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The American Civil Liberties Union of Virginia today announced that it has hired Claire Guthrie Gastañaga to succeed executive director Kent Willis, who last week announced he was leaving after 25 years with the organization. Gastañaga is scheduled to start at the beginning of June. “Claire brings to the ACLU a huge network of people…
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Adjourning a 60-day legislative session without approving a biennial budget may seem like Washington-style failure to some, but to those who work closely with the process taking more time to balance the budget reflects the realities and limitations of the tremendous task involved. Contrasted to federal budget-making, there are no continuing resolutions or the ability…
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The RMH stroke care program has received national certification from The Joint Commission, indicating that the program meets rigorous standards of care for those experiencing stroke. The Joint Commission granted RMH Advanced Primary Stroke Center certification following an extensive on-site evaluation March 14. The Joint Commission surveyors examined every facet of RMH’s stroke program to…
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Just in time for St. Patrick’s day, area residents who claim Scots Irish or Irish heritage can learn about new resources for historical research into their roots. “Discovering your Irish and Scots Irish Roots” is a highly illustrated and authoritative talk by Dr. Brian Trainor and Fintan Mullan of the Ulster Historical Foundation, Belfast, Northern…
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Professional scholars and local history enthusiasts alike can now delve into the extensive Shenandoah National Park Oral History Collection to learn more about life in the Blue Ridge Mountains before the park’s creation in the 1930s. Professionals in James Madison University Libraries and Educational Technologies, where the resource has been housed in Special Collections, have…
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State Senate Democrats feel that they have political momentum on their side with a series of votes blocking barebones Republican-authored state budgets. “When Senate Democrats came down here several weeks ago we were focused on jobs and public education, repairing our tattered safety net, and solving our transportation crisis, but were instead faced with an…
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Senator Jim Webb (D-VA), author of the landmark Post-9/11 G.I. Bill, today introduced bipartisan legislation to preserve those veterans’ education benefits from abuses by certain schools. Troubling statistics show that the cost to taxpayers to send a veteran to a for-profit school is more than double the cost of a public university and that eight…
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State Fair of Virginia Inc., the nonprofit organization that produces the State Fair of Virginia, converted its Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection to a Chapter 7 bankruptcy liquidation in Richmond District Court on March 7. As a result, SFVA will no longer produce the fair, the Strawberry Hill Races and the Meadow Highland Games & Celtic…
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Some politicians are still calling contraception a social evil. This is an astonishing claim in the 21st Century when all the evidence is that contraception is key to a more successful economy and a better quality of life – not only for individual women and their families, but for us all. Because contraception makes it…
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The Staunton Music Guild officially opened the application process for the newly established Ray Houser Scholarship on March 5. The scholarship fund was established in 2011 by the Staunton Music Guild in honor of Mr. Houser’s dedication to radio broadcasting, music, and his steadfast commitment towards helping others in his Shenandoah Valley community. Ray Houser…
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