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Stephanie T. Rochon, 50, local TV news anchor
Stephanie Therese Rochon knew no strangers, whether she was anchoring the evening news at WTVR CBS6, worshipping at Our Lady of Lourdes Catholic Church in Henrico County or out in the community. “She was just a very happy person,” her husband, Jeffery D. Moten, said.
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Former NASA ‘hidden figure’ advises students to chart own course
Christine Darden was a student at Hampton University when she learned to chart her own path. She and her classmates would visit the school’s cafeteria together, and she decided that she needed to learn to go on her own.
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Don't let 'holiday heart syndrome' ruin your holidays
From Thanksgiving through New Year’s Day, emergency room visits and hospital admissions for acute illnesses tend to spike. While the holidays are a joyous time when friends and family gather to celebrate the season, there can be significant health dangers lurking.
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VUU Lady Panthers, VSU Trojans favored in CIAA Tournament
Virginia State University’s men and Virginia Union University’s women are clear favorites on paper at this week’s CIAA Tournament in Charlotte, N.C.
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Shake-up
10 RPS principals out, 7 others on warning, sources report
Ten Richmond schools will have new principals next fall as part of a leadership shake-up that Richmond Public Schools Superintendent Jason Kamras is undertaking as part of his schools improvement plan, the Free Press has learned.
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‘In need of prayer’
Hanover NAACP turns to faith protest to counter KKK
The Hanover County Branch NAACP planned to protest the county’s tepid response to a Ku Klux Klan rally held at the county courthouse earlier this month by praying and singing hymns at a Hanover County Board of Supervisors meeting Wednesday night.
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JPMorgan puts $30B toward fixing banking’s ‘systemic racism’
JPMorgan Chase announced last week that it will extend bil- lions in loans to Black and Latino homebuyers and small business owners in an expanded effort toward fixing what the bank calls “systemic racism’” in the country’s economic system.
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Anger grows in Virginia city where first-grader shot teacher
When a 6-year-old shot and wounded his first grade teacher in this shipbuilding city near Virginia’s coast, the community reacted with collective shock.
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Biden didn’t make Israeli-Palestinian talks a priority; Arab leaders say region now paying the price
From its first months in office, the Biden administration made a distinctive decision on its Middle East policy: It would de-prioritize a half-century of high-profile efforts by past U.S. presidents, particularly Democratic ones, to broker a broad and lasting peace deal between Israel and the Palestinians.
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Year after the slap, Chris Rock punches back in Netflix special
A year after Will Smith smacked him on the Academy Awards stage, Chris Rock finally gave his rebuttal in a forceful stand-up special, streamed live on Netflix, in which the comedian bragged that he “took that hit like Pacquiao.”
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VSU, NSU still facing cutbacks
Cutbacks. That’s what Norfolk State and Virginia State universities are facing because of surprisingly steep enrollment drops. Enrollment at both of the state-funded, historically black institutions peaked in 2012 and then began a sharp decline. Based on current projections, both schools expect to enroll at least 25 percent fewer students in the fall than in 2012. That means less income and more need to reduce spending on staff and programs.
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DeVos, Sessions confirmed
Two of President Trump’s controversial picks for his cabinet have been confirmed by the Senate and are ready to take office.
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Charles L. Conyers, consummate educator and retired state education administrator, dies at 92
Charles Lee Conyers believed that a good education was the ticket out of poverty.
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Church Hill North project among city’s costliest new apartments
Some of the costliest apartments in Richmond are being built on the former site of Armstrong High School in the 1600 block of North 31st Street in the East End — miles away from the hot development centers of Manchester, Scott’s Addition and Downtown.
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Vote on Navy Hill project expected on Feb. 24
Monday, Feb. 24. That’s the date on which City Council President Cynthia I. Newbille wants the governing body to take a vote on the controversial $1.5 billion Coliseum replacement and Downtown development plan.
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School Board approves construction plan
The Richmond School Board voted 6-2 at its meeting Monday to approve Superintendent Jason Kamras’ plan to collaborate with the City of Richmond on construction of four new school buildings — George Mason and E.S.H. Greene Elementary schools, Elkhardt-Thompson Middle School and George Wythe High School. Board members Kenya Gibson, 3rd District, and Jonathan Young, 4th District, cast the two dissenting votes. Member James “Scott” Barlow, 2nd District, was absent from the meeting.
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VUU to take on VSU Saturday at Barco-Stevens Hall
Virginia Union University suffered a 88-73 basketball knockout on Jan. 19 in its last meeting with Virginia State University.
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Cooking up skills, dollars for RPS culinary program
Call it an eye-opening experience for Nicholas Pollard, Jaquan Wash- ington, TéAnna Warren and six other high school seniors in Richmond Public Schools’ culinary program at the Richmond Technical Center.
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Mayor Stoney unveils a $1.92 billion budget plan for 2020-21
Mayor Levar M. Stoney wants to increase total city spending an additional $135 million — or nearly $600 per resident — to beef up investments in street paving, public education, city worker pay, affordable housing and other priorities.
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Juwan Carter looking to break records at NSU
Juwan Carter has met Aaron Sparrow and the two men hit it off. Now, with all due respect, Carter hopes to politely erase Sparrow’s name from Norfolk State University’s football record book.