JM’s Jason Rivera-Torres says choosing Vanderbilt ‘just felt right’
The arrows on Jason Rivera-Torres’ basketball map are pointing toward Nashville.
Holy Rosary celebrates 50th year for Knights of Columbus 6457
Holy Rosary Catholic Church, the oldest African-American Catholic congregation in Richmond, will celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Father Charles G. O’Leary Knights of Columbus Council 6457 on Saturday, April 29, beginning at 4 p.m. with a meet and greet, followed by a dinner and program.
Play well
The LEGO Group broke ground April 13 on its new carbon-neutral run factory in Chesterfield County near Richmond.
Closing of area shelters leave many without shelter
Joe Barrett is back to living on the street. Left paralyzed on his left side by a stroke, the 62-year-old Richmond native is among more than 130 homeless people who lost their shelter beds Saturday.
GRTC drives starting pay by 43 percent
GRTC boosted starting pay for bus drivers by a whopping 43 percent, effective immediately, with double-digit increases for most current drivers as well.
UR announces commencement speaker
University of Richmond alumnus Greg Morrisett will speak at the school’s commencement ceremonies on May 7. He is currently the Jack and Rilla Neafsey Dean and Vice Provost of Cornell Tech and a faculty member in the computer science department at Cornell University.
Tyre Nichols’ family sues Memphis Police over beating, death
The family of Tyre Nichols, who died after a brutal beating by five Memphis police officers, sued the officers and the city of Memphis on Wednesday, blaming them for his death and accusing officials of allowing a special unit’s aggressive tactics to go unchecked despite warning signs.
Swansboro Baptist partners with nonprofit to offer free meals
For Kevin Alston and dozens of other hungry South Side residents struggling with food costs, Swansboro Baptist Church is now the place to go for a free hot lunch.
Men can teach, too
Anyone who’s been inside a public school knows there aren’t large numbers of male teachers in classrooms. In fact, male minority teachers make up less than 5 percent of all educators in the country, according to recent data. In 2020, Richmond Public Schools created a program called RVA Men Teach to address this disparity, retain and recruit male minority teachers and highlight them as educational experts and eliminate barriers that keep them out of classrooms.
Something in the water
Speaking of teaching, producer and singer Pharrell Williams is a shining example of a Black male role model who, despite his fame, fortune and talent, stays true to himself, his home and values.
Community colleges are the gems of America’s higher education system, by Dr. Linnie S. Carter
I have been blessed to serve four community colleges – two in Virginia, one in North Carolina and now one in Pennsylvania.
Richmond playwright presents comedy/gospel musical
Richmond native Glennis Singleton Crosby wants you to laugh and sing along when “Hypocrite the Musical” hits the Carpenter Theatre stage at Dominion Energy Center on April 30.
Carter Aldrete’s promising start for Squirrels
From the same college that produced the likes of Reggie Jackson and Barry Bonds comes Carter Aldrete.
Virginia Tech’s Traylor and Soule WNBA bound
Two Virginia Tech women’s basketball stars are taking their talents to the WNBA.
Trinity Thomas vaults to her 28th perfect score
On a scale of one to 10, Trinity Thomas is about as close to a 10 as there is.
Sweet
Michael Jordan’s ‘Last Dance’ shoes sold for millions
Sotheby’s auction house announced April 11 that a pair of Air Jordans worn by Michael Jordan during his final championship run with the Chicago Bulls has sold at auction for $2.2 million, surpassing the record for the most valuable sneakers ever sold, reports CBS News.
Music that’s beneficial
Nine performers will be featured at “The STEM ‘Mad Scientist’ Benefit Concert” that a Richmond group stages to raise money to increase Richmond youths’ access to science learning.
ICA at VCU to celebrate 5 years of art and community
The Institute of Contemporary Art at VCU will celebrate its fifth anniversary with an evening of casual conversation, music, performances, new works and more on Friday, April 21, starting at 5:30 p.m. Steven Holl, who designed the ICA building, along with project architect Dimitra Tsachrelia and ICA’s executive director Dominic Willsdon will lead a conversation about the institute. The 2022 Fall season’s program “Mis- read Unread Read Re-read Misread Un- read Re-read (MURRMUR) will launch newly commissioned works from Richmond residents Sam Taylor and nicole killian along with New York-based artist Riley Hooker. New works from artists in residency will be unveiled for the ICA’s ongoing exhibition “So it appears” — an intricate kaleidoscopic work by Australian born artist Tricky Walsh and an audio response to the exhibition by audio artist Sharon Mashihi. Another feature of the evening will be Richmond-based artist Vivian Chiu presenting some of her “sketches” created over the past decade. The evening is free. For more informa- tion or to RSVP to attend the anniversary celebration, visit https://icavcu.org/. The Institute of Contemporary Art at VCU is located at 601W. Broad St.
Oakwood Arts to launch apprenticeship program
Virginians age 18 and older who want to get into the state’s movie and television industry have a new opportunity as Oakwood Arts is preparing to launch the first registered apprenticeships.
