‘From K to grey’ – Bank of America donates $100K to VCU for tech talent pipeline
Continuing a yearslong partnership with Virginia Commonwealth University, Bank of America has awarded a $100,000 grant to the school’s College of Engineering Foundation to focus on establishing data science talent pipelines. The idea behind the grant is to develop interest in computer science and other STEM programs for “K to grey,” says VCU College of […]
VCU raises $841.6M in record fundraising campaign
Virginia Commonwealth University announced Thursday it raised more than $841.6 million through its Make It Real Campaign — exceeding its goal of $750 million and marking the university’s largest campaign to date. The campaign launched publicly in September 2016 after a silent period that began in 2012. It closed this June, a year after it […]
Richmond braces for election impact
RICHMOND, Va. — Organizations and residents in Richmond are bracing for potential activity related to the U.S. presidential election results. Richmond city officials said they will work with local and state partners to ensure public safety during and after the election. “We encourage all residents to peacefully participate in our democracy and observe public health […]
Va. allocates $116M CARES funding for higher ed
As public universities and medical centers have depleted previously allocated federal dollars, Gov. Ralph Northam is directing more than $116 million in federal CARES Act funding to higher education institutions in Virginia, the governor announced Tuesday. Funding will go to public universities and medical centers in support of telework, distance learning, personal protective equipment, sanitizati[...]
VCU received record $335M in research funding for 2020
Virginia Commonwealth University received a record $335 million in sponsored funding for research during fiscal year 2020 — an 8% increase from 2019, the university announced Wednesday. “VCU‘s ongoing commitment to its faculty, interdisciplinary research and investment in research infrastructure have translated into these record levels — which have grown by a third — over […]
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 […]
VCU study: COVID-19 accounted for 67% of March-Aug. U.S. deaths
For every two deaths attributed to COVID-19 in the U.S., a third American dies as a result of the pandemic, according to a study led by Virginia Commonwealth University researchers published in the Journal of the American Medical Association. The study shows that deaths between March 1 and Aug. 1 increased by 20% when compared […]
Education
MAKOLA M. ABDULLAH PRESIDENT, VIRGINIA STATE UNIVERSITY, PETERSBURG One of the state’s two land-grant universities, Virginia State was originally chartered in 1882 as the Virginia Normal and Collegiate Institute. From an initial class of 126, the Petersburg campus now has 4,385 undergraduate and graduate students. Since arriving in 2016 from his role as provost and […]
COVID-19 cluster spurs quick conversion of VCU Honors College into isolation unit
RICHMOND, Va. — Virginia Commonwealth University will convert three floors of a building that houses classrooms and workspaces into an isolation space for students who test positive for COVID-19, according to a university spokesperson. The number of positive cases on campus has more than tripled since the university began reporting its cases online Aug. 20. […]
More college students head into quarantine as COVID-19 cases rise
RICHMOND — As more universities open, they’re collecting and releasing COVID-19 data and grappling with contingency plans for those who contract the disease. As of Thursday evening, universities across Virginia were reporting that more than 550 students, staff and faculty members have tested positive for COVID-19 since schools reopened two weeks ago, according to the […]
Virginia colleges reopen with COVID-19 data available
RICHMOND — Virginia college students returning to campus amid the COVID-19 pandemic have been equipped with masks, hand sanitizer and disinfectant wipes. Now, many also have coronavirus testing data available at their fingertips. Some Virginia universities have unveiled COVID-19 dashboards to track infections as students return to campus. Virginia Commonwealth University in Richmond released[...]