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VCU College of Engineering receives $1M anonymous gift
An anonymous donor has made a $1 million gift to the Virginia Commonwealth University College of Engineering to provide funds for programming and support for international students, VCU announced Tuesday. Part of the gift will establish a global education and international student support fund (to be administered through VCU’s Global Education Office) and additional funding […]
More Virginia colleges scrap traditional spring break
RICHMOND, Va. — A growing number of Virginia colleges are announcing that spring break will be canceled or modified in an effort to mitigate the spread of COVID-19. Virginia Tech, located in Blacksburg, announced plans Monday. The biggest change is that the university will not have a week-long spring break. It will instead have five […]
Northam calls for VMI racism probe
Before the academic semester begins, new cadets at Virginia Military Institute must endure Hell Week, a punishing 10-day rite of passage that introduces students to the military discipline, drill and physical fitness expectations required of them. For one Black freshman in 2018, it meant a white sophomore telling him he’d “lynch” his body and use […]
ODU Batten College dean appointed
Ben Stuart will be the eighth dean of Old Dominion University‘s Frank Batten College of Engineering and Technology, effective Oct. 25, the university announced Friday. Stuart has served as interim dean since June 2019, during which time the university conducted a national search. “Ben Stuart is a thoughtful leader and distinguished scholar who cares deeply […]
Va. to expand networking program to new regions
During the next two years Virginia will invest $1.7 million to expand the Network2Work workforce development initiative, Gov. Ralph Northam announced Tuesday. The commonwealth will partner with the Virginia Community College System to pilot the Network2Work model in the Shenandoah Valley, Hampton Roads and greater Richmond regions. Network2Work was established by Piedmont Virginia Community Colleg[...]
State’s COVID-19 rate stays steady at 4.8%
Virginia recorded 5,964 new COVID-19 cases and 104 virus-related deaths last week, according to the Virginia Department of Health’s Oct. 5 update. The state’s positivity rate stayed steady at 4.8%, up just 0.1% from last week. The state has 152,557 total cases and 3,276 fatalities as of Oct. 5. Meanwhile, the number of coronavirus cases […]
George Mason names new law school dean
George Mason University announced Thursday it has named Kenneth Randall as the new dean of its Antonin Scalia Law School in Arlington, effective Dec. 1, replacing Henry Butler. Randall previously served as dean of The University of Alabama’s law school for 20 years and as special counsel to UA President Robert Witt. During his time […]
ODU launches School of Cybersecurity
Old Dominion University on Thursday became the first research university in the country to launch a cybersecurity school offering interdisciplinary degree programs for both undergraduate and graduate students. The university is expanding its existing Center for Cybersecurity Education and Research (CCSER) into the ODU School of Cybersecurity. The school will operate under ODU’s Office of [&h[...]
Liberty pays Falwell two years’ base salary in severance deal
Liberty University announced Tuesday that it has paid Jerry Falwell Jr., its embattled and controversial former president and chancellor, two years’ base salary as severance. Falwell resigned on Aug. 25 under a barrage of international media coverage of his alleged role in a sex scandal involving his wife’s admitted affair with a former pool attendant […]
Fall enrollment down nearly 10% at community colleges
Early estimates indicate that fall enrollment at Virginia’s community colleges is down nearly 10% compared to fall 2019, and down by 6.6% at private four-year universities, according to the State Council of Higher Education for Virginia in a study released Tuesday. However, public four-year universities are holding steady, with enrollment down by only 0.2%. The […]
University of Richmond president to step down
University of Richmond President Ronald A. Crutcher announced Wednesday he has asked the board of trustees to begin a search for his successor, with plans to have a new president take office no later than July 1, 2022. Following his term as president, Crutcher and his wife, Betty, will travel to Berlin for a sabbatical […]
Northam announces higher ed refinancing plan
While higher education institutions have needed to make budget cuts due to the pandemic, Gov. Ralph Northam announced Tuesday a higher education refinancing plan that would save Virginia’s public colleges and universities a total of more than $300 million (among 16 schools) during the next two years. Taking advantage of low interest rates, the state […]
