Share
The 2011 session is proving to be one of the busiest I’ve seen. A typical day starts before 7 a.m. when constituents come to the General Assembly Building to meet with their legislators, followed quickly by 7:30 a.m. subcommittee meetings. Standing committees meet before and after the 12 p.m. session and last into the evening,…
Share
The Wildlife Center of Virginia, a leading teaching and research hospital for wildlife, is enlisting the help of area elementary-school children in coming up with a name for a Red-tailed Hawk – an non-releasable hawk that will soon be visiting schools as one of the Center’s environmental ambassadors. Earlier this month, the Wildlife Center contacted…
Share
Educational opportunity for all is a focal point for Gov. Bob McDonnell in his 2011 K-12 legislative agenda. “A child’s educational opportunities should be determined by their intellect and work ethic, not their zip code,” McDonnell said today in rolling out his Opportunity to Learn package, which pivots on a proposal to implement a pilot…
Share
State revenue collections increased by 9.5 percent in December over the prior year when adjusted for the December 2009 one-time tax amnesty program. This is the ninth month out of the last 10 in which state revenue collections exceeded the previous year’s amount. It is the second month in a row in which year over…
Share
Loren Swartzendruber will serve another four-year term as president of Eastern Mennonite University. Andrew (Andy) Dula of Lancaster, Pa., chair of the EMU board of trustees, announced at the opening convocation of second semester Wednesday, Jan. 12, that Dr. Swartzendruber has “gratefully accepted” an appointment to serve a third term that begins July 1, 2011…
Share
The Department of Veterans Affairs office at the Salem Medical Center will hold an outreach event at the Waynesboro Senior Center, 325 Pine Ave., Waynesboro, on Thursday, Feb. 24, from 10 a.m. until 1 p.m. The purpose of this event is to share information about VA health services, resources, VA Health Care enrollment and eligibility,…
Share
Gov. Bob McDonnell on Monday signed an executive order creating the Independent Bipartisan Advisory Commission on Redistricting, though its powers are limited to a review and recommendation capacity. “As Virginia redraws its legislative districts later this year, the process should take place in a manner that is fair and open,” McDonnell said in naming the…
Share
The United Way of Greater Augusta is looking for people interested in volunteering to review funding applications. Funds from United Way are used to build community capacity in supporting individuals and families with immediate needs and establishing a foundation for long-term change. Through these funds, United Way will invest in projects and programs that address…
Share
How do you react to receiving an unexpected gift, particularly one that abruptly changes well-laid plans? In our case, it involved having a block of time suddenly bestowed on us originally intended to be spent quite differently. Early morning Dec. 26, wife Anna and I dragged ourselves out of bed, finished packing and were about…
Share
As a business owner who has created hundreds of jobs over the past two decades, I understand economic policies that build sustainable growth. Yet the billions in tax cuts for the wealthy just signed into law compromise our shared future. The promise of “trickle down” economics has failed. When recent studies suggest that 1 in…
Independent media doesn’t belong to billionaires or big companies – it belongs to you. If you find value in our work, please consider a contribution.