In modern education, students are essentially encouraged to specialize within a particular field the moment they declare their major. This table shows how the Jeffersonian vision of education is incredibly well-rounded and encompasses every field present during the early 19th century. However, the College of Arts and Sciences at UVA still has general education requirements, and students are highly encouraged to explore different fields with a variety of classes in their first and second years. The New College Curriculum takes this initiative to an entirely new level, with classes in different areas that captivate the modern intellectual world, including poverty, extinction, and implications of art. These two curriculums serve as a testament to the original Jeffersonian vision of education, and allows current University of Virginia students to graduate with an education so broad and varied that graduates are far more well equipped for life beyond college.

This description of the general design of the Lawn exhibits Jefferson's idealized concept of how a university should be properly arranged; his firm convictions on the morals of education and his idea of professors and students living and learning together really set the University of Virginia apart from other universities of the time. Even in the present, I for one cannot name a single university that features something similar to the Lawn and rotunda, and the amount of thought regarding educational morals that went into their design. The University of Virginia stands out from its academic peers across the country in the foundations of its creation, and the continuation of the community of trust that seeks to live up to these values that Jefferson envisioned two hundred years ago.

It is interesting to see that this exhibits the very beginning ideas of the lawn and central grounds. Already, we see Thomas Jefferson and others discussing "pavilions," which make up most of the structure of the lawn today. They note that there is a suitable place nearby for an observatory; this could be Observatory Hill for all we know!

This suggests that during this period of time, an education at a University could begin at a much younger age. "Tender age" sounds like an age less than adulthood (or even late teen years); perhaps between the ages of twelve and fifteen. This could offer some insight into the early 19th century concept of higher education, being offered to a greater age range (and to fewer people).