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February 2025 new target date for Culpeper broadband
Like a bad case of déjà vu, local supervisors at their recent meeting heard another later date for connecting to the county broadband project first launched in 2020 — February 2025. All Points Broadband Vice President of Business Development Tom Innes was back before the Culpeper County elected board for the May 7 morning session. ... It was the same explanation for the delay at the last meeting in November and the time before that, and the local politicians got pretty frustrated, again.
They don’t like abortion, but Kaine’s GOP challengers say they won’t seek a federal ban
It’s obvious where Democratic U.S. Sen. Tim Kaine stands on abortion access. And that’s not just for the fact that his party has been outspoken in support of access and other reproductive rights. Kaine has also co-sponsored the bipartisan Reproductive Freedom For All Act — an attempt to codify abortion protections into federal law. What has been less obvious is whether his Republican challengers would support federal abortion bans or restrictions.
Wilder faults Biden for apparent cancellation of VSU debate
Former Gov. Doug Wilder on Thursday criticized President Joe Biden over his role in the apparent cancellation of the Oct. 1 presidential debate at Virginia State University. On Wednesday, Biden’s campaign notified the Commission on Presidential Debates that he would not participate in its three scheduled fall forums at universities, including the debate at VSU. Instead, Biden and former President Donald Trump quickly agreed to two debates, a June 27 faceoff to be hosted by CNN and a Sept. 10 debate hosted by ABC.
Yancey: Brown decision was preceded by years of legal preparation. Its implementation in Virginia took years, too.
Seventy years ago, on May 17, 1954, the U.S. Supreme Court issued a ruling that would change American life: It declared that school segregation was unconstitutional. The first reaction from Virginia Gov. Thomas Stanley, a son of Henry County, was serene and understated: “This news today calls for cool heads, calm study and sound judgment. I’m sure the people of Virginia and our elected representatives can find the right solution.” That sure turned out to be wrong.
Virginia has made great strides since Brown, but work remains
Seventy years ago, the U.S. Supreme Court’s unanimous decision in Brown v. Board of Education ended segregation in the nation’s public schools, hammering another nail in Jim Crow’s coffin. Though the ruling crackled like a thunderbolt across the United States, years would pass before many states, including Virginia, honored the court’s opinion. Even as the commonwealth celebrates this milestone and the decades of progress that followed, deep disparities in public education persist for many Black and minority students. This anniversary should remind us of how far Virginia has come, but also how much work remains undone.
Warner not giving up on VSU debate; says 'incumbent' for Biden to come to campus
Virginia Sen. Mark Warner said Thursday he has not given up on the possibility of still having a presidential debate at Virginia State University, but at the very least, he feels it is “incumbent” that President Joe Biden come to the Ettrick campus prior to the election. In a session with Virginia journalists, Warner said he and his Democratic colleagues would push for the second of the projected televised debates between Biden and former president Donald Trump to be held at VSU.
Clemons: Seventy years later, the fight for equality begins anew
A common misconception about the U.S. Supreme Court’s landmark Brown v. Board of Education decision is that it ended segregation in American classrooms overnight. While the justices’ unanimous 1954 ruling declared the idea of “separate but equal” unconstitutional, hundreds of thousands of students of color remained deeply segregated as Southern states like Virginia took little action to integrate. ... A few years ago, as an assistant professor at Virginia State University, I worked on a team that catalogued and digitized more than 100,000 historical items belonging to the Virginia Interscholastic Association (VIA). African American secondary school officials organized the VIA, one month before Brown v. Board, to oversee athletics, arts and academic competitions for Black students during segregation.
Stafford County School Board proposes banning student phones during class
At last night’s monthly meeting, the Stafford County School Board announced an update to the division policy regarding student cell phone use. The proposed update to the Code of Student Conduct and Related Policies adds a regulation that “prohibits personal communication devices during the regular school day.” Students will have to turn their phones off or silence them and store them out of sight in a backpack or bag from the start bell until the dismissal bell.
Complaints spark second review of Prince William Digital Gateway area property values
After weeks of complaints, criticism and landowner appeals, the Prince William County assessor’s office on Monday revised its sky-high assessments of properties inside the planned Prince William Digital Gateway data center corridor. Roughly half the property valuations dropped, but half went up — the result of the county eliminating one discount but replacing it with a new one. But even for those whose assessments are now lower, there is no joy in Mudville. That’s because Digital Gateway-area landowners’ assessments remain in the millions, and their tax bills will be in the tens, or even hundreds, of thousands.
MacArthur Center redevelopment still likely several years away, Norfolk official says
While a gleaming vision for the transformation of the city’s struggling downtown shopping mall has been revealed, Norfolk’s economic development director is cautioning anyone who is looking for construction barrels anytime soon. Instead, Sean Washington, who has led the city’s economic development efforts for nearly two years, wants to make clear that the rendering and possibilities shared by Norfolk Mayor Kenny Alexander at his recent state of the city address are “very much so conceptual” and that there is still “a long road ahead.”