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Recent Articles from Gary Robertson
Shoring up
Williamsburg, Jamestown and Yorktown are all significant parts of the nation’s foundation, and historic tourism drove the region’s economy during the 20th century. But Colonial Williamsburg hasn’t been enough to keep big crowds coming to the area consistently in the 21st century, even before the pandemic. Visitation dropped from 960,000 in 1999 to 534,000 in […]
After the crisis
During summer 2020, racial inequities took center stage in the United States as protesters took to the streets after the murder of George Floyd, a 46-year-old Black man, by a Minneapolis police officer was captured on video and widely disseminated via social media and news outlets. Corporate America also responded, primarily through public statements vowing […]
Class conflicts
Makena Massarella, a 20-year-old junior at James Madison University in Harrisonburg, is well on her way to becoming part of the solution to one of the most vexing problems facing Virginia and the nation: the shortage of teachers. She wants to be an elementary school teacher, the most in-demand position out of 10 critical shortages […]
Upward mobility
Last year, when Old Dominion University was searching for its new president, the executive search firm contracted by the university also provided a bit of business intelligence about how the university of 24,000 students in Norfolk was viewed nationally. “Old Dominion University was seen as a university on the rise,” says ODU‘s rector, Bruce Bradley, […]
Stairway to heaven
Nationally, CEO pay in 2021 reached historic highs for the second year in a row, and Virginia was no exception to this trend. The CEOs of Virginia’s largest publicly traded companies were rewarded handsomely last year, with CEO compensation rising 4.9% year-over-year to an average $8.467 million compensation package, compared with $8.068 million in 2020. […]
Work it out
The Virginia Community College System is experiencing what one top official describes as a “tectonic shift.” Although transfer programs to four-year colleges still account for the largest enrollment demand in community colleges, fewer students are interested in academic programs that can provide transfer credits to a four-year institution, a traditional mission of community colleges. Instead, [...]
A new outlook
When Ajay Vinzé takes over as dean of George Mason University‘s School of Business on July 1, he will carry with him a lifetime of experience in higher education. He also comes with a plan to help streamline how education is delivered and to reduce the cost of a college degree — a contentious topic […]
Home improvement
Affordable housing isn’t the first thing that comes to mind when you think of the University of Virginia. But it’s top of mind for U.Va. officials who have pledged to support the development of 1,000 to 1,500 affordable housing units in Charlottesville and Albemarle County over the next decade. To jump-start the effort, U.Va. is […]
The Royals of Regent
Although Lynchburg’s Liberty University has grabbed plenty of headlines in recent years, Virginia Beach-based Regent University can more than hold its own as a politically influential private Christian institution. Founded and still run by the 92-year-old televangelist and culture warrior M.G. “Pat” Robertson, Regent now has 11,000 students, 80% of whom are enrolled online. The […[...]
On the line
“VMI is at a crossroads. As the world around VMI changes, the Institute must evolve or risk becoming irrelevant.” — One Corps – One VMI: A Unifying Action Plan From a distance, Virginia Military Institute seems timeless, unchanging. The rhythmic marching of the long lines of cadets, the stark outline of the barracks against the […]
