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In 2021, Christopher Brown had the idea to convert Poplar Hall, the oldest commercial building in Farmville, into a café where community members and students could hang out, study, and get some quality coffee. That idea is now named Poplar Sips — a specialty coffee shop located at 308 North Main Street.
“KPop Demon Hunters” has quickly become one of 2025’s biggest sensations. Produced by Sony Pictures Animation and released on Netflix on June 20, the film has received both commercial success and critical acclaim. Its popularity has raised the bar for the quality of animated films and, to an extent, musicals as well. The animation style is uniquely vibrant, blending 2D and 3D elements to create a visually gorgeous movie.
On June 2, 2025, Longwood University’s Office of Development launched Ellie, a Virtual Engagement Officer (VEO) powered by AI. The VEO contacts donors and alumni through text messages and email, sends messages about campus events, asks about the recipient’s favorite Longwood memories, wishes them a ‘Happy Birthday’ and thanks donors for their gifts.
On September 12, 2025, the Longwood University Board of Visitors held their September meeting at the Baliles Center in Westmoreland County, Virginia. The Board, which typically meets on campus, discussed the university’s enrollment and retention, financial health, athletics and other matters.
On Tuesday, August 26, ABC 8 News first reported Kilmar Abrego Garcia — whose wrongful deportation to El Salvador led to a national debate over the Trump Administration’s immigration policy — is being held at the Farmville Detention Center. In response, local activists have planned a vigil for 4 p.m. Sunday, August 31 at pHunkadelic, a local gathering space near the facility.
In the very early 1900s, the State Female Normal School was a small collection of brick buildings on High Street. Behind those buildings, in the southern direction, lived a vibrant predominantly Black community. Unlike today’s campus “triangle,” streets ran through the middle of Ely Street (later renamed Griffin Boulevard) and South Main Street, lined with houses, businesses, restaurants, houses of worship and other gathering places.
Waterworks Players’ production of “Red” was captivating, jarring and contemplative. The two actors, Jordan Whiley (Mark Rothko) and Elijah Logue (Ken), put on an incredible performance full of emotion and superb storytelling. The acting skills of Whiley and Logue, the direction and choices of Dr. Sarah Varela and the set design were the key elements that made the production a major success.
(Editor's note: The opinions expressed in this column are solely those of the author.)
The Longwood Lancers softball team saved some of their best regular season conference play for the end, rattling off six wins in their final seven Big South games to earn the second seed going into this week’s tournament. They will face USC Upstate Thursday, May 8 at 12 p.m., a team they swept on the road less than two weeks ago.
Officials at Longwood University have announced the launch of BookBundle, a program which changes the process of buying textbooks for Longwood undergraduate students. Vice President for Student Affairs Cam Patterson introduced the program in an email on March 31 and emphasized its goal to “make accessing textbooks and other required course materials more convenient and affordable.”
During the summer of 2024, Longwood University signed the fifth-ever head coach of Longwood Baseball, Ray Noe. Noe came from Virginia Military Institute (VMI), where he rose from assistant to lead assistant and recruiting coordinator before taking the role at Longwood.
The Longwood men’s and women’s tennis teams finished their seasons with seven regular season wins each. The men’s team won a number of close victories, including a 4-3 win over Presbyterian and a sudden death victory of the same score over the University of Richmond. The women’s team did not win a Big South match this season and missed the conference tournament; their statement win was their 4-3 senior day win over George Washington.
On April 1st, Longwood Men’s Basketball forward Elijah Tucker elected to enter the transfer portal. However, two weeks later, on April 17, Longwood announced Tucker would return for his final year of eligibility.
Associate Professor of German Dr. Sarah Varela, or “Dr. V” to her students, will make her directorial debut in late April at Waterworks Players, Farmville’s community theater.
With the new “Snow White” movie coming to theaters, there has been a lot of controversy surrounding the film and the cast, including political anger and personal feuds between the main stars, Rachel Zegler (Snow White) and Gal Gadot (the Evil Queen). The whirling controversies have severely diminished the film’s Box Office performance, making $182 million against a budget of (at least) $240 million — a majorly disappointing result for one of Disney’s most expensive productions of all time.
Ronnie Thomas, an assistant coach on Griff Aldrich’s staff, has been named as the next head coach of Longwood men’s basketball. The architect of two NCAA tournament appearances and three consecutive 20-win seasons in seven years with Longwood, Aldrich accepted the associate head coach position at the University of Virginia and reunited with friend and former Hampden-Sydney College teammate Ryan Odom.
Farmville is preparing for change with the opening of SEED, the innovation hub located in Longwood Landings, on May 3, 2025. With the help of the Small Business Development Center (SBDC), SEED aims to provide a space where community members and students can bring an idea for a product and turn it into a prototype that can be pitched to banks, investors or angel funders.
The Longwood Lancers women’s basketball team fell short of winning the Big South tournament and securing a bid to the NCAA tournament. However, they still participated in the Women's National Invitational Tournament, their first time in the postseason since their only NCAA tournament appearance in 2022. Picked seventh out of nine teams in the Big South preseason poll, the Lancers won 22 games this season, which is the second time in their Division I history they have reached the 20-win mark.Defense was the identity of this team. Graduate Student guard Kiki McIntyre led the entire country in total steals and did so for most of the season. She was named Big South defensive player of the year and a member of the Big South all-conference second team. Sophomore guard Amor Harris was also named to the second team all-conference. She led the Lancers in scoring this season, averaging 11 points per game following the 2023-24 season, where she did not see much action.Head Coach Erika Lang-Montgomery, in her third season with the program, turned nine wins from last season into 22. She was named Big South Coach of the Year behind her dominant defense. She implemented a full-court pressing style that flattened teams in the Big South and in the non-conference slate. The Lancers forced 24 turnovers per game, a figure that clearly left them full of confidence when they were set to play USC Upstate in the quarterfinals of the Big South Tournament.Longwood’s defense completely suffocated USC Upstate in the Big South quarterfinals, surrendering only 37 points and forcing 32 turnovers. “We’ve been pretty consistent with [our defense] all year,” said Lang-Montgomery. “This is the time of the year when we need it to be at its best”The Lancers faced in-state rival Radford in the semifinals and weathered the Highlanders’ three point barrage and won 73-65. Longwood was championship bound for a chance to play in the NCAA tournament. The Lancers would be pitted against one-seeded High Point.Though the Lancers had the lead going into the fourth quarter in the championship game, the Panthers roared back and stole the game as Longwood only scored six fourth-quarter points. High Point won the game 59-53. “I am still incredibly proud of the young women I get to coach every day,” Lang-Montgomery said. “I am hopeful that maybe there is a chance we can continue to play in the postseason.”Her wish became reality, as Longwood accepted an invitation from the Women’s National Invitation Tournament (WNIT). The Lancers drew Duquesne University in round one. The Lancers played well in Pittsburgh, maintaining the lead throughout most of the game. However, Longwood saw their lead dwindle as the clock kept ticking. Duquesne hit a buzzer-beater to win 70-68, breaking Longwood hearts and ending their record-setting season.With most of the team returning for next season, the future looks bright for the resurging Lancers. “I have a bunch of young women that like to compete… I love their competitive spirit,” Lang-Montgomery said. “I love who they are as people. These are high-quality women I get to spend time with every day.”
On Feb. 13, Longwood Chief of Police and Assistant Vice President for Public Safety Angela Comer held a “Let’s Talk About It: Know Your Rights” session in response to student concerns about possible Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) activity on college campuses.
Editor’s Note: Contains spoilers for “Appropriate,” which includes potentially disturbing content.Tucked at the far west end of Farmville – past main campus, Lancer Park and Centra – sits Waterworks Players, Farmville’s community theatre. From Feb. 15 through Feb. 23, Waterworks put on their production of “Appropriate,” the Tony Award-winning play written by Branden Jacobs-Jenkins.
