Cover Story
Working in the time of coronavirus
Facing global pandemic, businesses move online
It was the week everything changed. On Saturday, March 7, Virginians woke up to learn that the novel coronavirus sweeping around the world had spread to the Old Dominion, with the news that a U.S. Marine at Fort Belvoir in Fairfax tested positive for COVID-19. By the following Saturday, Gov. Ralph Northam had declared a
Interview
A woman of science
Miss America Camille Schrier promotes STEM education, opioid prevention
Published
Beakers and chemicals. Sparkles and high heels. An uncommon pairing for most is Miss America’s reality— something she’s working to normalize for young women. When Miss America 2020 Camille Schrier jumped back into the pageant world last year, she was initially stumped as to what she could do for the talent competition. A month before
Opinion
COVID-19: Y2K or Walking Dead?
Published
A hungover partier wakes up amid the flotsam of the previous night’s New Year’s Eve bash, dons his Nikes and heads into the streets for a jog. It’s Saturday morning, Jan. 1, 2000. He’s in the zone, totally oblivious to the chaos erupting around him, ranging from armed troops marching the streets to cash-spitting ATMs
From This Issue
‘Don’t let a good crisis go to waste’
HR experts offer advice for navigating the pandemic
Published
In addition to public health concerns, the coronavirus crisis also has left companies dealing with a raft of urgent policy and personnel issues, ranging from telework and child care to paid sick leave. As the virus spread across Virginia, human resources management experts counseled companies to handle coronavirus-related HR issues with creativity and empathy. “In
Workers cope with impending printing plant closure
Published
Some employees at LSC Communications’ printing plant in Strasburg figured its closure was imminent after financial downturns in recent months, but the loss of nearly 400 jobs is still a heavy blow. “I just started in September,” says Kimberly Carlysle, who drives a forklift in LSC’s shipping department. “This was going to be my last
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For the Record – April 2020
Published
EASTERN VIRGINIA Amazon.com Inc. will build two operations facilities in Hampton Roads in 2021, creating an expected 1,500 jobs. A multistory robotics fulfillment center in Suffolk will create 1,000 jobs and a 650,000-square-foot processing center in Chesapeake will create 500 jobs. The Virginia Economic Development Partnership worked with the city of Chesapeake, the city of Suffolk,
Dining downturn
Restaurants focus on takeout — and saving jobs
Published
During the first week of Virginia’s coronavirus crisis, a timer went off every 30 minutes at Perch, the high-end Pacific Rim seafood restaurant in Richmond. It was time to wipe down all surfaces again. “We can control the inside, but we can’t control the outside,” says Mike Ledesma, executive chef and owner. The restaurant transformed
Hometown college
U.Va. Wise lends economic development support to town
Published
On the town of Wise’s website, information about the University of Virginia’s College at Wise sits behind an appropriately labeled tab: “Our College.” When U.Va. Wise was founded in 1954, it was called Clinch Valley College of the University of Virginia, and it was the commonwealth’s first public college west of Radford. More than a
A good walk improved
Virginia is home to some of the nation’s most beautiful — and demanding — golf courses
Published
The course at Kinloch Golf Club unfolds and reveals itself like an epic novel. Over the course of 19 holes — yes, 19 — its spectacular, elevated terrain clashes dramatically with its diabolical sporting challenges. “Kinloch is wonderful,” says noted course designer Rees Jones, who has designed or restored more than 260 courses around the
Regional group forms to bring in manufacturing jobs
Published
Like many rural communities, Mecklenburg County relies on regional cooperation to boost its economy. A newly formed partnership — Virginia’s Manufacturing Region — is a regional coalition to market Southern Virginia as a top destination for manufacturing jobs. It’s a bit like a supergroup, with Virginia’s Growth Alliance in Keysville, Virginia Gateway Region in Colonial
Crossing the line
Bristol seeks to strike new chord as a destination for casinos and tourism
Published
A city famous for birthing country music and straddling the Virginia-Tennessee state line, Bristol, Virginia, has spent the last decade struggling to recover from the Great Recession and the coal industry’s steep decline. However, a new surge of economic life is reenergizing Bristol as it enters the 2020s. More visitors are flocking downtown. A new
The safety net
Health systems are the front line against coronavirus
Published
Even before the outbreak of COVID-19, many Virginia hospital beds were routinely full. “We are 90% to 100% occupied every day in VCU Health, generally [from] elective surgical care,” says Dr. Ron Clark, interim CEO of VCU Hospitals and Clinics. In the days following Gov. Ralph Northam’s state of emergency declaration, health care officials across
Virginia is for coronavirus
Tourism and hospitality industries take hard hits
Published
Within the first week of coronavirus spreading into Virginia, Lansdowne Resort and Spa in Leesburg saw about 50% of its conferences and events for March and April immediately postponed or canceled. “For now, it’s a short-term event,” says Rich Keurajian, Lansdowne director of sales and marketing. But that may have been wishful thinking, as the
