Yorktown consulting firm sues SCHEV over VMI probe contract
A Yorktown-based consultancy is suing the State Council of Higher Education for Virginia and the firm conducting an investigation into Virginia Military Institute’s racial attitudes and practices, a contract the plaintiff unsuccessfully bid on last year. In a civil suit filed Feb. 11 in Richmond Circuit Court, the Center f[...]
Averett University hires VP for philanthropy
Averett University announced Wednesday it has hired Melissa Wohlstein as vice president for philanthropy, effective Tuesday. Wohlstein has nearly 20 years of experience in higher education settings. She most recently served as the associate vice president of development at Hollins University. “With her existing connections to [...]
Toronto acquisition firm buys Richmond software company
Volaris Group, a Toronto-based buyer and operator of vertical market software companies, announced last week it has acquired Richmond-based educational software company SoftChalk LLC. Financial terms of the transaction were not disclosed. Using the SoftChalk platform, instructors can develop custom course materials and interactive content, including quizzes and annotated text. “The team at Volaris shares […][...]
SCHEV releases updated goals for higher ed in Va.
The State Council of Higher Education (SCHEV) on Tuesday released an updated statewide strategic plan, which focuses on making higher education more “equitable, affordable and transformative.” The Pathways to Opportunity: The Virginia Plan for Higher Education (The Plan) is reviewed every six years. “The events of 2020[...]
Virginia Tech Innovation Campus director named to National Academy of Engineering
Virginia Tech announced Monday that Lance R. Collins, vice president and executive director of the university’s Innovation Campus, was elected to the National Academy of Engineering for 2021. The former Joseph Silbert Dean of Engineering at Cornell University was named as head of Tech’s Innovation Campus in February 2020. He[...]
Virginia Tech professor named as engineering fellow
Virginia Tech announced Monday that biomedical engineering and mechanics professor Raffaella De Vita has been elected to the American Institute for Medical and Biological Engineering (AIMBE) College of Fellows. The institute’s membership includes more than 2,000 fellows who are recognized leaders in the medical and biologi[...]
Radford’s Brian Hemphill named new ODU president
Radford University President Brian Hemphill has been hired as Old Dominion University’s ninth president, ODU announced Friday. He will succeed John Broderick, the Norfolk university’s president of 13 years, who is retiring this year. Hemphill, who has led Radford since 2016, will join ODU this summer, according to a [...]
Stride selects 47 recipients for new scholarship program
Herndon-based online education provider Stride Inc. (formerly K12 Inc.) announced last week it has selected 47 recipients for the first round of its $10 million investment to provide education options for underserved Black students. The funding was disbursed through Stride’s We Stand Together Scholarships program, which was first announced in September 2020. The first cohort […]
Texas education, training content developer will relocate HQ to Richmond
Education and training content developer Vytal Studios will invest $6.8 million to move its corporate headquarters from Austin, Texas, to Richmond, creating 155 jobs, Gov. Ralph Northam announced Tuesday. The company will renovate the facility at 1802 Semmes Ave. to include studio space for filming content and office space for development and post-production functions. “With […]
ODU professors receive nearly $1M for cybersecurity research projects
Five Old Dominion University professors have been awarded nearly $1 million in Coastal Virginia Center for Cyber Innovation (COVA CCI) funding for several cybersecurity research projects, the university announced Monday. Hongyi Wu, Chunsheng Xin, Sachin Shetty, Rafael Diaz and Kevin Moberly are the principal investigators working on the six projects. COVA CCI is led by […]
Dominion Energy makes $1M donation to Virginia 4-H
Dominion Energy Inc. has donated $1 million to Virginia 4-H, a nonprofit educational program for youth hosted by Virginia Tech, the university announced Thursday. The donation marks the largest cash gift in the history of the state’s largest youth organization. Virginia 4-H educational centers serve more than 13,000 campers ea[...]
New drug cocktail appears to block COVID among people exposed to virus
The University of Virginia Health System is testing an antibody cocktail that so far has blocked 100% of symptomatic COVID-19 cases among people who were exposed to the coronavirus, U.Va. Health announced this week. New York-based Regeneron Pharmaceuticals produces the treatment, which is being tested at several facilities, and also has proven to be effective […]