Smart to remain at VCU

AFP

Virginia Commonwealth University officials confirmed Wednesday that head men’s basketball coach Shaka Smart will remain at VCU. “Coach Smart recognizes – as do the rest of the university community, alumni and fans – that VCU is the place to be right now,” said VCU President Michael Rao. “He continues to demonstrate his commitment to VCU…

Virginia gets big fat ‘F’ on transparency report

AFP

State governments are largely doing a poor job delivering transparency and accountability to their citizenry. Meanwhile, statehouses remain ripe for corruption and self-dealing. This is the discouraging picture that emerges from the State Integrity Investigation, a first-of-its-kind, data-driven assessment of transparency, accountability and anti-corruption mechanisms in all 50 states. In the ranking, not a single…

Scots-Irish roots talk

AFP

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…

Collection provides link to voices of pre-SNP life

AFP

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…

Scott Klinger: Corporations pay less in taxes than Buffett and Romney

AFP

Corporations pay a lower effective tax rate than Warren Buffett and Mitt Romney, but you wouldn’t know it from all the complaints that our corporate tax rate puts our country at a competitive disadvantage. Last year, U.S. corporations paid just 12.1 percent of their earnings in federal corporate income taxes. Buffett’s tax rate is 17.4…

Rolls-Royce looking at expansion at Richmond facility

AFP

Rolls-Royce, the global power systems company, is considering a new advanced manufacturing facility at its Crosspointe location near Richmond. The new factory would be an advanced blade manufacturing capability involving high-precision turbine blades for some of the world’s most sophisticated aircraft engines built by the company. Significant growth in the company’s aero engine order book…