Virginia
State Council of Higher Education for Virginia Approves New William & Mary School | Williamsburg Yorktown Daily
RICHMOND — The State Council of Higher Education for Virginia (SCHEV) approved William & Mary’s new School of Computing, Data Sciences, and Physics on Tuesday, the university announced.
The school brings together its applied science, computer science, data science and physics programs, it said. The school will be the sixth at W&M since its inception and the first in over 50 years. All will move into the new school in the fall of 2025.
According to William & Mary, the school aligns with its academic mission and expands the university’s ability to prepare students to thrive in a data-rich world. The university submitted the formal application to SCHEV, the state agency that governs new schools and new programs, earlier this spring.
“I appreciate SCHEV’s shared commitment to preparing broadly educated, forward-thinking citizens and professionals,” said President Katherine A. Rowe. “The jobs of tomorrow belong to those prepared to solve tomorrow’s problems. Machine learning, AI, computational modeling — these are essential modes of critical thinking and core to a liberal arts education in the 21st century.”
While the school and its new administrative structure were officially approved Tuesday, its foundations are already in place, the university said. The school, brought to life by an extensive feedback and consultation process, will coalesce four programs currently operating within the Faculty of Arts & Sciences.
William & Mary’s Board of Visitors unanimously approved the new administrative structure in November of last year.
To be housed in the heart of campus with the completion of phase four of the Integrated Sciences Center in fall 2025, William & Mary said “the school will be a space where graduate and undergraduate students excel in a combination of disciplines and where research opportunities will be expanded, continuing to attract world-class faculty and external investments.”
“Innovation has been part of William & Mary since its inception, and this school will serve as the catalyst for countless new discoveries, partnerships and synergies,” said Provost Peggy Agouris. “The School of Computing, Data Sciences, and Physics is launching at a pivotal time within these dynamic fields, and I’m incredibly proud to continue our journey of interdisciplinary growth and excellence across our undergraduate and graduate program offerings. I am grateful to SCHEV Council members for their belief in our vision and to all involved who made this a reality.”
In establishing a standalone school, William & Mary will grant more visibility and autonomy to these high-performing academic areas; it will also provide a single point of contact for external collaboration, it said, adding the school will strengthen existing partnerships — for example, with the Thomas Jefferson National Accelerator Facility in Newport News — while facilitating cooperation with external parties promoting scientific and technological advancement.
The four academic areas in the new school are already experiencing strong growth in external investment (over $9 million in 2023) and student numbers, it explained. Master’s students from the new school’s constituent areas represented one-third of all Arts & Sciences master’s students, with this proportion rising to almost two-thirds when considering doctoral programs.
In the new structure, high-impact research in data-intensive fields will further converge with academic and professional career preparedness, meeting increased student and employer demand while achieving goals from the university’s Vision 2026 strategic plan, according to the university.
Undergraduate candidates will not apply to the school directly. W&M second-year students in good standing will be able to enter the school as long as they meet criteria established by the school and the major, and will continue to have the opportunity to double major or minor in areas offered by other W&M programs, it said. Interdisciplinary collaborations between the school and the rest of the university will be expanded, combining “cutting-edge innovation with William & Mary’s distinctive strengths in the liberal arts and sciences.”
“We do our best work when we do it together,” Agouris said. “Aligning our computer science, data science, applied science and physics programs under one school will deepen the university’s impact on fields that are rapidly changing and increasingly important. Our students come here wanting to understand and change the world. Now more than ever, they will leave better equipped to do just that.”
A national search for the dean of computing, data sciences, and physics is underway, the university said.
CLARKSBURG, W.Va. (WBOY) — West Virginia has plenty of state symbols, be it the black bear as the state animal, the cardinal as the state bird or the rhododendron as the state flower, but did you know that the Mountain State also has its own official gun?
The Hall Flintlock Model 1819 was first manufactured in Harpers Ferry by John H. Hall in 1811 and was adopted by the United States Army in 1819, making it the first breech-loading rifle ever adopted by a country’s military.
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Model 1819 Hall Breechloading Rifle presented by Congress to Gustavous A. Bird for his participation in the Battle of Plattsburgh 9/11/1814 by John C. Bird via the Smithsonian Institution -
Model 1819 Hall Breechloading Rifle presented by Congress to Gustavous A. Bird for his participation in the Battle of Plattsburgh 9/11/1814 by John C. Bird via the Smithsonian Institution
All of this information is listed in Senate Concurrent Resolution 7, which was introduced and passed during the 2013 West Virginia Legislative session, and officially recognizes the Model 1819 as the official firearm of the State of West Virginia.
On top of being created in West Virginia, the resolution also points out that the rifle saw use during the Civil War, an event that directly led to West Virginia’s statehood.
While having an officially recognized state firearm may seem far-fetched, West Virginia is not the only state that has one. As a matter of fact, a fifth of the states in the country have officially designated a state firearm, including West Virginia’s neighbors in Kentucky and Pennsylvania.
CHARLOTTE, N.C. — In this world of college football, with the transfer portal and recruiting battles, bad blood is present more than ever before between head coaches.
That’s not the case between the Virginia Tech head coach and Clemson head coach Dabo Swinney, however. In fact, Franklin revealed at ACC Kickoff on Thursday that the two are actually close friends, dating back to their time at the Nike trip that various coaches take over the summer.
“Dabo’s my guy,” Franklin said on Thursday. “We go way back. We’ve been on the Nike trip for a long time. His wife and my wife are friends.”
The long-time Penn State head coach is making the move to the ACC after being fired from the Nittany Lions in October. 12 seasons of being with the program had Franklin hold a 44-21 record against top 10 opponents, an impressive record for a new conference foe of Swinney’s.
But when that trip comes around, there’s a camaraderie between Swinney and Franklin and both of their wives. In fact, the two hang out with each other instead of the other coaches at times. It simply comes to an “edgy” time in college athletics that raises tempers.
“I’m going to be honest, I wouldn’t say we’re necessarily like the type of people that love a lot of other coaches and a lot of other programs,” Franklin said. “It’s hard when you just compete year-round.”
On Swinney’s end, there are a few who could immediately come to mind among Clemson fans. Perhaps the most recent would be Ole Miss coach Pete Golding, who played the most significant role in the tampering of former linebacker Luke Ferrelli.
It’s a select list of coaches who make the good side of the Tigers’ head coach, and Franklin is certainly on that list. On the other hand, Hokies’ head coach has Swinney on his own shortlist.
“Obviously, tremendous respect for what he has built at Clemson and what he’s done at Clemson, and what he’s done for the ACC,” he said.
The two will see that close relationship face off at Memorial Stadium this upcoming season. Clemson will host the Hokies on Oct. 24 in what could be a potential title-eliminator for the ACC Championship.
Of course, the last game that we’ve seen the Tigers play in was against Franklin’s former team in Penn State at the Bad Boy Mowers Pinstripe Bowl. That game ended in a 22-10 contest that saw a foundation of Franklin players end Clemson’s season in disappointment.
Swinney will see many of those players once again in October, including starting quarterback Ethan Grunkemeyer, in that contest. The anticipated Hokie starter recorded 260 yards and two passing touchdowns on the Tigers in the Bronx that day.
Although friends become foes, another ACC coach has given Swinney his flowers for what he’s been able to do for the conference. In the upcoming moments, Franklin will look to prepare his team to prove itself on one of the biggest stages in the ACC, while Swinney looks to put his team back at the top of a conference he’s dominated for over 15 years.
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MARTINSVILLE, Va. (WSET) — Extreme drought conditions in parts of Virginia have prompted an emergency drought warning for a wide swath of the region, including Bedford, Campbell, Charlotte, Franklin, Halifax, Henry, Mecklenburg, Patrick, Pittsylvania and Roanoke counties, along with the cities of Danville, Roanoke, Salem and Martinsville.
The governor has warned that if conditions worsen, she will activate mandatory nonessential water-use restrictions.
In Martinsville, city leaders have issued a voluntary water conservation notice and are urging residents and businesses to cut back where they can. The request comes as local businesses that rely heavily on water say the drought is already affecting day-to-day operations.
SEE ALSO: Botetourt County residents adjust daily routines as voluntary water restriction continues
John Hughes, owner of John’s Car Wash, said the dry conditions have hit his business hard in recent weeks. “For the last 3 weeks, it’s been hitting pretty hard. We done three yesterday and haven’t done anything today with the drought and hot weather. Yeah, I’m really concerned about it,” Hughes said.
Restaurants are also feeling the strain. David Kitzmiller, an owner of Be Wiched, said water is essential for routine tasks such as washing dishes and preparing some menu items.
“We use a lot of water for washing dishes and some of our recipes if they limit us in anyway defiently can’t produce and its a scary aspect,” Kitzmiller said.
Kitzmiller added that cutting back is not always realistic for businesses that must meet sanitation needs. “Not really feasible for a business that depends solely relies on water to wash their dishes, so that can’t definitely be an impact there,” he said.
City leaders emphasized that the conservation request is voluntary for now, but they are encouraging everyone to do their part by taking shorter showers, turning off the faucet when it is not in use, washing only full loads of laundry, and limiting outdoor watering whenever possible.
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