Provost Peggy Agouris sent the following message to the campus community on March 28, 2024. – Ed.

Dear colleagues,

I write to share the news that Stewart H. Gamage ’72, former William & Mary Vice President for Public Affairs, passed away on March 19 in Richmond, Virginia. For almost 15 years, Ms. Gamage led William & Mary’s federal and state government relations, public affairs, and economic development efforts.

Michael Fox, Senior Assistant to the President and Secretary to the Board of Visitors said, “For those of us who worked for her and with her, valuable lessons were taught and learned. She left a lasting impact as a champion for William & Mary and higher education in Virginia, especially with capital investments made by the state and through consistent and effective messaging.”   

Ms. Gamage devoted her life to empowering others through public and non-profit service. In addition to her work at William & Mary, Ms. Gamage founded S. Hamilton Consulting, which focused on women’s leadership, social justice and racial reconciliation; Light up Ukraine, which raised money to provide solar power and ambulances to the citizens of Ukraine; Phoenix Project, an initiative to prepare leaders and build partnerships between higher education and distressed communities. She was a founding board member of the Pamela Harriman Foreign Service Fellowships. Following her service to alma mater in 2008, Ms. Gamage worked for 11 years as Program Director of Morven at the University of Virginia, which created a Women’s Global Leadership Forum and the Presidential Precinct, where she served on the board and supported initiatives focused on civic engagement, human rights, economic opportunity, and cultural heritage.

Ms. Gamage graduated summa cum laude from William & Mary in 1972 with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Fine Arts and earned her MPA from the Washington Public Affairs Center at the University of Southern California in 1979. She served as Vice Rector of the W&M Board of Visitors and was elected to the Board of the Society of the Alumni. While at W&M, she was named by President Clinton as a member of the Commission on Presidential Scholars.

Throughout her life, William & Mary remained firmly in her heart, and the family requests that donations in Stewart’s honor are directed to fellowship programs that have been created at William & Mary to advance global diplomacy and public service in Virginia (contribute online at Impact.wm.edu/Gamage; any checks can be made out to the William & Mary Foundation with “Stewart Gamage Memorial Fund” in the memo section and sent to P.O. Box 1693, Williamsburg, VA 23187). Funeral services will be held at Christ Church in Alexandria, Virginia, on Friday, April 5 at 11 AM. Live streaming of the service will be available via ccalex.online.church.

Best,

Peggy