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3 RPS teachers win 2018 R.E.B. Awards for Teaching Excellence
Three Richmond teachers are among 16 public school teachers being recognized with the 2018 R.E.B. Awards for Teaching Excellence.
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Saving Bennett College
Bennett College in Greensboro, N.C., is an oasis where we educate and celebrate women, and develop them into 21st century leaders and global thinkers.
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New City Charter change eyed to again help schools
Political strategist Paul Goldman is considering leading a fresh effort to let Richmond voters speak out on modernizing the city’s mostly obsolete and crumbling public schools.
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It must be Magic
Josh Harris is Commanders’ new owner, Earvin Johnson is team’s minority owner
Washington Commanders fans are already having a good time – 1,000 free beers can put folks in a party mood. Soon after it became official that Josh Harris was the franchise’s new owner, the private equity billionaire called radio station WJFK and ordered 1,000 brews for customers at Old Ox Brewery. “Hail to the Commanders, and drink up,” Harris told his radio audience.
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RRHA approves developer’s plans for Jackson Ward hotel
$35M project among largest awarded to a Black-owned firm
Michael A. “Mike” Hopkins is on track to achieve his 20-year-old dream of developing a hotel in Richmond.
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Retired pediatrician Dr. Cynthia Charity succumbs at 73
Dr. Cynthia Anne McClennon Charity sought to keep a generation of Richmond children healthy.
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Collard greens: Only $66 at Neiman Marcus
First, cultural appropriation Twitter police called out the popular food blog “Thug Kitchen” in 2013 when a 29-year-old white couple from Hollywood revealed themselves as the anonymous authors of the highly acclaimed blog written largely in black vernacular English.
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Enrollment begins Nov.1 for health insurance under Affordable Care Act
Open enrollment begins Tuesday, Nov. 1, for 2017 health insurance coverage through the Affordable Care Act. Although next year’s premiums are slated to rise, officials said Monday that a majority of Virginians shopping for insurance on the ACA marketplace could get health care coverage for less than $75 per month, based on a new report from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
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VSU Trojans to celebrate homecoming ‘Flash Back’
A gospel extravaganza, a hip-hop concert, a jazz event and appearances by singer TSoul, and comedian Mike Epps are among the highlights of Virginia State University’s 2017 homecoming celebration that kicks off this weekend on the Ettrick campus.
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Ground-breaking ceremony Saturday for VCU’s new inpatient children’s hospital
Workers are still tearing down the old mirror-faced Marshall Street Pavilion — once an outpatient center for children — on the medical campus of Virginia Commonwealth University.
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Trump changes course
President-elect Donald Trump vowed on Wednesday to step back from running his global business empire to avoid conflicts of interest, as concern over his dual role mounts ahead of the Republican’s inauguration on Jan. 20.
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Evicted
Richmond ranks No.2 nationally in displacing people from their homes and apartments by eviction
Marcel Slag has been fighting evictions for 28 years as a lawyer with Central Virginia Legal Aid and its now independent Justice Center.
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Study puts monetary value on good works done by U.S. religious organizations
Religion News Service Religion is worth $1.2 trillion a year to the American economy, according to the first comprehensive study of the question. “In perspective, that would make religion the 15th largest national economy in the world, ahead of 180 other countries in terms of value,” according to the study’s author, Brian J. Grim, president of the Religious Freedom and Business Foundation and an associate scholar at Georgetown University’s Religious Freedom Project. “That would also make American religion larger than the global revenues of the top 10 tech companies, including Apple, Amazon and Google, or the combined annual revenue of the six largest American oil companies,” Dr. Grim said as he released the study Sept. 14 in a speech at the National Press Club in Washington. Dr. Grim understands why the religious and nonreligious alike might look upon the exercise of valuing religion’s contribution to the economy skeptically. To put a value on the work of the nation’s 344,000 religious congregations representing all faiths, Dr. Grim looked at the schools, the soup kitchens, the addiction recovery programs and other activities they run and the programs’ impacts on local economies. He found that congregations and religiously oriented charity groups are responsible for 130,000 alcohol and drug abuse recovery programs; 94,000 programs to support veterans and their families; 26,000 programs to prevent HIV/AIDS and to support people living with the disease; and 121,000 programs to train and support the unemployed. They also operate more than 50,000 schools. He also determined that churches, synagogues, mosques and other houses of worship employ hundreds of thousands of people and buy everything from flowers to computers to snow removal services. He believes the $1.2 trillion figure he came up with is a “conservative” valuation of the annual work of religious organizations in American society. Why crunch the numbers? Dr. Grim believes it is good to know the impact religion has on the nation. Dr. Grim also wants congregations and clergy — and the society that benefits from the charitable work— to appreciate the size of the contribution. In a country where people often hear much more about the evils committed by religious people — from sex abuse scandals to genocide — it’s time for some “balance,” Dr. Grim said. Even clergy often downplay the value of their work, said Ram Cnaan, director of the Program for Religion and Social Policy Research at the University of Pennsylvania. Dr. Cnaan, who attended the National Press Club presentation to help Dr. Grim unveil his work, said the study would allow the religious to take pride in their contributions. “This is a new day for the people who study congregations,” he said of Dr. Grim’s work, “The Socio-economic Contribution of Religion to American Society: An Empirical Analysis.” “This is the beginning of a national debate — not if religion is important but how much it is important,” Dr. Cnaan said. Dr. Grim said that secular organizations like the Red Cross and the Cancer Society and the host of other nonprofits certainly contribute generously to the social health of the nation. Indeed, he said if the work of the religiously motivated did not exist, “I don’t think we would see all the good of society disappearing. However, I think it would be significantly less.” William A. Galston, a Brookings Institution scholar and a former Clinton administration domestic policy adviser who writes on religion and society, called Dr. Grim’s estimate of $1.2 trillion “a sensible number.” Dr. Grim’s paper, Dr. Galston said, can be used by religious organizations as “a credible calling card to get in the door” of policymakers who have too long undervalued their importance to society.
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Sharon Baptist Church building no longer for sale
Sharon Baptist Church in Jackson Ward is still on the market, according to a major Richmond real estate company’s website.
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Henrico County’s leaf collection starts Nov. 7
Henrico County will begin providing annual leaf collection services starting Monday, Nov. 7, with both free and paid options available for county residents.
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Fifth Street Baptist, Richmond Convention Center free Thanksgiving meal sites
Two free Thanksgiving dinners are being prepared for the Richmond community.
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MJBL to host annual Inner City Classic baseball championship and symposium Aug. 4-8
The Metropolitan Junior Baseball League will host its annual Inner City Classic championship week of activities with a virtual Bobby Bonds Memorial Symposium, an in-person home run derby and nine in-person baseball games at fields around Metro Richmond.
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Applications being accepted for new Dominion Energy Educational Equity Scholarship Program
Applications currently are being accepted for the Dominion Energy Educational Equity Scholarship Program, a new $10 million scholarship fund announced by the energy giant in July to aid African-American, Latino and other young people from under-represented groups seeking a college education or vocational training.
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Richmond’s top tourism promoter to retire
The Richmond area’s biggest cheerleader for tourism is headed for retirement. Known for his energy and enthusiasm for all things Richmond, John F. “Jack” Berry Jr. has announced that he will end his 31 years at the helm of Richmond Regional Tourism on June 30.
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Black women’s hair and chemicals nothing to relax about
In case you have missed this, a major lawsuit is underway to benefit Black women who used chemical hair relaxers and later developed uterine and ovarian cancer.
