On Wednesday, February 28, West Virginia Governor Jim Justice assembled members of his cabinet and key state, local, and federal officials for a day-long meeting on infrastructure investment in West Virginia.
The Governor’s Infrastructure Funding Summit was led by Gehan Elsayed, Chief Engineer of Planning and Program Implementation at the West Virginia Department of Transportation and Governor’s Infrastructure Implementation Coordinator.
In kicking off the event, Ann Urling, Senior Advisor to the Governor, urged participants to “pull the rope together” to ensure the best outcomes for West Virginia on federal discretionary grant applications, interagency collaboration and coordination, and conveying a message of positive impact to local communities. Mitch Carmichael, Secretary for the West Virginia Department of Economic Development, gave a rousing presentation on Winning in West Virginia. Secretary Carmichael noted several key metrics contributing to the success of infrastructure and economic development investments in the state, most notably the dedicated and loyal workforce in the state and the $9.5 billion in private business investment over the last two years.
Governor Justice doubled down on the skill, tenacity, and dedication of West Virginia’s workforce, communities, and public servants assembled in the room. The Governor reflected on record investments in infrastructure that began well before the large federal packages being discussed, beginning with $1.4 billion in state investments in 2017, which ballooned to $5.1 billion in 2020 – before IIJA passed – to $13.4 billion at the beginning of 2024. With so many of his senior leadership focused on the success of these investments, the Governor was confident that “nothing is going to stop us unless we get in our own way” – a sure way to encourage everyone on the team to pull together.
Next, the discussion turned toward West Virginia’s efforts in Washington, D.C., where Melissa Decker, Director of the Governor’s Washington Office, shared tools and tactics for success in the nation’s capital. NGA’s Tom Curtin emphasized the importance of the “D.C. ground game,” crediting the Elsayed-Decker duo with a successful state-up, state-out approach to implementing key federal packages. Next, Brian Anderson, Executive Director of the Interagency Working Group on Coal and Power Plan Communities and Economic Revitalization spoke about federal resources and the opportunities to “bring the private sector to bear by taking advantage of tax credits in the Infrastructure Investment & Jobs Act (IIJA) and Inflation Reduction Act (IRA).” Kayleigh Kyle, Supervisory Community Liaison for the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Rural Partners Network (RPN), then talked about the on-the-ground community work RPN is doing with local government and community leaders.
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To round out the day, Senior Advisor Urling and Infrastructure Coordinator Elsayed led conversations on regional project development and how agencies are working together to prioritize IIJA investments. Ms. Urling spoke with economic and community development leaders on the importance of regional collaboration, an element of the “West Virginia style” the Governor highlighted earlier in the day. And Ms. Elsayed led discussions with leaders from the WV Department of Tourism, WV Energy Office, and Workforce Resiliency on how their work is contributing to West Virginia’s overall infrastructure investment efforts.
Infrastructure was clearly top of mind in West Virginia that day, as Governor Justice also announced, in a briefing, a significant upgrade to the West Virginia Infrastructure Hub website, with a newly-launched Investment Dashboard that allows users to explore infrastructure projects across the state that have already received funding. The West Virginia Infrastructure Hub is designed to efficiently distribute IIJA funds throughout the Mountain State. The website aims to ensure that the historic investment in infrastructure is distributed to where it is needed most.
NGA congratulates Governor Justice and his team on the launch of the Investment Dashboard and a successful infrastructure summit. To follow NGA’s ongoing activities and support for infrastructure implementation, please visit: https://www.nga.org/bestpractices/infrastructure/
The West Virginia Mountaineers (10-3) welcome the Maryland Terrapins (10-5) to Kendrick Family Ballpark Tuesday afternoon the first encounter between the two programs since 2023 and the first meeting in Morgantown since 2018. The first pitch is set for 2:00 p.m. EST and the action will stream on ESPN+.
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The Mountaineers captured their fourth consecutive series of the season after taking two of the three games from Columbia over the weekend. West Virginia sophomore Matt Ineich and senior Brodie Kresser both blasted grand slams during the series. Ineich lifted WVU in game two with a walk-off grand slam in the 10th in game two, and Kresser ignited a 16-1 rout, capping a six-run second inning in the series finale.
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Gavin Kelly leads West Virginia at the plate with a .436 batting average with a Big 12 leading nine doubles. Ineich and senior Paul Schoenfeld has raked in a team-leading 16 RBI apiece, while senior Matthew Graveline has clubbed a team-high three home runs.
On the mound, West Virginia is expected to start sophomore David Hagen. The right-hander has made four appearances on the season, including one start. He last started in the home-opener against Ohio where he pitched two scoreless innings and recorded a strikeout to collect his first win of the season. He holds a 1.00 ERA with five strikeouts on the season.
After starting 3-4, Maryland is 7-1 in its last eight games. The Terrapins won two of three at UNC Wilmington in the season opening series, followed by a midweek win against Georgetown before getting swept at Louisiana. The Terps bounced back with a pair of midweek wins versus Delaware and swept a one-win Wagner team.
Junior Brayden Martin is batting a team-best .443 to go with four doubles and 12 RBI. Redshirt freshman Ryan Costello leads the Terps in home runs (9) and RBI (21) and is third in batting average at .328, while freshman Ty Kaunus has a team-high seven doubles and has .269 batting average.
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Maryland is scheduled to start freshman Nic Morlang. The right-hander has four appearances on the season, including four starts. He allowed five earned runs in his appearances, coinciding with his two starts, in six innings of work. In his last two appearances in relief, He’s allowed one earned run on five hits.
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West Virginia leads the all-time series 8-5, including a five-game winning streak over Maryland.
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. — Multiple law enforcement agencies responded to a series of parties in Morgantown over the weekend.
Morgantown police officers, West Virginia University Police and state police responded to reports of overcrowded parties, underage drinking, physical altercations and multiple injuries.
Morgantown Communications Director Brad Riffie said several citations were issued for open containers and underage consumption.
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Two large parties were dispersed and six arrests were made without incident.
None of the reported injuries are believed to be serious or life-threatening.
The Morgantown Fire Department assisted in the operations.
Hancock County, WV — A Weir High School senior has been recognized as the 2026 West Virginia Student Journalist of the Year.
Hailey Hans was selected for the statewide honor after building a journalism portfolio since her freshman year. She also serves as the staff manager of Weir Student Media, where she oversees articles and is in charge of deadlines.
“When I was a freshman I was placed in the journalism one class, and I actually tried to get pulled from the class. But, then after I sat in the class and I learned a little bit, that’s where my love grew and then from there I continued to take classes, I helped pass a law, and I got to these national conventions. Where it just lit a fire inside me,” Hans said.
Hans is planning to attend West Liberty University in the fall to study education with a minor in journalism, with the goal of becoming a journalism teacher. She will now submit her portfolio for the national-level contest.
