RPS to review relationship with Richmond Police, consider reopening options
Two Richmond School Board members urged the administration to dissolve the school system’s relationship with the Richmond Police Department, eliminating the school resource officers who patrol the city’s high schools, middle schools and alternative school.
Company uses flowers to send message during local protests
A local floral design company adorned the monuments of Maggie L. Walker and Arthur Ashe Jr. in a show of solidarity with local Black Lives Matter protesters and to make a positive statement about two highly regarded hometown heroes and trailblazers.
Class of 2020 gets virtual graduation send-off from Virginia celebrities
Olympic gold medalist Angela Hucles Mangano inspired the Class of 2020 with stories of overcoming challenges and having hope for the future last Friday during “Virginia Graduates Together,” a virtual celebration hosted by Gov. Ralph S. Northam and First Lady Pamela Northam.
Parades and curbside visits bring joy to veterans’ home residents
Retired Sgt. 1st Class William “Big T” Taylor had not seen his family since early March.
RPS plans in-person and virtual graduation ceremonies for seniors
Seniors attending Richmond Public Schools will have a graduation ceremony after all.
School Board adopts $331M budget for 2020-21
The Richmond School Board on Monday adopted a $331 million budget for the 2020-21 fiscal year that begins July 1.
City businesses ready to reopen, welcome customers next week
Renada Harris, owner of Silk Hair Studio on Broad Street near Virginia Commonwealth University spent last Thursday calling clients to cancel appointments made for Friday, May 15, the date businesses were to partially reopen under Gov. Ralph S. Northam’s executive order.
High marks for counselor
RPS Teacher of the Year honor goes to Thomas Jefferson High’s Rahmah Johnson
Like a Publishers Clearing House sweepstakes commercial, a band of dignitaries from Richmond Public Schools and the City of Richmond carrying bouquets of flowers and balloons followed by cameras and reporters marched down Ladies Mile Road last Friday morning to deliver a once-in-a-lifetime surprise.
Pandemic can't stop nuptials for area newlyweds
When the coronavirus pandemic threatened to disrupt the wedding plans of Dr. Janet West and Rodney Jordan, love proved too strong – even during a time of social distancing and rules preventing no more than 10 people in one place at one time.
Officials pump up COVID-19 testing, begin mask and hand sanitizer distribution to city's at-risk residents
Efforts to combat COVID-19 continue in Richmond’s high-risk communities and underserved neighborhoods.
School Board grapples with budget cuts and uncertainty in the next school year
The Richmond School Board and city schools administration continue to work on academic and staffing priorities as looming budget cuts and spending limits caused by the COVID-19 crisis hover like a dark fiscal cloud.
Area colleges spring for virtual commencement ceremonies for the Class of 2020
Marchelle Williams has worked hard as a graduate student for the past two years in Virginia Commonwealth University’s School of Social Work. The 25-year-old Fredericksburg native was looking forward to that traditional special moment capping her latest achievement – walking across the stage during commencement to receive her master’s degree.
Dozens turn out for free testing at city sites
Zohao Maziri took short, painfully slow steps Monday as she fought the cool, windy weather to get tested for COVID-19 at Hillside Court on Richmond’s South Side.
City, Henrico health districts start COVID-19 testing in targeted areas
The Richmond and Henrico health districts are offering free, walk-in COVID-19 testing targeted to people in low-income communities of color who do not have health insurance or whose insurance does not cover COVID-19.
Richmond School Board grapples with $24.5M budget shortfall
The Richmond School Board is holding a special meeting 6 p.m. Thursday, April 23, to continue discussing how to handle a $24.5 million shortfall in the proposed 2020-21 budget from the loss of city revenue stemming from the coronavirus pandemic.
Popular Richmond musician Herbert Allen ‘Debo’ Dabney III dies at 68
Herbert Allen “Debo” Dabney III, a popular and beloved Richmond musician, died Thursday, April 9, 2020. He was 68.
Nursing homes on front lines battling the coronavirus
Nursing homes are hot spots for the spreading coronavirus pandemic in Virginia, with 60 of the state’s 108 outbreaks occurring in long-term care facilities, state Health Department numbers show.
Local quilt guild makes face masks for VCU health workers
Naima Wares-Akers and her legion of Richmond area quilters are filling a deep gap in keeping hospital employees and other health care workers safe from the coronavirus.
Richmond School Board approves grading policy during shutdown
The Richmond School Board approved a plan Monday night to calculate students’ final grades that will hold students harmless during the coronavirus shutdown.
Visit museums, gardens and historical sites in Richmond and the world online
Richmond area museums are offering on- line activities, virtual tours and resources to youngsters and families as schools are out for the rest of the academic year and museums and other public venues have been closed during the coronavirus pandemic.
Pharmacist produces hand sanitizer to help people stay healthy
Dr. Shantelle L. Brown, the pharmacist, owner and operator of HOPE Pharmacy inside The Market@25th, is making hand sanitizer to combat coronavirus.
Businesses adjust to social distancing, governor's executive order on COVID-19
Anita Hill-Moses, an entrepreneur and natural hair stylist, is among the thousands of small businesses in the Richmond area feeling the effects of the coronavirus outbreak and lockdown.
Boosting the immune system to ward off coronavirus
Medical experts say the coronavirus can particularly impact people age 60 and older, those with underlying medical conditions and whose immune systems may be compromised. A major question, then, is what can people do to boost their immune systems?
Richmond high school seniors will graduate, Kamras says
Richmond Schools Superintendent Jason Kamras wants to assure families than high school seniors will graduate and other students will advance to the next grade despite the closure of city schools being extended through the end of the school year.
RPS centers open to families
Kate Johnson had a difficult time finding where to pick up food at Chimborazo Elementary School on Monday.
RPS and J. Sargeant Reynolds announce partnership to create new technical center
Richmond Public Schools and J. Sargeant Reynolds Community College are teaming up to create a new technical center in the former tobacco plant in South Side.
Richmond schools closed until April 13
Richmond Public Schools will be closed for an additional two weeks through spring break, reopening Monday, April 13, because of the coronavirus pandemic.
The Market @ 25th working to build success
The opening of The Market @ 25th last April was marked with great fanfare, Armstrong High School’s marching band, a balloon release and high hopes for a community known for being a food desert.
Foul: Racial epithet aimed at Armstrong basketball team sparks investigations
Officials from Richmond Public Schools and the Richmond Branch NAACP are investigating allegations that the Armstrong High School boys basketball team, cheerleaders and fans were taunted with racial epithets during the state playoffs in Northern Virginia in late February.
On Dr. Seuss' birthday, Overby-Sheppard students learn the fun of reading
At Overby-Sheppard Elementary School, Read Across America Day on Monday was filled with inspiring stories read to youngsters featuring characters reflecting their ethnic backgrounds.
School Board sends $436M budget to Mayor Stoney
Richmond Public Schools is calling on City Hall and taxpayers to boost spending on public education by $21 million during the next school year in a bid to advance its strategic plan for educational improvement.
Obama Elementary School: New name, new spirit
It was an Obama love fest last Friday as students, teachers, officials and special guests dedicated Barack Obama Elementary School, the North Side school built in 1922 and previously named for a Confederate general that was renamed in September 2018 to honor the nation’s first African-American president.
School Board approves new names for 3 schools
Henry L. Marsh III Elementary School. Cardinal Elementary School. River City Middle School. Those are the new names for George Mason Elementary in Church Hill, E.S.H. Greene Elementary in South Side and the new middle school on Hull Street Road, respectively.
VUU surprised by $1M announcement on Founders Day
Virginia Union University President Hakim J. Lucas stood before an audience of more than 350 students, faculty, alumni, trustees and dignitaries last Friday to remember the past and mark the path to the future at the university’s 155th Anniversary Founders Day Convocation.
After-school programs now in all RPS middle and elementary schools
Students at Richmond’s Albert H. Hill Middle School now can sign up for free after-school programs, thanks to a partnership with Richmond Public Schools and the nonprofit NextUp RVA.
RPS launches program to help dropouts get diploma or GED
Battling one of the highest dropout rates in Virginia, Richmond Public Schools is launching a Secondary Success Center to help students who have dropped out return to earn their high school diploma or a GED.
Supporters urge school name change to Marsh
A small, but vocal contingent asked the Richmond School Board to rename George Mason Elementary School after noted civil rights attorney Henry L. Marsh III during a public hearing Monday night.
Gov. Northam acknowledges his own uncomfortable truths
Nearly a year after public revelations of racist photos published on his medical school yearbook page, Gov. Ralph S. Northam offered a mea culpa at Virginia Union University’s annual Martin Luther King Jr. Community Leaders Breakfast and acknowledged the lessons he has learned confronting some of his own painful truths.
RPS $311.2M budget for 2020-21 unveiled
Superintendent Jason Kamras’ proposed $311.2 million general fund operating budget for the new fiscal year that will begin July 1 received mixed reviews at the Richmond School Board meeting on Monday night.
Exhibit focusing on the enslaved at Monticello to open Jan. 18 at Black History Museum
An exhibit exploring the lives of the enslaved community at Monticello and owned by Thomas Jefferson is opening Saturday, Jan. 18, at the Black History Museum and Cultural Center of Virginia in Jackson Ward.
Beauty and brains
Miss America shows Carver students how royalty and science mix
Wearing a white lab coat adorned with sequins, goggles and a sparkling crown, newly crowned Miss America Camille Schrier demonstrated mad science as she mesmerized an excited and cheering group of Carver Elementary School fourth-graders Wednesday at the Science Museum of Virginia.
Richmond School Board elects new officers
The Richmond School Board has two former educators leading the board for 2020.
As new George Mason Elementary takes shape, questions raised about old building
Cityscape: Slices of life and scenes in Richmond
What should happen to the old George Mason Elementary School building? That’s the big question as a new $38.4 million George Mason Elementary building is being constructed on the grounds in the East End.
McEachin, Wexton call for replacement of Lee statue in U.S. Capitol
Two Virginia congressional representatives are calling for the statue of Gen. Robert E. Lee to be replaced in the U.S. Capitol by a Virginian of color who has dedicated his or her life to fighting for equality.
School Board makes no change to North Side attendance zones
The Richmond School Board voted 6-3 Monday to reject a plan to modify school attendance zones in North Side.
VUU acquires motel property for expansion project
Virginia Union University has purchased a nearby motel property in undertaking its first expansion in more than 40 years.
Close vote expected on pairing North Side elementary schools
A close vote is expected on whether to pair elementary schools in North Side with majority-black and majority-white student populations.
New 'RVA Illuminates' to kick off holiday season Dec. 6 at Kanawha Plaza
It’s the most wonderful and magical time of the year, as dazzling and brightly colored displays and holiday festivities take over the city.
School Board adopts new rezoning plan without pairing schools
After more than five hours and some heated discussions, the Richmond School Board voted 5-4 on Monday to accept a rezoning plan that would redraw school attendance boundaries in all parts of Richmond, along with other recommendations.
Vocalist Rene Marie looking forward to RVA 'homecoming' with RJS
Virginia born and internationally acclaimed vocalist René Marie will perform as part of the Richmond Jazz Society’s Guest Educators Concert Series on Tuesday, Dec. 10, at The Capitol Ale House Downtown Music Hall, 623 E. Main St.
