![President Will Dudley will enter his eight year in his role this fall.](https://ringtumphi.net/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/Screen-Shot-2024-06-19-at-1.49.38-PM.png)
Q&A with President Dudley: Looking at the year ahead
President Will Dudley discusses the institution's silence on Israel and Palestine, how he navigates alumni blowback and plans for the upcoming year
![Ricardo Vergara will spend six years in prison and five on probation.](https://ringtumphi.net/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/HELLVERGARA-1200x900.jpg)
Former first-year sentenced to six years in prison
Ricardo Vergara, formerly ’26, was sentenced Monday in Rockbridge Circuit Court after pleading guilty to a rape charge
![Nour Alshaer, 22, is from Gaza and returned there to attend medical school.](https://ringtumphi.net/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Screen-Shot-2024-04-08-at-1.40.05-PM-e1712598857740.png)
Former student in Gaza fears for her life while saving others
Palestinian medical student Nour Alshaer, ’22, is helping wounded and starving Gazans. Alumni asking the administration to support her are met with silence
![Phi Zeta Delta’s letters have been scrubbed from the group’s former house, which has been converted to over-flow housing. Photo from September 2023.](https://ringtumphi.net/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/IMG_7351.jpg)
Suspended fraternity Phi Zeta Delta sues W&L
Phi Zeta Delta is taking to court to challenge its suspension from campus
![Mohammed Mourtaja, ’25, leads discussion at a People for Justice in Palestine talk. Photo by Veronika Kolosova, ’25](https://ringtumphi.net/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/IMG_9363-1200x668.jpg)
Student, faculty panels criticize Israel’s actions in Gaza
The events ignited conversation on the humanitarian crisis in Gaza. But professors say the fear of backlash for supporting Palestine remains
![Students call for a ceasefire in Gaza at the CARE Rockbridge Martin Luther King Jr. Day parade in
January.](https://ringtumphi.net/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Israel-Palestine.jpg)
Campus is quiet but not silent about Israel and Palestine
Students personally impacted by the conflict say their biggest struggle is getting an activism-shy campus to keep talking
![Former first-year pleads guilty to rape](https://ringtumphi.net/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/depositphotos_26166925-stock-photo-decorative-scales-of-justice-in-e1705947127983.webp)
Former first-year pleads guilty to rape
Ricardo Vergara's sentencing hearing is set for April 8
![The Rockbridge Area Relief Association used to provide homeless people with vouchers for a one week stay](https://ringtumphi.net/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/Screen-Shot-2023-11-30-at-12.47.58-PM.png)
Most Lexington hotels will no longer accept homeless guests
This comes at a time when demand for local housing assistance has increased. Local advocates say that building more affordable housing is their primary focus in alleviating homelessness
![Virginias new electoral map.](https://ringtumphi.net/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/Screen-Shot-2023-11-09-at-10.48.06-AM-1200x524.png)
Republicans sweep Rockbridge County races, but Democrats win statewide
Republicans swept two state House races and one state Senate race in Rockbridge County
![Ricardo Vergara will spend six years in prison and five on probation.](https://ringtumphi.net/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/HELLVERGARA-1200x900.jpg)
Grand jury indicts former Washington and Lee first-year on rape charges
Lexington police arrested Ricardo Vergara in February for allegedly sexually assaulting a fellow student a month earlier
![Rendering of the apartment complex planned to be built on the former Virginia Department of Transportation property.](https://ringtumphi.net/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/Screen-Shot-2023-10-27-at-12.55.09-PM.png)
New Lexington apartment complex to include affordable housing
The city, like the nation, faces a shortage of affordable housing
![The newly redrawn congressional districts in Virginia were made by court-appointed special masters.](https://ringtumphi.net/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/download-1200x873.jpg)
What’s at stake in Virginia’s elections
The November election will be the first to use new district maps
![The outside of the new bar and restaurant. The bottom floor will be home to Hardens, while the top floor will be residential.](https://ringtumphi.net/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/Screen-Shot-2023-10-10-at-11.25.37-AM.png)
Legendary Eats owners to open new bar and restaurant in Lexington
Bill and Jessica Harden hope to have "Hardens" open by early-to-mid November
![A photo rendering of the inside of a chapel, mostly white but with brown accents. A central arch is filled by a set back white wall.](https://ringtumphi.net/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/ChapelRendering-800x533-1.jpg)
Lexington city official approves construction of University Chapel wall blocking Lee statue
Local building inspector denied original construction plans due to safety concerns. After two years, construction will begin in June 2023
America’s mass shooting culture, fear, and ‘freedom’
"I have been lucky to not lose any friends to this epidemic. Many cannot say the same."
![A group of people, appearing mostly female, hold lit candles and walk in a loose line on a brick pathway under columned porches. The photos lighting is dim and indicates twilight.](https://ringtumphi.net/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Krem-SPEAK-900x587.png)
The other side of sexual misconduct programming
Audrey Blumenstock, '22, says being on the SPEAK executive team made her feel "muzzled" by the administration
![A large hall with windows and white and blue walls, full of dining tables and chairs.](https://ringtumphi.net/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/e-hall.jpg)
Students react to dining alternatives in the wake of Marketplace and Cafe 77 renovations
Long lines and limited options were common student complaints with dining at Evans Hall
![Sorority houses, red brick buildings with white columned porches, seen through trees.](https://ringtumphi.net/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/Copy-of-LMK_1298-900x600.jpeg)
Greek organizations battle hazing charges
Confidential investigations spark campus-wide rumors with no clear answers
Behind W&L’s sexual misconduct processes
Unpacking the university's reporting routes and outcomes
![Vergara direct messaged one of his victims and apologized after he assaulted her Oct. 1. (Screenshots shared by victim)](https://ringtumphi.net/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Image-1.jpeg)
First-year student arrested on sexual assault charges
One victim said she reported Ricardo Vergara, ’26, to the Title IX office in October for a separate offense of sexual assault—but he faced no disciplinary action
![Selby jumps on a car hood as a bystander urges him to stop. Photo courtesy of Dec. 2, 2021 video obtained by the Phi from an anonymous source](https://ringtumphi.net/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/Image-1-683x900.jpeg)
Selby had history of “vindictive, destructive” behavior before sexual battery charge
University administration failed to protect community from Selby, even after reported incidents
![An image of a womans face with digital clouds and circuits radiating from it](https://ringtumphi.net/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/Slide1.jpg)
Faculty question how to adjust syllabi in the wake of ChatGPT
Two W&L professors drew large crowds to talks addressing the AI technology
UPDATE: Student charged in sexual battery case no longer enrolled at W&L
Daniel Selby, a former member of the Class of 2025, left campus by Feb. 7, sources say
![Many rows of solar panels form a cover over the middle portion of a parking garage top floor.](https://ringtumphi.net/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/solarpanels-900x600.jpg)
W&L launches new sustainability projects
W&L is taking steps to become carbon-neutral and reduce fossil fuel and plastic usage on campus
![The Lexington Police Department, a brick one story building with a white columned porch.](https://ringtumphi.net/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/PXL_20211209_180632345.MP_-900x675.jpg)
W&L student pleads guilty in sexual battery case
A Lexington court lowered a felony charge against Dan Selby, ’25, to a misdemeanor in a Feb. 3 trial
![A Black man in a suit and tie gestures as he speaks.](https://ringtumphi.net/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/Ben-Crump-e1674497969182-900x671.jpg)
Civil rights attorney discusses MLK’s legacy
Ben Crump emphasizes the importance of addressing injustice wherever it is found
W&L launches new sustainability projects
The university is taking more steps to be carbon-neutral and reduce fossil fuel usage, while also banning the sale of single-use, plastic water bottles on campus
![Café 77, also known as Coop, will be closed after February break for renovations. Evans Dining Hall will offer late night options to mimic the menu.](https://ringtumphi.net/wp-content/uploads/2022/12/IMG_7897-1-900x675.jpg)
W&L’s Marketplace and Café 77 will close in February for renovations
Evans Dining Hall and expanded hours at other venues will fill the gap
![B.o.B performed for a group of around 500 students at the sold out concert. Photo by Kayla Monaghan, ’24.](https://ringtumphi.net/wp-content/uploads/2022/03/bob-by-Kayla-Monaghan7-900x675.jpeg)
B.o.B performance kicks off Fancy Dress weekend
The concert lead with the student band Meat Puzzle