VUU’s new Center for African-American Pentecostalism & Leadership Development hosts convocation
The Samuel DeWitt Proctor School of Theology at Virginia Union University, nationally known for its noted graduates such as Dr. Wyatt Tee Walker, Dr. Jeremiah Wright and former Congressman Walter E. Fauntroy, will hold its first Pentecostal Convocation on Monday, April 24, through Thursday, April 27, the school has announced.
Student Minister Tony Muhammad of the Nation of Islam to speak in Richmond
Nation of Islam Student Minister Tony Muhammad will speak at two engagements in Richmond next weekend.
Pivotal church versus state legal battle urged to proceed in high court
Missouri officials and a church embroiled in a closely watched dispute over public money going to religious entities urged the U.S. Supreme Court on Tuesday to decide the case despite a pivotal policy change by the state’s Republican governor.
Retired teacher Joyce Johnson dies at 73
Teaching children was Joyce Cole Johnson’s mission in life, according to her family. For 33 years, Ms. Johnson helped Richmond first- and second-graders learn to read, write and do arithmetic, first at Woodville Elementary and then at John B. Cary Elementary schools.
Personality: Sandee Smith
Spotlight on chair of 9th Annual Unity Ride for Sickle Cell
On a day like any other, Sandee Smith sat at her desk when her friend and soror in Delta Sigma Theta Sorority came by with news that deeply affected Ms. Smith.
Mayor Stoney, city officials mulling options to reduce crime in public housing
The Mosby Court public housing community — particularly the area around Redd and Accommodation streets — could be considered the epicenter of Richmond’s spike in homicides.
Crusade votes to back city charter change to fix school buildings
In his first budget, Richmond Mayor Levar M. Stoney essentially sidelined the issue of modernizing the aging and increasingly obsolete school buildings that most city public school students attend.
Maggie Walker statue to be dedicated on her birthday July 15
City officials plan to dedicate the new Maggie L. Walker statue Downtown on July 15, the 153rd birthday of the Richmond businesswoman and great.
VCU Dental Care to hold free cancer screening Saturday
VCU Dental Care will offer free mouth, head and neck cancer screenings from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturday, April 22, at the Lyons Dental Building, 520 N. 12th St.
Richmond Technical Center plant sale next week
The Richmond Technical Center is having a four-day spring plant sale to benefit its horticulture program.
Sen. Warner on Trump and Russia: ‘We have to find out the truth’
Special to the Richmond Free Press U.S. Sen. Mark Warner of Virginia is in a high-profile position this spring as the top Democrat on the Senate Intelligence Committee, which is investigating Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election.
Florida legislature apologizes for decades of racial injustice
It has taken decades, but Florida is now apologizing for two of its darker misdeeds of its past. The Florida House unanimously passed two resolutions Tuesday. The first acknowledged decades of abuse at a Florida reform school and the second apologized to the families of four young black men known as the “Groveland Four.” They were accused of raping a white girl 68 years ago in what is now seen as a case of racial injustice.
Charlottesville City Council votes to sell Lee statue
Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee has taken one more step toward leaving the city of Charlottesville. Despite a pending court case, the Charlottesville City Council voted 3-2 Monday to sell the city’s statue of the Confederate general which now stands in the center of the city.
A federal case
U.S. Dept. of Education’s Office for Civil Rights to investigate unequal discipline in Richmond Public Schools
The pursuit of justice for two Richmond Public Schools students has resulted in a federal investigation of the school district’s disparity in disciplinary procedures for African-American students and students with disabilities.
Nikki Giovanni to speak at VUU
Poet Nikki Giovanni, winner of seven NAACP Image Awards, a National Book Award finalist and Grammy Award nominee, will be the keynote speaker for the Virginia Union University Undergraduate Conference on Research in the Humanities and Beyond, at noon Friday, April 28, in the Claude G. Perkins Living and Learning Center on the VUU campus.
STEM in sports: City students experience the link
Yuan Canesius of Elkhardt-Thompson Middle School got to play basketball in the Virginia Commonwealth University Siegel Center last week, but he didn’t use a ball and there was no hoop.
Volunteers to help fix up homes for elderly during Affordable Housing Awareness Week
April is here and that means hundreds of Richmond area volunteers soon will pour into neighborhoods to make home improvements for elderly and low-income residents who cannot afford them.
Plan for former Highland Park Catholic school building stalls
The plan to replace a vacant Catholic school on North Side with 80 affordable apartments is on hold as the nonprofit developer seeks to overcome opposition from neighborhood St. Elizabeth Catholic Church and nearby residents. The Free Press reported on the plan in early February, but the proposal has been stalled since an ordinance to support the work was sent to Richmond City Council for approval.
Former senator gives papers to U.Va.
Former U.S. Sen. John W. Warner has donated his public papers to the University of Virginia.
A judge’s opinion
Judge Andre M. Davis of Baltimore, a senior judge with the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, wrote the following powerful words on April 7, 2017, as he joined in dismissing an injunction barring the Gloucester County School Board in Virginia from halting a transgender youth from using the boy’s bathroom at the county high school.
