Jackson Ward preservationist steeled by cultural bearings and designs
By tackling design and restoration projects no one else would touch, Zarina Fazaldin brings her love of art and historic preservation to the arts community in Richmond.
Embiid raises Uncle Sam’s hopes
Joel Embiid sports the colors red, white and blue for his NBA team, the Philadelphia 76ers. So it’s fitting he’ll wear red, white and blue for the United States for the upcoming Olympics in Paris.
Summer Academy offers students lessons in leadership, public service
Richmond high school and college students can gain political skills and knowledge during the upcoming Summer Academy for Policy Leadership and Public Service. The academy runs from Sunday, June 23, to Saturday, July 6, and is organized by Policy Pathways Inc. The program will be hosted in partnership with the L. Douglas Wilder School of Government and Public Affairs at Virginia Commonwealth University.
Free community testing for COVID-19 continues
The Richmond and Henrico County health districts are offering testing at the following locations:
Virginia universities announce graduation dates, speakers
College graduations start throughout Virginia in the next two weeks, with thousands of students receiving their diplomas and taking their hard-earned knowledge out into the world.
An American lament, by Dwight Cunningham
t’s tough being an American. It’s hard to know your worth when you’re Black, or Latino, Native American or Asian, Muslim, gay or whatever. Seems today’s patriotic ideal American isn’t any of “those people,” as the powerful spend considerable time and nefarious energy to exert dominance by any means possible.
Google fires more workers who protested its deal with Israel
Google recently fired at least 20 more workers in the aftermath of protests over technology the company is supplying the Israeli government amid the Gaza war, bringing the total number of terminated staff to more than 50, a group representing the workers said.
Who will be D.C.’s next QB?
Watch your step. Few revolving doors have spun as fast as the door leading to the Washington Commanders’ quarterback room.
Dale Farino appointed CEO of state ABC
Gov. Glenn Youngkin has appointed Dale Farino as the new CEO of the Virginia Alcoholic Beverage Control Authority (ABC), effective April 29.
USDA updates rules for school meals that limit sugars
The nation’s school meals will get a makeover under new nutrition standards that limit added sugars for the first time, the U.S. Department of Agriculture an- nounced Wednesday. The final rule also trims sodium in students’ meals, although not by the 30% first proposed in 2023. And it con- tinues to allow flavored milks — such as chocolate milk — with less sugar, rather than adopting an option that would have offered only unflavored milk to the youngest kids. The aim is to improve nutrition and align with U.S. dietary guidelines in the program that provides breakfasts to more than 15 million students and lunches to nearly 30 million students every day at a cost of about $22.6 billion per year. “All of this is designed to ensure that students have quality meals and that we meet parents’ expectations,” Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack told reporters. The limits on added sugars would be required in the 2025-2026 school year, starting with high-sugar foods such as cereal, yogurt and flavored milk. By the fall of 2027, added sugars in school meals would be limited to no more than 10% of the total calories per week for breakfasts and lunches, in addition to limits on sugar in specific products. New WIC rules include more money for fruits and veggies. They also expand food choices Officials had proposed to reduce sodium in school meals by as much as 30% over the next several years. But after receiving mixed public comments and a directive from Congress included in the fiscal year 2024 appropriations bill approved in March, the agency will reduce sodium levels allowed in breakfasts by 10% and in lunches by 15% by the 2027-2028 school year.
Herbs Galore descends on Maymont
Maymont’s Herbs Galore plant sale event on Saturday promises that herb lovers will find everything they need to freshen up their gardens. The fun occurs between 8 a.m. and 3 p.m. on the Carriage House Lawn, 1700 Hampton St.
Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden plans $31M expansion
Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden is breaking ground on a two-year expansion project. Called “Thrive,” the $31 million project will nearly double the size of the existing Conservatory, add 7.5 acres of new gardens, and incorporate an additional lake into the Garden experience.
State employees get free admission to VMFA’s ‘Samurai Armor’ exhibit
Commonwealth of Virginia employees and preschool and K–12 teachers (public and private schools) will receive free admission to the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts’ new exhibition “Samurai Armor from the Collection of Ann & Gabriel Barbier-Mueller.” Active duty military personnel and their immediate families also will receive free admission to special exhibitions through the museum’s year-round participation in the Blue Star Museums program.
Loss of support from Republican evangelicals suits MAGA crowd just fine, by Clarence Page
Black voters traditionally have been pivotal to the fortunes of the Democratic Party, but some recent polls have suggested that they are proving less bankable for President Biden than in the past. Whether or not as many as 20% of Black voters have in fact deserted the Democrats, as some recent polls suggest, is a contested matter. But it’s probably fair to say that Democrats currently are in more of a defensive than a growth mode with that portion of the electorate.
Chicago is feeling Sky high
With the third and seventh picks of the WNBA draft, the skies brightened over Chicago.
Price is right for HBCUs
Morgan Price has made gymnastics history – just like her coach did decades earlier.
50 years of service and sisterhood
Women who attended Virginia Commonwealth University and were initiated into Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority’s Theta Rho Chapter celebrated their 50th Chartering Anniversary April 20 at the university with a commemorative bench dedication on the university’s main campus.
Journette stands out at NSU
Only one college offered Justin Journette a baseball scholarship while he was in high school. As it turned out, that one was enough.
Lots of baseball talent used to flow through HBCUs
Fans don’t often see them now in Major League baseball, but HBCU players have left a star-shaped mark on the sport. The illustrious list of long-ago standouts includes numerous Major League Hall of Famers and several others with local connections.
