VPM Daily Newscast

Our top audio story today is a feature on how one school division is tackling the problem of chronic student absenteeism.  Richmond Public Schools is using incentives and engaging with students to battle chronic absenteeism following the COVID-19 pandemic. It’s an issue plaguing schools nationwide.  Ice cream and sneaker raffles are some of the ways staff at Boushall Middle School have worked to i...

An apartment development that’s set to add hundreds of units near the transforming Virginia Center Commons site is underway following a multimillion-dollar land deal that’s been over a year in the making; A Carytown dining institution is changing hands yet again; A veteran of the local restaurant scene is stepping out on his own with a new concept; and a new indoor golf location is set to open in...

Also: Hanover County welcomes new Ashland Elementary School, ASL interpreters at RPS have new continuing contracts and more Central Virginia news. 

Also: Today's feature is about a first-in-the-nation VCU Health program that applies a public health approach to the crisis of youth gun violence. Dr. Michel Aboutanos spoke to VPM News Morning Edition host Phil Liles about the devastating story that inspired him to develop the Bridging the Gap program and why he feels hospitals have a unique opportunity to reach shooting victims while they are st...

Also: The city of Charlottesville could become the second Virginia locality to use ranked choice voting in its local elections. 

Also: Charlottesville mulls over ranked choice voting and other Central Virginia news.

Also: After months of delays with this year's Free Application for Federal Student Aid, the U.S. Department of Education says next year’s FAFSA will open two months later than expected.

One of the final pieces needed for construction to start on Richmond’s Diamond District was put in place Wednesday; A stretch of Grove Avenue in Richmond’s West End is becoming a hotspot for residential infill developments; A vacant Arts District building is set to get new life thanks in part to one of the city’s busier architects; and Norfolk BBQ joint BarQ is opening in the former Starlite space...

Also: The Family Foundation is suing Richmond over the $10 land transfer to Planned Parenthood, Petersburg Animal Shelter is closed for a parvovirus outbreak — and more Central Virginia news.

Richmond Mayor Levar Stoney held a press conference Wednesday, in part, to address ongoing questions about purchase card policies. Also: GOP ex-Rep. Denver Riggleman endorses two Democrats, Chesterfield County Public Schools have a new interim superintendent — and more Central Virginia news.

The city’s public works department is working with an engineering firm on a long-term solution. Also: New accessibility tool comes to state parks, Gov. Glenn Youngkin explains Executive Order 35 — and more Central Virginia news.

Also: A bill to rein in campaign contributions sponsored by Delegate David Bulova — a Fairfax Democrat — was spiked during this year's General Assembly session. That means Virginia’s campaign finance laws remain relatively lax compared to other states.

Once a month, Salem Church Middle School in Chesterfield holds student club time during the school day instead of after school. VPM News reporter Megan Pauly visited the crochet and gardening clubs to find out what students are doing with that time.

The new home of the Richmond Flying Squirrels is coming into fuller view via updated renderings recently submitted to the city; The City of Richmond’s onetime manager for its ballpark-anchored Diamond District project is back in the game, but this time on a different team; Mark Motley, who makes his living selling things for others, has just closed a sizable sale of his own; and Henrico's EDA has...

Former Tropical Storm Debby could bring relief to Virginia's farms and forests; Richmond Redevelopment and Housing Authority enters a “final push” to get tenants who owe back rent to sign up for repayment agreements; Ultimate Backpack Supply Drive hits seventh year; and other stories

Virginia Department of Education finishes cell phone town halls in Chesterfield; National Park Service adds Black History Museum and Cultural Center of Virginia to list of National Civil Rights Sites; and other stories

Also: Several RPS bus drivers are still negotiating contracts with the school division, Virginia students are still awaiting their federal financial aid details — and more local news.

According to the U.S. Department of Education, some of those glitches won’t be resolved before students start classes this fall . It’s a problem that has complicated the lives of students and parents, school counselors, and college administrators for months.

Also: Richmond finance department employees had their desks searched last week.

One of the busiest developers in Scott’s Addition just got the green light for its latest project in the neighborhood; VCU Health is looking to move a proposed outpatient medical center out of the Courthouse Landing development to a site nearby; A mainstay Carytown retailer moved elsewhere within the neighborhood; and a Fan restaurant space is trading pizza for matzoh balls.

Also: Strata Clean Energy hit a roadblock in building its 1,400 acre solar farm in Hanover after the county’s planning commission declined to recommend the project.

The food brand is adding another 7 million pounds of food to its recall for listeria concerns. Also: It’s a bunch of 2024 Paris Olympics updates about Virginia athletes.

The City of Richmond is finalizing guidelines to reduce the environmental impact of its buildings; Richmond mayoral candidate Michelle Mosby wrote an email to City Council advocating for more funding for the Help Me Help You Foundation; The latest on a local Olympian's journey in Paris; and other stories

Resignations shake up Hanover schools leadership; Virginia’s Olympians on the move; and other stories

Food and cooking can provide us with connections to the past, and old family recipes help pass traditions between generations. Eugene Maurakis, the former chief scientist at the Science Museum of Virginia, revisits his childhood by sharing his family’s old Greek recipes. Now, he’s compiled them in a cookbook called “Foods are Memories.”