I think this idea of being more "advanced" than "our indigenous neighbors" is very interesting when thinking about our history as a nation. It is a common theme in our history that the whites did not believe that the indigenous people were as educated and "needed" the whites for this reason, and this idea is somewhat reflected in this part of the report. Tana Mardian

I feel like this idea of needing a hospital was advanced for the time. The founders of UVA recognize the need for hands-on activity, especially when it comes to a field like medicine. This seems to translate into UVA as we see it now with all of the research opportunities and different ways to get involved with passions and careers. Tana Mardian

This central building sounds like it could have been the Rotunda. It's strange that a place for religious worship would be considered at the center of the grounds since Jefferson always put so much emphasis on a university focused on academics rather than religion. It makes sense that there would be a church, but having it in the center when this document directly addresses an absence of religious studies is very contradictory.

-Wei Guan

There wasn't any mention of an arts department earlier in the report where the different classes were mentioned. There are a lot of arts classes today, but at that time, they were seen more as pastimes or hobbies. Maybe there were art schools dedicated specifically to these subjects or they were more informal. I have noticed that the Art Grounds is separated from the central grounds, where many of the classes mentioned in the report are taught. In Art Inside/Out this semester, I learned about the function of art and there is a lot more to it than enjoyment and happiness.

-Wei Guan

It is fascinating to me that they were so concerned with the buildings themselves. I would have thought that taking care of the buildings and the grounds would have been a given, but it was important enough to include in this document. Caroline Peterson

This description of the proposal for the lawn is very specific. Since I am in an aesthetic engagement currently, I noticed how the idea wanted it to be symmetrical. The lawn today is very symmetrical; sometimes if I'm standing in the middle by the lawn rooms and I can't see the Rotunda, I'm not sure which direction it is because both sides look the same. At most college campuses, some individual buildings are symmetrical, but in contrast, the entire plan for the layout of the university was symmetrical.

This phrase encompasses the major goal of all education. These are the things that move society and science forward and that is why people are educated. Currently, we have many majors that simply are not very useful in our world. These go against the goal of education which is to progress society. More education does not necessarily correlate with advancement of society; there needs to be education in the right areas. This is not to say only STEM majors are important, but rather that majors must have a realistic purpose in life. Majors such as Religion and Gender Studies have a few niche areas where they are important, but those should be limited to the amount of people. We should be encouraging people to study more in business, social sciences, and physical sciences so that our world and society will continue to advance. -Ryan Keane

This is a very powerful statement regarding the purpose of higher education. The commissioners of the university clearly had a vision for how the education that the university provided should affect its students. However, the statement is somewhat idealistic in that it includes the idea that education will drive out any "innate" or subconscious deviations from morality. We all know that this was certainly not achieved at the time of the university's founding, when the practice of owning slaves was perceived as moral, and also has not been achieved today, although UVA has introduced many new efforts to combat this problem. Through the university's response to the Unite the Right rally this summer, the numerous implicit bias modules and presentations it offers, and the engagements themselves, our "innate obliquities" are being discussed and brought to light so that we as a university can take deliberate steps towards achieving this ideal view of education put forth by the commissioners of UVA. Claire Waterhouse

I find this point in the document to be forward-thinking, particularly considering the time period it was written in. It is well known that Thomas Jefferson wanted to create a university centered around learning rather than religion, which is why the Rotunda (a library) serves as the center of the university rather than a chapel or church, as was common among other colleges at the time. This concept of religious freedom and equality is especially intriguing after taking "Can a text be ethical?" with Professor Spittler this semester. Just as the commissioners of the university proposed not to force a prescribed set of religious beliefs on its students who may not have similar religious backgrounds, many of my discussion groups in the ethical engagement came to the conclusion that the New Testament cannot be used as the sole basis for an ethical argument, because not everyone holds the New Testament to be a sacred and valid text. Claire Waterhouse

This phrase seems very redundant and i am very curious as to why it was included. I am thinking that there was some sort of legal reason, but it still takes away from the meaning of the work. Ideally, they should have been meeting because they wanted to make this University and it was their own personal reasons, not because it was required of them. However, because of these words it almost seems that the authors had no desire to be at the Rockfish gap and were forced to be there in a way. Something that is very prized today, specifically in education, is one's passion for their work. If you are passionate for what you are doing, then you can better serve those who you work for. Again, I do not know the reasoning behind including this, but if it were left out then the report would be much stronger. It would represent what these men deem useful and necessary for society, not just something the law requires them to do.

This excerpt Is remarkable because in order to feel the need to establish a new university, the board must have seen discrepancies in education amongst the other universities of the day. Languages being a missing component of a university that was of need to be changed is interesting since the board's purpose of including it so specifically shows that UVA was meant to be very cutting edge. It is mentioned that Spanish and French are needed to communicate with the other people of the Americas, which shows that the boar meant to educate generations of men who should amount to great stature in order to be needing these skills. This nuance shows me to me the thriving character of UVA, which is an education that is very practical.

Muhammad Amjad

This quotation strikes me particularly as brilliant and also ironic. In the rockfish report, the founders are including not only the foundation of UVA but also a prep. school system to feed into UVA. This is mentioned in with the purpose of including the multiples languages being taught because it is indicative of the element of selective control that UVA was founded to uphold. It seems as if, on top of selectively admitting students who are deemed ideal enough to study at Mr. Jefferson' University, the board finds it crucial to grow generations of boys who will continue to fit their mold for years to come. The idea of preparatory schooling for a university is pretty progressive for the time which makes it brilliant as this model continues to be followed. However, it is ironic as it is going against the "life-long learning" mindset of Jefferson's plans. With a school filled with the exact same type of student, what dynamic between collaboration is there to learn from?

Muhammad Amjad

I think this an interesting point considering how casually some may view education to be. Once we learn new information, especially that which sparks our interests we begin embedding it into our everyday actions and/or thoughts. And not only does it change our personal lives, but it contributes to how we treat those around us. - Kayla Thomas

In my engagement "Individual and Society", we center our discussions around the importance of one over the other and its pros and cons. With this phrase, it is definitely obvious that the importance of unification is crucial to our human existence. We cannot survive off of merely being here but rather incorporating the values and teachings of those who come before us. Granted we use current knowledge and beliefs to tweak these ideologies and we often times make them our own. But it is imperative that we give credit to those who set the foundation for us to discuss and challenge what we hold as human truths. - Kayla Thomas

This part of the text makes it known that everyone who was to be involved in the University's establishment should have the right of knowing what goes on with his own transactions. While reading this, i was constantly reminded of how my engagement constantly talks about people having the right to control what goes on to their bodies. Some people choose to stay ignorant to the problems going on in their body while others care to know what is going on and what indeed is the best way to proceed forward. It is all a right and in no way, shape, or form should this right be violated and/or questioned. I believe that while, several other aspects of the document were designed for failure, this section provided some sort of hope for equality and self awareness. - Kayla Thomas

This is a very insightful metaphor that shows that demonstrates that education depends on the student. Just as cultivation that is successful for one tree might be unsuccessful for another, depending on many variables, the way one student learns and is educated might not work for another student, as people are all vastly different. This is important to realize, because if the aim is to educate all students, the teachers must be willing to shape their own methods. Caroline Peterson

This idea seems to be really important in being a conscious and involved member of society in our time. In light of recent events, we can look to interpret the "duties to [our] neighbors" to mean that we need to care for and support each other, regardless of differences.

In a portion of the document that lists areas of land that will be used by the University, it is shocking to see the inclusion of a group of people. By associating the 57 slaves with pieces of land, the document and its author imply that the slaves have an equal status to the purchased land--they could be owned, bought, and sold at will. In planning the University, Thomas Jefferson had shown his progressiveness for the time period in which he lived--by choosing to place a library rather than a church at the center of grounds, for example. However, this small, concise sentence reverses any sense of forward thinking that the audience may have had up until this point in the document. For all the discussion at the beginning of the document regarding the University's goal of enriching their students--teaching them to act morally and with fairness in their communities--the founders still refuse to recognize the immorality of their treatment of slaves.

Both science and language are integral parts of societal advancement, and more often than not, these concepts work together as language acts as a medium to share new information and ideas. Furthermore, I feel that by stating the commencement one must take to science from such a young age reflects the nature of true science. Good science will take years of dedication, with even more time to allow for revisions to theories. The RFG seems to support this idea of science as a slow but steady way of understanding the phenomena of the natural universe.

This portion of the document is extremely important because it addresses the purpose of the University, but is also somewhat ironic regarding what was stated earlier in the document. In the first paragraph, it is revealed that the University's location was chosen based on its centrality to the white population in Virginia. Although this statement implies a bias against non-white Virginians, the listed purposes of the University and what it hopes to impart to its students paint a different picture, one in which a student would use his education to behave morally in society. In this light, the purpose of the University can be interpreted in different ways, either as a way to serve the white population so that they may "preserve [the] ideas" of the time Oppositely, students could use the knowledge they gain to "improve [their] morals," and work to bring about change in society by educating others about the ethical way to interact with people of all races.

Claire W.

This entire excerpt of objectives represents a very strong dichotomy between the Jefferson viewpoint on equality (i.e all men are born equal) and the early goals of the University; it is so clearly stated that UVa should teach men to know their rights and freedoms while expanding their intellectual horizons (in addition to being able to defend all these notions) but these exact points are what are explicitly denied to the minority population at this time. This is very profound because it is not as though people in this era did not consider the importance of rights, liberties, and equality- it is the stark inability of these same people to impose those ideas onto the very people who needed them the most (minorities). While many abolitionists and suffragists later on argued for equality and education for all, it is important to note that these ideas did not just gloss over the white elite mindset, rather it was a conscious denial of basic rights that really enforces the true foundation of this university

Muhammad Amjad

This sentence hints at the Honor System that will be formed in order to uphold this object. One of the strongest UVA values is being honest which echoes Jefferson's intention of self-governance. As the University's Honor System continues to strive today, it still reflects the initial desires of the founders that called for "habits of reflection" and "correct action." I believe UVA has been able to execute these values well as the University grows to this day. -Yuki Zheng

While Jefferson is often accredited with being on of the primary figures supporting a separation of church and state, this line brings that into question. This seems to assert that the church and the government have a bond and are on the same side. In many ways, this is true; both religion and public education have similar goals in educating youth so that they can be productive and valued people in the future. The only difference being that these institutions have different definitions for what is "valued". In the Can a text be Ethical engagement class, it is frequently discussed how the Bible is used as evidence for many philosophical arguments. It is clear that the writers of the Rockfish Gap Report do respect the church and its basic beliefs because they freely admit to being in an alliance with the church. However, in spite of this, it must still be asked whether Jefferson and the other writers of this document were for or against the complete separation of church and state.

Ryan Keane

This is consistent with the University today as there is no requirement of physical education or activity for students. However, in a world where people are becoming increasingly unhealthy (especially in white-collar occupations), it is only natural that one reasons that it is necessary for youth to be more educated about how to stay healthy throughout life. Education involves more than only intelligence, it is about being able to apply what you know to do positive things. If we are not teaching people how to take care of themselves, we are doing them a disservice. Jefferson himself was quoted with advising people to give 2 hours to exercising the body each day. However, people often cannot see the future benefits of their actions. Therefore, something such as required physical education is something that encourage fitness and will lead to a continued sense and pride in one's overall health. Ryan Keane

Ideas themselves don't support an argument. People can skew the meanings of ignore the overall context to serve their own purposes. Interpretation is a large factor whenever we learn or teach. It isn't unethical to use knowledge as evidence, but it's wrong to purposefully assume meanings without considering the full history and still continue to publish it.

Wei Guan

I noticed how this idea relates back to an earlier passage about passing down knowledge to succeeding generations; in a way it is like a family tradition. If this idea was practiced, the university would have been a very comfortable learning environment. I haven't felt that kind of connection in my time here. It would be interesting if there really was a father-son relationship between professors and students in UVA's early days.

Wei Guan

As communication has always played a key role in the scientific method, language truly does act as a vehicle to the future. Unfortunately, today the communication of science has its flaws due to the general public's lack of common access to scientific journals. University students presently have access to countless scholarly scientific sources as this document intended, yet the emphasis on the importance of communication of science suggests a more global goal. Thus, the university should do all it can to work with organizations such as the Center for Open Science in order to allow for a stronger bond between language and science in the community within and beyond UVa.

Education is a powerful tool. Teachers can use their authoritative position to shape the beliefs and morals of their students. Many students are eager to learn, so they are easily influenced by what their teachers tell them is fact. Their teachers are the authority in the situation, so therefore they must know how the world works. This can be either positive or negative influence on students depending on how accurate a teacher's knowledge and beliefs are, especially since education "controuls... any innate obliquities in our moral organization." Caroline Peterson

The word "secure" demonstrates a need for status and purpose. This seems interesting in reflecting on the document as a whole, which is essentially a declaration of establishment and is securing the meaning of the university. "Tread with awful reverence" prompts a reflection upon what is considered a good and valuable life in this situation. Do we need to keep this reverence in mind with all decisions that come with the progression of the school? Tana Mardian

I never knew that one of the deciding factors in the location of the University of Virginia was the extent to which the surrounding population was primarily white. This fact alone is an example of racism. At the time, Virginia was a heavily white state, and now I understand the reasoning behind its location. It is interesting to think about the thought process that went behind all the different aspects of creating the University of Virginia.

I found this particular quotation particularly interesting because of the amount of irony and hypocrisy that it is riddled with. It speaks of the importance of education to create "a new man", however we know that this new man is of only a light skin color and most likely a slave-owner, not to mention the exclusion of women. Moreover, in my engagement Making the Invisible Visible, a key focal point is that what is unwritten is often just as important as what's written. Here, in the mentioning of the fact that education is better for the "well-being of mankind", it is implied that solely educating the white male slave owners will be progressive to civilization because of newfound knowledge that will be entrusted with them. As such, in mentioning that education is meant to be passed down to successive generations, the unwritten irony is in the fact that increasingly only a smaller amount of the entire population will be educated because of the ratio to the enslaved people population to the non-enslaved people population. This quotation shows the naive yet justified mindset of the elite class in education administration and society as a whole in the early 19th century America.

• Muhammad Amjad

In my Mortality and Morality engagement class, we often times talk about the role of family in the event that someone does become sick and how their presence can make a huge impact on how a situation is carried out. Family is often time seen as an extra layer of protection over any individual, especially for children. We assume that children are not old enough or mature enough to make major decisions for themselves, so it is ideal to keep them within reach in case of emergency. Therefore, if a school can supply resources that could be beneficial in times of need many parents would view that as a plus. - Kayla Thomas

Education is highly valued for the founders of the University. Their belief that each generation will pass increasingly more amount of knowledge to the next is still evident in today's societies. However, their use of "indefinitely" is highly doubtful as they limit their extent of knowledge by restricting access to the University to only men. Today, knowledge is also evidently lost as humanity reduces the diversity in human society as well as the natural world. In order to fully emerge in an indefinite scale of acquiring knowledge, boundaries cannot be set as the writers of this report did, and acceptance of all forms of resources is necessary. -Yuki Zheng

I think it is interesting that the author describes the type of education the University of Virginia strives to teach. Primary education is the foundation of knowledge that one needs to be able to grow intellectually and learn about the real-world. In society, the level and quality of education one receives is of utmost importance, especially in the United States, as it guides people's actions and shapes their outlook on life.