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Dick, Zimmerman and Reeves: Gold Star Families deserve better. Restore funding for tuition — now
Neeley McAllister’s life changed forever on Jan. 24, 2018. Her husband, Sgt. Maj. Samuel Morris McAllister, was killed during an Army freefall parachute accident. No words of comfort can ever bring him back, but at least Neeley knew that her children, then ages 8, 11 and 12, would be provided for when it came time for them to go to college. She also knew that her own transition might eventually require an MBA or some other advanced degree; fortunately, Virginia’s Military Survivors and Dependents Education Program (VMSDEP) would be there for McAllister and her children. All that changed on May 13, 2024, when Gov. Glenn Youngkin signed Virginia’s newest biennial budget, gutting the program and leaving Neeley and her children with virtually nowhere to turn.
English: Benefits of offshore wind for Virginia taking shape
The Coastal Virginia Offshore Wind (CVOW) project, approved in January by the U.S. Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, will consist of 176 wind turbines nearly 30 miles off the coast and power up to 660,000 Virginia homes with clean, reliable energy. The project will bring with it economic growth and jobs to Virginia Beach and throughout the commonwealth, now and for years to come. And while the project has entered its less-than-exciting construction phase and conversation surrounding the project continues, we must continue to keep the long-term benefits and opportunities presented by offshore wind top of mind.
Loudoun superintendent proposes closing school on four days for teacher training
Responding to backlash over a plan to start school two hours late on 16 days during the upcoming year to accommodate state-mandated teacher training, Loudoun County Public Schools has developed a new proposal. The new plan calls for school to be closed for teacher training on October 4, Nov. 4, Jan. 28, and June 16 during the 2024-25 school year, according to Superintendent Aaron Spence.
Yancey: Trixie Averill, one of most influential political leaders in western Virginia, dies
Trixie Averill, who went from a self-described “little ol’ housewife” from Vinton to one of the most important political leaders in the western part of the state, died Saturday after an extended illness. She was in her mid-70s. Averill never held elected office. Her highest office within the Republican Party was a brief stint at 6th Congressional District chair, but Averill’s influence could not be measured by a resume. Rather, Averill was part of a class of often little-known political activists who hold great power within their respective parties because of their ability to muster support for their favored candidates.
Attorney says client who participated in 2017 torch-carrying mob looks too much like Nazi to get fair trial
Defense attorney Peter Frazier urged a judge Wednesday to toss his client’s felony intimidation charge stemming from his participation in a torch-carrying mob of racists that marched across University of Virginia Grounds seven years ago. Frazier said prosecutors have unfairly targeted Jacob Joseph Dix, gesturing toward the blond-haired, square-jawed, business-suited, 29-year-old Ohio man sitting beside him at the hearing in Albemarle County Circuit Court. “Can we all take a look at Jacob? He’s the prototypical German,” said Frazier. “He’s who they want getting perp-walked out of this courthouse, because he looks like a Nazi.”
Troubled Southwest Virginia draws promise of help from Youngkin, lawmakers
Gov. Glenn Youngkin announced plans for an economic development initiative in Southwest Virginia, a region still struggling with the loss of the coal industry and where Democratic House Speaker Don L. Scott Jr. (Portsmouth) has also mounted a new push to address lingering problems. Youngkin unveiled his “Accelerate Southwest Virginia” initiative last week at an economic forum at the University of Virginia’s College at Wise. Though he was short on specific policy offerings, Youngkin touted a list of state-funded improvement projects ...
Schapiro: For Levar Stoney, do more opponents mean more opportunities?
The day after announcing that the city of Richmond had, for the first time, received Wall Street’s highest-possible credit rating — triple-A, a distinction that speaks to the strength of the local economy and could save taxpayers millions of dollars in interest on debt-backed bonds for a glittery replacement to the Diamond baseball park — Mayor Levar Stoney traveled to Bristol, in the rural southwestern corner of Virginia, where jobs are scarce and Democrats scarcer. Appearing with a political pal, former Mayor Neal Osborne, the trip was an exercise in self-promotion by Stoney, who — concluding that he would lose a one-on-one fight for the Democratic gubernatorial nomination to U.S. Rep. Abigail Spanberger — is now running for lieutenant governor ...
VCU won’t directly pay its athletes, though new state law allows it
Virginia Commonwealth University will not directly pay its student-athletes, the school’s athletics director said recently, even though a new state law allows the university to do so. “We will not bring the collective in house, nor will we pay the kids directly as of right now,” said Ed McLaughlin, the university’s athletic director. McLaughlin expressed hesitancy to dive headfirst into an aggressive new state law that allows colleges to directly pay their players. ... VCU developed this plan over the past few months. Then on Thursday, the college sports landscape shifted when the NCAA announced it had settled three antitrust lawsuits and will pay current and past athletes $2.8 billion for name, image and likeness, or NIL, revenue they have been denied.
Veteran tuition waiver task force to meet in June
Many Virginia military families are frustrated and concerned following changes to the Virginia Military Survivors and Dependents Education Program that were enacted when the state budget was signed. Gov. Glenn Youngkin acknowledged the program was putting a strain on Virginia colleges and universities and announced that a task force would look into the program. Friday he announced its first meeting and who would be on the task force.
New brand of largely unregulated mass surveillance is expanding in Virginia
Brandon Upchurch felt a surge of terror as Ohio police officers approached his red truck with guns drawn and a barking dog. ... “They put handcuffs on me and told me my tags were stolen,” said Upchurch, who was attacked by a canine during his arrest last month. “I kept saying ‘They’re not, they’re not.’ ” ... What officers later realized is that a Flock Safety automated license plate reader camera inaccurately flagged the vehicle, according to a police report filed in the case. ... As the devices proliferate in Virginia, state legislators grapple with how to address the technology, leaving localities or police to largely craft their own policies.