The University of Virginia Women's Center announced the selection of Carol S. Wood, Associate Vice President for Public Affairs at the University of Virginia, as the recipient of the 2011 Elizabeth Zintl Leadership Award, honoring individuals whose professionalism, commitment and creativity have made a direct and significant impact to the University’s “academic enterprise,” as Ms. Zintl herself had done.
Given annually, to a distinguished individual within the University community, the award is supported by a generous gift from David A. Harrison III, of Hopewell, VA, who was a graduate of the College of Arts & Sciences (’39) and the Law School (’41). It is intended to homor the late Elizabeth Zintl, who was exceptionally skilled in communications, and had served as Chief-of-staff to former U.Va. president John W.Casteen III.
Beginning as a copy editor for the Norfolk-based newspaper the Virginian-Pilot, in 1970, Ms. Wood moved up through several editorial positions for the paper's parent company, Landmark Communication – serving as director of Landmark's corporate communications division and as Vice President of the Virginian-Pilot and Ledger-Star. Ms. Wood came to U.Va. in 1995 and has served as director of news services and interim assistant vice president for University relations.
In her present position, Ms. Wood is involved in all aspects of media relations; including audio/visual services, the University’s internet presence, and other interactive media; and in community relations.. Her role as spokesperson for the University entails activities that can expand the ordinary nine-to-five schedule, as events of national and international significance may demand.
Ms. Wood's role in supervising the University’s listener-supported community radio station, 91.1 WTJU-FM, led to a broad engagement with the volunteers, current students, alumni, and listeners. She collaborated actively for several weeks with all concerned, in a respectful, straightforward dialogue with archived online discussions open to public commentary, allowing all interests to be represented and considered, allowing for agenda items to be moved forward by consensus, working toward shared goals expressed in the academic Mission of the University, and the mission of WTJU-FM-- to provide educational, entertaining music and original public affairs programming for the local community, serving not only as a link between the community and U.Va, bringing the resources of the University to its neighbors, but also to link resources of
the community to the University, as it offers opportunities for participation in creating programming for local broadcast and subsequent transmission online. Ms. Wood strongly supported the plan proposed by the volunteers, to continue to address all issues straightforwardly, through an inclusive, transparent community dialogue.
The 2011 Elizabeth Zintl Leadership Award will be formally presented to Ms. Wood in a reception on September 29, from 5 to 7 p.m, in the Albert and Shirley Small Special Collections Library of the Mary and David Harrison Institute for American History, Literature and Culture, located adjacent to Alderman Library.Ms. Wood has also been recognized with an Award from The Algernon Sydney Sullivan Foundation, “created in 1930 to honor young men and women who show remarkable character and integrity, and who demonstrate a commitment to service to others,”and has been inducted into the Raven Society.
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