration for Charter Day. So by having a Royal Court, we get lots of student involvement, lots of people really interested and celebrating the history of our school. So we do this vote to help get some, some more people interested in attending and showing up for all the fun we’ve got planned tonight,” McHose said.
McHose also reflected on the sense of community at the College.
“I really like seeing just the community that we have here at William and Mary,” McHose said. “I think there’s like a place for everyone here, everybody really belongs. I know it’s a very cliche thing to say, but it’s accurate. And I think that is the place for everybody here, is to just be part of a community that’s so supportive of everyone.”
Rosenthal-King acknowledged that for some, Charter Day is a way to maintain their connection to the College beyond four years on campus.
“I am about to graduate, but that doesn’t make me feel any less like I’m part of the William Mary community,” he said. “I’m super grateful for what William and Mary and the administration and my professors and my friends have offered me over the past four years. So I definitely intend to stay involved with the school and all these new initiatives that President Rose announced just makes me more inclined to stay involved with what’s happening at William Mary.”
As the College moves forward, Charter Day remains both a reflection on its past and a vision for its future—one rooted in tradition, sustainability and student engagement. To celebrate the coming year with an emphasis on protecting the environment, Aday encouraged everyone to get involved.
“From students and faculty to alumni, staff, families and friends, we invite everyone to join us in a series of meaningful initiatives and events that will shape our world today and honor our responsibility to future generations,” Aday said. “There will be several major Year of the Environment events, starting with the kickoff at Charter Day. Future events include the student Earth Day bash on April 16 and Marine Science day on May 31.”
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