Education 2023: MICHAEL RAO
In his 14th year at VCU, Rao has had a year of ups and downs. VCU opened its $125 million STEM building in April, and in May it announced an $18 million donation from Washington, D.C.-based real estate analytics company CoStar Group to build an academic building for arts and innovation. However, VCU Health made […]
Money machine
In 2009, Donald Hart found himself in an enviable position. Leading up to his graduation from Ocean Lakes High School in Virginia Beach, Hart had been accepted to a slew of the state’s public, four-year universities: Virginia Tech, the University of Virginia, Old Dominion University, George Mason University and James Madison University. Attracted by the […]
VCU Health paid $72.9M to back out of development
VCU Health paid nearly $73 million to back out of a $325 million development deal earlier this year, according to Dr. Marlon Levy, CEO of the health system and Virginia Commonwealth University‘s interim senior vice president for health sciences. The project, known as the Clay Street Project, included plans for a medical office tower and […]
VCU to open $125M STEM building next week
Virginia Commonwealth University will open its $125 million College of Humanities and Sciences’ 168,000-square-foot STEM building during a ribbon cutting scheduled next week. The six-floor building, located at 817 W. Franklin St. in Richmond, will expand lab, classroom and office space for the college, which is home to 17 departments, two schools and three programs. […]
Paying it forward
In the last year, Virginia philanthropists continued making generous donations toward health care research, while others maintained their longstanding support of art museums. Leading the pack were two nine-figure donations for medical research. In February 2022, Dr. Todd Stravitz, who built his expertise researching and treating liver disease, donated $104 million to Virginia Commonwealth Universi[...]
VCU names medical school dean
Dr. Arturo P. Saavedra will be the next dean of the Virginia Commonwealth University School of Medicine and executive vice president for medical affairs at VCU Health, the university announced Monday. His appointment is effective April 15. Saavedra is currently chair of the University of Virginia‘s dermatology department and interim CEO of the U.Va. Physicians […]
On your mark
When Virginia Commonwealth University closed its buildings in spring 2020, then-student Julien Reininger wasn’t deterred from his entrepreneurial pursuits. In the kitchen of his parents’ Springfield home, Reininger ran a dehydrator for eight hours at a time, creating vegan jerky from canned jackfruit and developing different marinades. “I’m sure when I started doing it, they [&[...]
VCU Health Community Memorial Hospital names next president
Virginia Commonwealth University Health Community Memorial Hospital in Mecklenburg County announced Thursday that Sheldon Barr will be its next president, effective Dec. 11. Barr will be the first woman to lead the South Hill hospital in its 68-year history. “I am excited to deliver on VCU Health’s mission to preserve and restore health for all […]
Return on investment
Christina Fleming embarked upon a career in marketing with the goal of getting an executive MBA degree, but other commitments kept getting in the way. She got married, had two children and moved up the corporate ladder for 26 years, rising to chief marketing officer at Blackboard Inc., a global education technology company that was […]
A step up the ladder
Internships often help college students learn what they want to do as a profession by expanding their horizons, providing on-the-job experience or helping them change paths to follow a new passion. For instance, an internship helped Virginia Commonwealth University student Oscar Kemp discover that his interest in domestic social work applied just as well to […]
Virginia Tech appoints COO from W&M
Virginia Tech announced Wednesday it has named Amy Stoakley Sebring, currently chief operating officer at William & Mary, as its executive vice president and COO, effective Nov. 1. “I am very pleased to welcome Amy to the university community and our leadership team,” Virginia Tech President Tim Sands said in a statement. “She brings a […]
Massey Center, VCU Health hire cancer exec
Virginia Commonwealth University Massey Cancer Center and VCU Health announced Tuesday that Dr. Paula M. Fracasso, formerly of the University of Virginia, is now the cancer center’s deputy director and senior vice president of the health system’s cancer service line. An oncologist, former pharmaceutical executive and medical school professor, Fracasso joined VCU and the Massey [&hellip[...]





















