Monday, March 24, 2025

Good morning! On this day in 1912, activist Dorothy Height was born in Richmond. She played a pivotal role in the civil rights movement, led the National Council of Negro Women, and was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 1994.

Authorities are looking into the sudden death of a former U.S. Attorney. The Virginia Flyover has details in Top Stories, while in Sports, the final Virginia team in either NCAA bracket played in Los Angeles.

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Virginia Set to Step Up on Education

Gov. Glenn Youngkin stated that he supports President Trump's executive order that would shut down the federal Department of Education.

"Virginia is ready to take full responsibility for K-12 education," Youngkin announced. "We have implemented a high-expectations agenda that sets rigorous standards, holds schools accountable for results and prioritizes resources to the students and schools that need the most support."

Support or opposition to Trump's order broke down along party lines in Virginia, with state Republicans praising the measure and Democrats criticizing it.

The Commonwealth gets about 10% of its education funding from the federal government, with the other 90% raised by state and local governments.

Former U.S. Attorney Dies at 43

Jessica Aber, who resigned in January as U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia, was found dead over the weekend at the age of 43.

The Alexandria Police Department is investigating her death, which took place in her Alexandria home. The Office of the Chief Medical Examiner of Virginia will determine the cause and manner of death.

"She was unmatched as a leader, mentor, and prosecutor, and she is simply irreplaceable as a human being," her successor Erik Siebert said. "Her professionalism, grace, and legal acumen set the standard."

Aber, a Virginian since high school, was appointed by former President Joe Biden and served from October 2021 until January of this year.

Colleges Remove DEI Policies

Virginia Commonwealth University's (VCU) Board of Visitors approved a resolution last week to discontinue its Division of Inclusive Excellence. "Where appropriate, we will transition programs from the Division of Inclusive Excellence to other areas," a letter from VCU announced.

VCU officials stated that they took the action because the university must follow federal and state laws regarding discrimination, but they vowed to continue "embracing different backgrounds and perspectives."

The State Board for Community Colleges passed a resolution to require employees at all 23 schools to abide by President Trump's executive order.

It also eliminated two items from the strategic plan, including an effort to "increase the number of diverse full-time faculty and staff by 5% by 2030" and another to "increase annual application yield for Black, Hispanic, and Indigenous students to 66% by 2030."

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➤ Northern Virginia: The Virginia Department of Health has reported two additional confirmed cases of measles in people who traveled through the state earlier this month. Potential exposure sites include Dulles International Airport on March 5, Ronald Reagan National Airport on March 14, and the Metro transit system on March 14. (Details)

➤ Virginia Beach: Sunrise Spa is under investigation for alleged prostitution. Authorities have conducted undercover investigations and executed a search warrant earlier this month. (More)

➤ Portsmouth: Sen. Louise Lucas, the Democratic leader of the Finance and Appropriations Committee, stated that Gov. Glenn Youngkin plans to make hundreds of changes to the budget framework lawmakers sent to him. The deadline for his amendments is today. (Details)

➤ Blacksburg: The National Weather Service has warned that Southwest Virginia is at increased risk of wildfires because of recent warm temperatures, gusty winds, low relative humidity, and dry fuel loads. (More)

➤ Franklin County: A jury awarded three-quarters of a million dollars in damages to two families evicted from a Smith Mountain Lake campground because one family member is black. "Housing discrimination—and discrimination of any kind—will not be tolerated in Virginia," Attorney General Jason Miyares said. (Details)

➤ Richmond: Migration has made the capital the fastest-growing metro area in Virginia, according to Census Bureau estimates. The region's population has jumped by 4% since April of 2020. (More)

➤ Norfolk State is searching for a new women's basketball coach. Larry Vickers departed for Auburn after leading the Spartans to three straight NCAA Tournament appearances. (Details)

➤ The University of Virginia (UVA) named its new men's basketball coach—former VCU head coach Ryan Odom, 50. Odom has taken three teams to the NCAA tournament, including UMBC, which stunned the No. 1-seeded Cavs in 2018. (Details)

➤ Virginia's women captured their fifth straight NCAA swimming & diving championship. The Cavaliers racked up 544 points, easily beating out fellow ACC squad Stanford with 417. (More)

➤ No. 8 seed Richmond fell to No. 1 seed UCLA 84-67 in the women's NCAA basketball tournament Sunday. (More)

➤ Name, image, and likeness policies are reshaping the future of college athletics. Sign up for NIL Wire, and you'll know what's changing.

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➤ Target plans to build a 1.4 million-square-foot distribution facility in New Kent County. The retailer is set to break ground by the end of the month. (Details)

➤ The Abandoned Mine Land Economic Revitalization Program has secured $11 million in federal funding to help revitalize the economy in Southwest Virginia. The Virginia Department of Energy is taking applications from organizations that want to transform mining sites into job sites. (More)

➤ The Commonwealth narrowly avoided blackouts last July when 60 data centers using 1,500 megawatts of power simultaneously disconnected from the grid at the same time. The sudden drop in demand nearly created a surge that could have overwhelmed the rest of the grid. (Details)

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➤ Virginia's Top 10 Endangered Artifacts program, as ranked by the Virginia Association of Museums, highlights items from facilities across the Commonwealth. (See the List)

➤ Williamsburg was ranked as the third-safest Spring Break destination in a national survey conducted by a personal injury law firm. The study noted Williamsburg's overall safe roads and low crime rate. (Details)

➤ A unique strain of walleye found only in the New River appears to be thriving this spring, indicating that the species has adapted to handle occasional flooding incidents. (More)

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