Skanska tops off VSU academic commons building
New York-based development and construction firm Skanska USA held a topping-out ceremony this week for the $120 million Alfred W. Harris Academic Commons building being built at Virginia State University. The 175,000-square-foot building replaces VSU’s Harris Hall and Daniel Gymnasium and consolidates its College of Humani[...]
NNS funding helps launch ODU engineering program
Newport News Shipbuilding will be the lead industry sponsor of Old Dominion University’s program to graduate more engineers, the two organizations announced Tuesday. NNS, a division of Newport News-based Fortune 500 military shipbuilder Huntington Ingalls Industries, will make a five-year financial commitment to the Monarch Ac[...]
Virginia Tech receives $10M gift for endowed scholarship
Preston White, the founder of Virginia Beach-based concrete contractor Century Concrete, and his wife, Catharine, have donated $10 million to Virginia Tech to create an endowed scholarship, the university announced Tuesday. The Whites’ latest gift to Tech, the Preston and Catharine White Endowed Diversity Scholarship, will eve[...]
Colonial Williamsburg, W&M launch leadership institute
The Colonial Williamsburg Foundation and William & Mary have partnered to form a leadership development institute in Williamsburg, the two entities announced Monday. Former Hewlett-Packard CEO and onetime GOP presidential hopeful Carly Fiorina will chair the Williamsburg Institute, which will have Walt Disney veteran Christo[...]
Virginia Tech professor named MacArthur Fellow
Linsey Marr, a university distinguished professor and the Charles P. Lunsford Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering at Virginia Tech, on Wednesday was named one of this year’s 20 MacArthur Fellows. A prestigious award known as the “genius grant,” the fellowship is awarded annually by the John D. and [...]
A ‘North Star’ for others
It’s been a few months since Virginia Commonwealth University’s Massey Comprehensive Cancer Center was added to an elite, national list of comprehensive cancer centers, but the excitement around the June announcement continues. “It definitely is a huge deal,” says the center’s director, Dr. Robert A. Winn. “This is s[...]
ODU supply chain/logistics school approved by SCHEV
Old Dominion University’s School of Supply Chain, Logistics, and Maritime Operations was approved Wednesday by the state’s higher education council, and it’s set to start programming on Oct. 1, according to the university. The State Council of Higher Education for Virginia (SCHEV) OK’d the new school, whi[...]
Falwell Jr. lawsuit targets Prevo, Liberty board members
A legal complaint filed last week by former Liberty University President and Chancellor Jerry Falwell Jr. alleges that President Emeritus Jerry Prevo and members of Liberty’s executive committee received in excess of $1 million from the university “through a series of questionable self-dealing transactions that have [...]
VCCS senior vice chancellor to retire
Sharon Morrissey, Virginia Community College System’s senior vice chancellor for academic and workforce programs, will retire at the end of 2023, VCCS announced Monday. Morrissey joined VCCS in 2014. She held leadership roles for multiple initiatives, including eliminating placement testing, providing expanded credit for prior[...]
44 Va. schools make U.S. News and World Report’s 2024 list
Forty-four Virginia schools ranked on the U.S. News and World Report’s 2024 best lists of more than 600 universities and liberal arts colleges in the country, released Monday. The University of Virginia ranked No. 24 in national universities, tying with Carnegie Mellon and Emory universities and Washington University in St. Lo[...]
U.Va. receives $50M gift from Breeden Co. founder
Ramon W. Breeden Jr., founder and chair of Virginia Beach-based developer The Breeden Co., has given $50 million to his alma mater, the University of Virginia, to support business education and athletics. University President Tim Ryan announced the gift during a U.Va. Board of Visitors meeting Friday, according to a news release[...]
VCU sets sponsored research funding record
Virginia Commonwealth University set a record for its sponsored research funding — $464.6 million — in fiscal 2023, the Richmond public research university announced Friday. The total is a 14% increase since last year and a 71% increase over five years ago. “I’m proud that research is one of the fastest areas of growth a[...]