George Mason names associate VP of innovation and economic development
George Mason University announced Tuesday that Paula Sorrell, the director of the University of Michigan’s Economic Growth Institute, will become the associate vice president of innovation and economic development effective May 1. Mason recently created its School of Computing and Institute for InnovAtion (IDIA) in preparation for Amazon.com Inc.’s East Coast arrival. In her new […][...]
VCU College of Humanities and Sciences appoints dean
Jennifer Malat will be dean of the Virginia Commonwealth University College of Humanities and Sciences effective July 1, the university announced Tuesday. Malat is currently the divisional dean for social sciences at the University of Cincinnati (UC) College of Arts and Sciences and oversees academic affairs, faculty affairs and[...]
The way forward
The daughter of Mexican immigrants, Amy Cortes always figured that she’d go to work as a day laborer like her parents after she graduated from Fort Defiance High School. But somewhere along the way, the Augusta County teen decided, “I wanted to push myself and go to college.” Last year, Cortes, 18, was one of 31 [&hel[...]
VCU Honors College names new dean
Virginia Commonwealth University has tapped Scott C. Breuninger as dean of its honors college, VCU announced Friday. Breuninger starts on July 1. Breuninger currently works with the University of South Dakota (USD) as the director of its honors program and as an associate professor of history. He has been with USD since 2011 and[...]
George Mason University names new president
The George Mason University Board of Visitors has selected Gregory Washington, the dean of the University of California, Irvine’s Henry Samueli School of Engineering, as the eighth president of George Mason. Washington will start on July 1. He takes over from former state Secretary of Education Anne Holton, who has served [...]
Alarm.com launches apprenticeship program
In cooperation with Northern Virginia Community College, Tysons-based Alarm.com launched an apprenticeship program Friday aimed at producing workers with in-demand tech skills. Supported by the state’s GO Virginia economic development initiative, 10 initial apprentices, including three from the military community, will par[...]
Virginia students could get in-state tuition despite citizenship status
RICHMOND, Va. — The state Senate and the House have advanced bills to make students living in the U.S. without documentation eligible for in-state tuition. SB 935, introduced by Democratic Sens. Jennifer Boysko and Ghazala Hashmi, would require a student to provide proof of filed taxes to be eligible for in-state tuition. [...]
UiPath donates $16.4M in software licenses to GMU business school
New York City-based software developer UiPath has donated $16.4 million in software licenses to George Mason University‘s School of Business for students to learn robotic process automation (RPA) technologies, the university announced Wednesday. RPA configures computer software for users to integrate human interaction actions in digital systems for business processes. With RPA, robots can capture […][...]
$1.3M in state funding goes to support computer science SOLs
More than $1.3 million in state grants will go toward preparing students for Virginia’s Computer Science Standards of Learning tests, Gov. Ralph Northam announced Monday. The funding will be used for teacher professional development, computer science curriculum creation, instructional resources, assessments, programming and work opportunities. Underserved populations will receive priority when grants are awarded, Northam […[...]
VCU receives $2.5M grant to extend battery life development
Virginia Commonwealth University researchers will receive a $2.5 million research grant from the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) to develop long-lasting rechargeable batteries, the university announced Thursday. VCU researchers believe they can significantly extend battery life, drive down costs and reduce safety risks by redesi[...]
Northam proposes $1M investment for future STEM educators at HBCUs
Gov. Ralph Northam on Monday proposed a $1 million investment through the national UTeach program to increase pathways for students at Virginia’s two public historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs) to become science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) educators. Although the UTeach program is present at 45 U.S. colleges and universities, Virginia is the first […][...]
Va. Tech selects architecture firm for first Innovation Campus building
Virginia Tech has selected Detroit-based architecture and planning firm SmithGroup to design the first academic building for its Innovation Campus in Alexandria, the university announced Friday. SmithGroup responded to a public request for proposals (RFP) issued last summer by Tech after its June announcement that it would build[...]

















