Jim Bishop: Lordy, Lordy, This Commencement is Number 40!

Jim Bishop

The pomp and circumstance will soon be under way. President Loren Swartzendruber will acknowledge the 451 members of the Eastern Mennonite University graduating class of 2011 and invite them to begin coming forward to receive their hard-earned degrees. Hopefully, the weather tomorrow, May 1, will allow the pageantry to take place outdoors, on center campus,…

Bridgewater students form green task force

AFP

Do you really have to take a 15-minute shower? What about that cardboard box you’ve thrown into the trash – is it recyclable? And that cigarette butt that’s been tossed onto the ground…isn’t that toxic litter?These are some questions and issues Bridgewater College students are tackling as they form a task force dedicated to improving…

Valley conservation leaders encouraged, cautioned

Chris Graham

Funding challenges, the far-reaching impact of the Chesapeake Bay Act, and the rapidly rising importance of urban conservation took center stage at the Spring Meeting of the six Soil and Water Conservation Districts serving the 13 counties of the Shenandoah Valley and adjacent highlands. Addressing the 60+ attendees, State Sen. Emmett Hanger, R-Mount Solon, noted…

Augusta Health’s School of Clinical Laboratory Science receives accreditation

Chris Graham

The School of Clinical Laboratory Science at Augusta Health has received a full seven-year accreditation from the National Accrediting Agency for Clinical Laboratory Sciences. Accreditation by the NAACLS is a year-long process that includes completion of a self-study document that details compliance with 22 national standards and a site visit by the agency. NAACLS is…

McDonnell launches teacher performance-pay initiative

Chris Graham

Gov. Bob McDonnell has invited 57 school divisions that may have difficulty attracting, retaining and rewarding experienced, fully licensed teachers to participate in his Virginia Performance-Pay Incentives initiative for hard-to-staff schools. The initiative — which was approved by the 2011 General Assembly — is a centerpiece of McDonnell’s “Opportunity to Learn” education-reform agenda. It provides…

Downtown couture: Shop adds to local flavor in Waynesboro

AFP

Couture fashion – not exactly what you’d expect to find in Waynesboro, but that is one of the latest additions to Downtown Waynesboro with the addition Mariah Amine Couture. Don’t be too intimidated by the word couture, though; the shop still has the local feel that local shoppers are comfortable in. It’s within a few…

Exchange Club members unite for child-abuse prevention

AFP

Members of the Exchange Club of Waynesboro will join thousands of fellow Exchangites across the country for the single biggest child abuse prevention service event in Exchange’s 100-year history during April. They will be participating in the national project, the Prevention of Child Abuse, through a series of programs in Waynesboro, Staunton and Augusta County….

Sanford D. Horn: The unfair and unbalanced media

Letters

While Congressman Jim Moran’s assault on the military and its veterans went viral Friday, April 8, one day following a town hall meeting held in Alexandria at Hammond Middle School, nary a word appeared in The Washington Post. Moran treated Wayne Tunick, a disabled 27-year veteran rudely following an important question regarding military pay in…

Chris Graham: Down the middle

Chris Graham

President Obama on Wednesday released a down-the-middle plan for dealing with the federal government’s deepening budget crisis. I meant the term down the middle to mean one thing – that it features some elements that appeal to the left and some that appeal to the right. But I full recognize that it can mean something…

CIT, Tech Councils to host information sessions for entrepreneurs with emerging technology companies.

AFP

The Center for Innovative Technology announced today that it has received $4 million for its GAP Funds as part of Gov. McDonnell’s and the General Assembly’s budget package, and $2 million from the Virginia Department of Mines, Minerals and Energy through the U.S. Department of Energy American Recovery and Reinvestment Act to identify and fund…