Reaching out: With much on the line, voter registration groups push through the pandemic

By Carol Diggs In each of Virginia’s last five national elections, voter registration around the state has surged anywhere from 6 to 10 percent. This year, coronavirus has made voter registration (like so many things) just a little harder. Registering online, available throughout the pandemic shutdown, requires a Virginia driver’s license or DMV-issued ID—things that […]

PICK: Liza Nash Taylor reading

Family business: In her debut novel, Etiquette for Runaways, local resident Liza Nash Taylor sets the action in her own backyard. Inspired by true events, Taylor’s Jazz-Age story follows the fate of May Marshall who, after being expelled from Mary Baldwin College, settles at her father’s Keswick farm and stumbles upon a moonshine enterprise. Taylor […]

In brief: Coronavirus clusters, CRB concerns, and more

Rogers that A statue of an old racist general in Charlottesville has once again been recontextualized—UVA’s George Rogers Clark monument was splattered with an impressive arc of red paint in the middle of the night on Sunday. Clark was a general during the United States’ violent westward expansion in the 19th century. The statue shows […]

In brief: Back to UVA, bewildering ballots, and more

Comeback kids? On August 4, UVA announced that move-in and the beginning of in-person classes will be delayed by two weeks, meaning face-to-face instruction will start on September 8. University President Jim Ryan released a video August 7, explaining that the decision to delay was made in response to a rise in Virginia’s coronavirus transmission, […]

In brief: Bridging forward, testing troubles, and more

Building bridges After nearly two decades of municipal hiccups and mishaps, the city’s plan to replace the Belmont Bridge is finally coming to fruition. On Monday evening, City Council conducted a first reading on an allocation for the project: The state will pay $12.1 million, the federal government will pay $3.2 million, and the city […]

The ‘college experience’: UVA’s incoming first-years sign on for mostly-virtual semester

By Claudia Gohn University administrators around the country have expressed concern about whether students would show up for a non-traditional school year (and, accordingly, pay tuition). UVA’s incoming freshmen have shown that they’re so eager to begin their halcyon college years, they’ll do so even during a pandemic. According to Dean of Admission Greg Roberts, […]

Slowing the spread: City and county adopt local COVID-19 restrictions different from state guidelines

By Emily Hamilton On August 1, residents of Charlottesville and Albemarle became subject to a new set of coronavirus restrictions: in-person gatherings of more than 50 people are banned; restaurants and other venues such as wineries, breweries, and distilleries can operate at only 50 percent capacity; and face coverings are required in indoor public spaces. […]