Supporting the UVA Parents Fund Committee

John Cooper, a founding partner at Cooper Hurley Injury Lawyers and a 1988 graduate of the University of Virginia’s School of Law, is a regular supporter of the UVA Parents Fund Committee.

The UVA Parents Fund was set up in 1980 as the Parents Program of the University of Virginia Fund and later renamed.

It includes both alumni and non-alumni parents and provides support to students when they are away from home by funding important safety initiatives and other programs.

John knows first-hand some of the challenges students face when they are away from home for the first time. John and Monica’s son Matthew is a 4^th year undergraduate at UVA. He has been accepted to law school at Charlottesville in the fall of 2018. John’s daughter, Camille, is studying engineering at UVA.

The parents on the committee share an interest in maintaining both the academic side and the extracurricular programs offered to their sons and daughters at UVA.

The volunteer group receives and coordinates donations from families across the country who are committed to sustaining UVA’s undergraduate experience. It coordinates fundraising activities and grants and considers ideas that makes this large university feel more personal for students.

Outlining the Work of the UVA Parents Fund Committee

The UVA Parents Fund Committee has provided support for more than 1,500 student-led groups, organizations and other programs that benefit students via Parent Fund grants.

Some programs that were recently supported include:

• The University Programs Council’s Late Night Breakfast Series;
• The Fourth Year Trustees’ Lighting of the Lawn;
• The Global Student Council;
• The Sustained Dialogue Initiative;
• The PRIDE Magazine and the Human Rights Film Festival;
• Community service programs such as Madison House, Pancakes for Parkinson’s and, Alternative Spring Break.
• Support for sports activities including Club Lacrosse, Men’s Ultimate Club Frisbee, Women’s Club Soccer and Quidditch at UVA. These non-varsity sports rely on private funding to compete. Matthew has been part of the Quidditch team.

Grants have ranged from $125 to $150,000. The full list of Parents Fund grant recipients is on the website.

Funding is given to a wide variety of groups that promote student safety, career preparation, student health, leadership, the arts, and religious and multicultural events, as well as club sports.  Students are encouraged to innovate and compete in activities like the Engineering Student Council’s Faculty-Student Interaction Initiative.

As well as these fun activities, the UVA Parents Fund Committee funds a wide range of important student safety activities on the campus.

A Safety Task Force was created in October 2006. It brings together staff at the university with police, parents, and students who meet regularly to discuss how student safety can be promoted. Money from this important task force has been used to:

• Support the Siren/Public Address System across the university grounds
• Work with the Student Council to set up a text message system
• Provide emergency flat screens in libraries on the campus and the Office of Admission.
• Finance a GPS system for university buses.

Cooper Hurley Injury Lawyers is happy to support the UVA Parents Fund Committee because it plays a great role in making life better for students in Charlottesville. Across Virginia, similar organizations made up of volunteers who put in long hours are working behind the scenes to help keep campuses safe. We hope you can support this fund.

Cooper Hurley Injury Lawyers supports many great causes in Hampton Roads and elsewhere in Virginia. Contact us at (757) 333-3333.