Va. first state to launch COVID-19 tracking app
Virginia on Wednesday became the first state in the nation to launch an app that offers alerts to people who have been in close contact with someone who has tested positive for COVID-19. The app, Covidwise, is available for Apple and Android devices. It uses Bluetooth Low Energy technology (which does not drain phone batteries[...]
Capital One fined $80M for 2019 data breach
Federal bank regulator the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency announced Thursday it has fined McLean-based Capital One Financial Corp $80 million for what it calls unsafe and unsound information technology practices tied to computing operations in its cloud environment. Capital One is the largest bank in Virginia, according to 2019 deposits. In 2019, […]
Ferrum College receives $100K gift
Ferrum College alumnus Michael Christian donated $100,000 to his alma mater, which will establish the Michael T. Christian ’63 Center for First-Year Experience at the school. The center — intended to connect incoming first-year students to professors, mentors and classmates — will be located in the college’s library and [...]
McLean-based wireless provider announces new leadership
McLean-based wireless technology company Kajeet announced Wednesday it has hired Melissa Blanken as vice president of marketing and Bill Stribrny as vice president of sales. For 25 years, Blanken has worked in marketing and was most recently the chief marketing officer with McLean-based internet company ID.me. She has also previ[...]
GSA awards Reston tech company $11.8M contract
The General Services Administration (GSA) has awarded Reston-based government technology company Octo Consulting Group an $11.8 million contract to provide framework and architecture services for the GSA’s System for Award Management (SAM). Under the GSA’s CIO Modernization and Enterprise Transformation contract, Octo will provide Scaled Agile Framework (SAFe) and business and technical architecture for the […][...]
Northam launches primary care task force
As primary care physicians report that the pandemic has caused financial stress and layoffs at their practices, Gov. Ralph Northam announced Wednesday the creation of a primary care task force in partnership with the Virginia Center for Health Innovation (VCHI) and Secretary of Health and Human Resources Daniel Carey. During the pandemic, 40% of primary […]
Va. hotel revenues slowly improving
Hotel revenues in Virginia slightly improved last week, but still remain at a 46% decrease compared to the same week last year, according to new data from STR Inc., a division of CoStar Group providing market data on the U.S. hospitality industry. The week before last, STR had reported a 50% decrease in hotel revenues […]
Richmond nonprofit wins $2.99M National Science Foundation grant
The National Science Foundation (NSF) has awarded Richmond-based nonprofit CodeVA a four-year, $2.99 million project award to develop a computer science program for teaching history to underserved communities in Virginia. This is CodeVA’s first federal grant award. CodeVA was awarded the Discovery Research PreK-12 (DRK-12) program grant for its proposal “Reaching Across the Hallway: An […][...]
For first time ever, Kings Dominion will close for entire year
Kings Dominion won’t open this year due to challenges surrounding the COVID-19 pandemic, the theme park in Doswell announced Tuesday. The park, which first opened in in 1975 has never before closed for an entire season, Kings Dominion communications manager Maggie Sellers confirmed Tuesday. “We are disappointed that we are u[...]
Hampden-Sydney College receives $6M gift
Hampden-Sydney College has received its second-largest gift in its 245-year history — a $6 million gift from Rob (an alum) and Cindy Citrone to support the college’s experiential learning program Compass. “Rob and Cindy have long been devoted champions of the college’s mission and our efforts to strengthen the experience we offer young men,” President […]
Va. tops annual tech business rankings
Virginia topped the charts in many categories of Business Facilities’ 16th Annual State Rankings Report released last week — especially for technology. This year, Virginia was ranked No. 1 for its cybersecurity leaders, digital infrastructure and unmanned aerial systems and No. 2 for its business climate. This was the first year that the national business […]
Leidos names health group president
Reston-based federal contractor Leidos announced Monday that Elizabeth “Liz” Porter has been promoted as the company’s health group president. She will report to Chairman and CEO Roger Krone. Porter had been serving as acting health group president since March 9 and had previously served as operation manager for the Leid[...]