UVA Darden Executive Education & Lifelong Learning

09/18/2026

We are celebrating the successful conclusion of another cohort for our Strategic Negotiation program!

Over five immersive days, this outstanding cohort engaged in live, face-to-face negotiations, sharpening their ability to create value for all parties, navigate both cooperative and competitive dynamics, and secure outcomes that leave everyone at the table satisfied.

We're also excited to award our Certificate in Leadership & Management to Derek Fitzgerald, who completed his four-program journey this week!

Congratulations to this talented group of leaders! Thank you for your openness, your energy in the classroom and your commitment to becoming better negotiators. Wishing you all continued success!

09/18/2026

Exciting news from UVA Darden School of Business! A well-deserved recognition and testament to the impact of the Darden experience.

UVA Darden has been named the No. 5 business school in the U.S. by Bloomberg Businessweek!

The recognition includes a No. 1 ranking among public business schools, as well as top 10 finishes for networking (No. 8) and compensation (No. 10). The School also climbed 10 places in the learning category, highlighting the strength of Darden’s classroom and student experiences.

Read more: https://utm.io/usUQA

09/17/2026

We're excited to share that we've entered into a new academic collaboration with the All India Management Association (AIMA), one of the country's leading bodies for management education and leadership development. This partnership opens up joint research, shared events, and deeper engagement across AIMA's network of nearly 40,000 members, and we couldn't be happier to be building it together.

"This partnership is ultimately about creating learning that leaders can put to work. By bringing Darden’s highly interactive approach together with AIMA’s deep connections across India’s management community, we can help leaders strengthen their judgment, respond to disruption and create meaningful impact," says Darden's vice dean and senior associate dean, Melissa Thomas-Hunt.

This collaboration includes a new executive education program on Building Future-Ready PSUs, led by Professor Rory McDonald, empowers senior public sector leaders to drive transformation, unlock innovation and deliver citizen-centric outcomes.

Read the full press release: https://businessnewsthisweek.com/business/aima-and-uva-darden-school-of-business-enter-into-academic-collaboration/

09/17/2026

Every great program experience has someone behind the scenes making sure nothing falls through the cracks. Our senior program manager, Olivia Pyanoe, is one of those people!

In our latest Meet the Team spotlight, she talks about what sets the Darden experience apart, the relationships she's built along the way and what lifelong learning means to her.

"I often tell participants at the start of a program that our goal is to free them up to focus entirely on learning. We handle the logistics, so they always know where they need to be and what's happening, allowing them to fully immerse themselves in the experience. That level of service and genuine attention to each participant is really what defines the Darden experience."

Read her story: https://bit.ly/4yH8QGA

09/16/2026

Marty Smith shares how the structure of Managing Individual and Organizational Change elevated his learning experience at Darden.

Our next cohort runs October 5-8 in Charlottesville, and there's still a few spots left to join. The pace of change in business is only accelerating, and waiting another year means waiting another year to build the strategies that help you manage it and drive real growth.

Don't get left behind. Save your seat: https://www.darden.virginia.edu/executive-education/managing-individual-organizational-change

09/15/2026

Darden Dean Yael Grushka-Cockayne was recently featured in Bloomberg Businessweek sharing her perspective on what it means to lead a business school in the AI era.

Yael believes that business leaders must understand AI’s capabilities and risks and recognize that AI makes fostering distinctly human capabilities even more important.

Read the full interview: https://bloom.bg/4xLxwNz

09/14/2026

You don’t need to know exactly what’s next to start thinking intentionally about it. Maybe you’re curious about a new venture. Board or advisory work. Teaching or mentoring. A different kind of leadership role. More time for the people and pursuits that matter to you.

Or maybe you’re not sure yet. That’s the point of our Next Chapter Program.

This new UVA Darden experience creates the space, structure and community to explore what you want the next 5–10 years to look like, learning alongside accomplished peers who are asking their own versions of the same question.

Through an exceptional peer cohort, individual coaching, flexible Discovery Tracks and experiences with faculty and thought leaders from across UVA, you can explore different possibilities without arriving with a predetermined destination.

You don’t need a plan to begin. Just a willingness to explore what’s possible.

Explore Next Chapter → https://www.darden.virginia.edu/executive-education/next-chapter

09/11/2026

On this anniversary, we pause to remember and honor those we lost on September 11, 2001 and reflect on the resilience our country showed in the months and years that followed.

We often teach about how leadership is defined by how people show up in the hardest moments. September 11th offered striking examples of that truth: leaders who made split-second decisions under unimaginable pressure, and organizations and communities that came together across every kind of divide to rebuild. Those lessons in courage and steady leadership under crisis remain as relevant to today's leaders as they were 25 years ago.

As we mark this milestone, we hold space for those who lost loved ones and extend our gratitude to the service members, first responders, and civic leaders who continue to carry forward the spirit of that response. We will never forget.

09/10/2026

"The program confirmed for me that AI is a powerful tool, but it requires human involvement to achieve the best possible results. AI might be able to provide the 80% solution, but human discernment and guidance is a critical input."

Adam Callahan shares how our AI-Powered Data Analytics program provided a timely and immersive introduction to AI and how to leverage powerful AI tools to gain an edge in everyday tasks and complex problem-solving: https://www.darden.virginia.edu/executive-education/stories/ai-powered-data-analytics-supercharges-adam-callahans-career-and-learning-journey-at-darden

Our next cohort of AI-Powered Data Analytics will run in Charlottesville this fall from November 10th-13th.

09/09/2026

🍂 Headed to Charlottesville for one of our programs this fall? Here's 5 activities to add to your bucket list while you're in town!