JMU receives $2.5M gift for new library wing
James Madison University has received a $2.5 million gift for the new wing of its Carrier Library. Alexandria residents Stan and Rosemary Jones provided the donation, which the Harrisonburg public university announced in late November. A 1954 physics and math alumnus of what was then Madison College, Stan worked for McLean-based[...]
George Mason’s Fuse tech hub opens to public
On the third floor of George Mason University’s new state-of-the-art Fuse tech hub, robots jumped, begged, rolled over and offered a mechanical paw to shake Friday while a small drone hovered above. The endearing welcome by George Mason’s RobotiXX Lab robots offered a brief glimpse into the future for the group of academ[...]
U.Va. Darden School dean reappointed to third term
Scott C. Beardsley, dean of the University of Virginia’s Darden School of Business, has been reappointed to his third term as dean, which starts Aug. 1, 2025, and extends through August 2029, U.Va. announced Wednesday. Named dean in 2015, Beardsley is now the university’s longest serving current dean and has raised m[...]
Engineering without boundaries
The surging demand for energy. The country’s aging, overwhelmed electrical grid. Threats of cyberattacks. The explosion of interest in — and confusion about — artificial intelligence. These real-life problems don’t know boundaries. Neither should the search for solutions, says Azim Eskandarian, dean of Virginia Commonwea[...]
U.Va. Wise receives largest ever donation
The University of Virginia’s College at Wise has received its largest ever donation, $11.2 million, from The Bill Gatton Foundation, the Wise County college announced Monday. The late Carol Martin “Bill” Gatton, a successful businessman who owned the Gatton Automotive Group with dealerships in Kentucky and Tenn[...]
Mind the gap
Margaret Abrams was studying engineering at Liberty University when she came across an online job advertisement from Newport News-based Huntington Ingalls Industries. HII, Virginia’s largest industrial employer, was offering a $2,500 signing bonus to job candidates who successfully completed a 16-week computer numerical contro[...]
Making do
A flat tire can mean different things to different people. Maybe it’s a postponed appointment and a call to AAA. Or maybe you have to get a ride to work from your spouse. But for some folks, a flat tire can start a snowball effect. “For so many, that flat tire, that’s the end, right? It […]
U.Va. dedicates Ramon W. Breeden Jr. Commerce Grounds
The University of Virginia on Friday dedicated the Ramon W. Breeden Jr. Commerce Grounds plaza and officially named “Breeden Way,” located adjacent to the McIntire School of Commerce. The honor is in recognition of Breeden’s legacy as founder and chair of Virginia Beach-based real estate company The Breeden Co., as well as[...]
Three Va. universities have ‘some viability risks,’ report says
State researchers found Radford University, Virginia State University and the University of Mary Washington had “some viability risks,” according to a report released Monday, but none are in immediate danger of closing. The good news from the report conducted by the Joint Legislative Audit and Review Commission, which con[...]
VCU eyes purchasing Altria’s Richmond research facility
Officials with Virginia Commonwealth University are discussing with the Altria Group the possibility of buying its 450,000-square-foot research building in downtown Richmond, the two parties acknowledged separately this week. The Altria Center for Research and Technology, which opened in 2007, sits on more than four acres at 6[...]
SCHEV approves ODU/NSU Joint School of Public Health
The State Council of Higher Education for Virginia (SCHEV) has approved the Joint School of Public Health (JSPH), offered by Old Dominion University and Norfolk State University, the schools announced on Thursday. Council members approved the school at a Sept. 17 meeting, according to a SHEV spokesperson. “We have a real opportunity to create and […]
Va. universities take ‘heavy hand’ with protest policies, advocate says
RICHMOND, Va. — Students, lawmakers and free-speech activists question if updated university policies that regulate student demonstrations violate First Amendment rights. After campus protests that led to some clashes with police, institutions such as Virginia Commonwealth University, James Madison University, University o[...]