Virginia Tech Archives - The Virginia Star

Virginia Tech Claims to Follow the Science on COVID, But Does Just the Opposite

April 20, 2021April 19, 2021 Virginia Star Staff

Virginia Democratic Gov. Ralph Northam amended a previous executive order to ease up on COVID-19 restrictions, effective on April 1, allowing up to 50 people to gather for indoor events and up to 100 people to gather for outdoor events. However, Virginia Polytechnic Institute announced it would not follow these guidelines but maintain previous restrictions that limit indoor gathering to 10 people and outdoor gatherings to 50 people.

Alyssa Jones, president of the Turning Point USA chapter at Virginia Tech, contacted her school following Northam’s announcement that he would ease COVID-19 restrictions.

In a March 23 email obtained by Campus Reform, Student Engagement and Campus Life told Jones that “after April 1st groups are permitted to have up to 50 people in attendance for indoor events.”

Teaching Assistant Docks Point on Conservative Student’s Black Panther Essay: ‘White People Cannot Experience Racism’

April 6, 2021April 5, 2021 Virginia Star Staff

A student at Virginia Tech University was told by a teaching assistant that “White people cannot experience racism” when asked why she received a low grade on her final paper.

Students in the Nations and Nationalities class at Virginia Tech were asked to complete a paper describing a hate group from the Southern Poverty Law Center’s list, and analyze how that group justifies its worldview, according to Alyssa Jones, a student in the class.

Jones is also the president of the Virginia Tech University Turning Point USA chapter and a campus ambassador for The Leadership Institute, the parent organization of Campus Reform.

Town of Blacksburg Passes Gun Ban

January 15, 2021January 14, 2021 Eric Burk

The Blacksburg Town Council unanimously passed a resolution banning guns on town property including in buildings and parks, effective March 1.

In the Tuesday meeting, Council member Susan Anderson said she was on campus during the 2007 shooting at Virginia Tech in Blacksburg. “After I walked home later that day, I remember asking my husband, ‘What am I supposed to do?'”

Virginia Tech Cancels Spring Break

October 21, 2020October 20, 2020 Eric Burk

Virginia Tech announced that the Spring 2021 semester will continue with a combination of in-person, hybrid, and online classes. According to the Monday announcement, the school’s traditional week-long spring break will be replaced with five individual days off spread over several weeks to discourage students from traveling.

COVID-19 at Virginia Colleges and Universities: What Do the Numbers Say?

October 3, 2020October 2, 2020 Jacob Taylor

As many colleges and universities in Virginia continue on with in-person instruction for the 2020 fall semester during the coronavirus pandemic, the schools’ COVID-19 dashboards offer insights into how the pandemic is affecting those institutions.

Since the global pandemic hit the United States back in March, more and more schools have created online COVID dashboards that present a plethora of data on total tests, case counts, positivity percentage and 7-day moving averages for positive tests.

Virginia Colleges Enrollment Plummets

October 1, 2020September 30, 2020 Jacob Taylor

Enrollment in Virginia’s public and private nonprofit colleges and universities for the fall semester declined by 1.3 percent or 6,658 students, according to early enrollment estimates from the State Council of Higher Education in Virginia (SCHEV) released Tuesday.

The data used by SCHEV is directly provided by 64 colleges and universities located in the Commonwealth, including some of the state’s most prestigious and largest schools such as William and Mary, Virginia Tech, University of Virginia, Virginia Commonwealth University and Washington and Lee University.

Birx Visits Virginia Tech to Discuss COVID-19 Issues

September 17, 2020September 17, 2020 Virginia Star Staff

On Wednesday, Dr. Deborah Birx – a key part of the Trump Administration’s vaulted Coronavirus task force – arrived in Blacksburg to meet with state and local officials, faculty, students and health care professionals on the Virginia Tech campus to discuss Covid-19 and the response to reopening schools safely.

During a brief press conference, the White House coronavirus response coordinator had high praise for the school as she stated that a great amount of research had been done at the facility including animal and waste water testing to better understand the asymptomatic spread rate of the virus.

Virginia Tech Punts on Opener, Postpones UVA Amidst COVID Scare

September 13, 2020September 12, 2020 Jacob Taylor

Virginia Tech and the University of Virginia (UVA) announced Saturday they are postponing the first game of the season because of COVID-19 issues at Virginia Tech.

The game, otherwise known as the Commonwealth Cup, was slated to be played September 19, in Blacksburg.

Virginia Tech, Town of Blacksburg Prohibit Tailgating, Ask Fans to ‘Homegate’ Instead

September 2, 2020September 1, 2020 Jacob Taylor

Virginia Tech and the town of Blacksburg announced Tuesday that tailgating for football games is prohibited out of concerns the activity could increase the spread of COVID-19.

The announcement specifically prohibited tailgating on university or town parking lots as well as other public places, and instead asked Hokie fans to watch games while “homegating” with friends or family as a more safe alternative.