By Laken DillowPhoto by Keri Stegall According to the Virginia Department of Education, fewer than half of high school graduates in Southwest Virginia either go on to technical training, higher education, or join the military. According to the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation, Center for Education and Workforce, youth who are uninformed of potential local career pathways are more vulnerable to dropping o ...

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Tony Lettich, pictured above The Angel Roundtable, (ART) the angel investment network of the Appalachian Highlands, is pleased to announce an investment in ConverSight.ai, a leading national voice solutions-based AI platform with focuses in sales, manufacturing, transportation / supply chain, diagnostics and education. The company, which is based in Indianapolis, IN, offers enterprises and academia voice en ...

Dr. Andrew Buzzelli, pictured above Tusculum University has reached another significant milestone in the accreditation process for the innovative and comprehensive Niswonger College of Optometry. The Accreditation Council on Optometric Education has designated the Niswonger College of Optometry as a “Stage-Two Applicant.” This stage is not a pre-accreditation or accreditation status, but rather a step towar ...

Tennessee Governor Bill Lee Dr. Brian Noland, Randy Wykoff and Alan Levine Tennessee Governor Bill Lee announced July 16 the funding of a new Center for Rural Health Research to be housed at the East Tennessee State University College of Public Health and directed by Dr. Randy Wykoff, public health dean. The governor pledged the state budget would include $1.5 million for the first year and $750,000 for the ...

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The Virginia Business College Board has named Dr. Gene Couch, Jr as its President. Couch has more than 35 years of higher education experience - as a faculty member, program director, division chair, program developer, chief academic officer, senior administrator for academic and student services, as an executive vice president and most recently as the president of Virginia Highlands Community College. Couc ...

A Delta aircraft experienced mechanical issues on Thursday morning that temporarily shut down a runway at Tri-Cities Airport. No injuries were reported. PHOTO BY SCOTT ROBERTSON A mechanical issue on a Delta flight preparing to leave Tri-Cities Airport Thursday morning temporarily shut down one of the runways at the facility and left passengers on the aircraft stranded. No injuries were reported. The Delta ...

More than 1,200 college and high school students from around the world gathered at the Kingsport Aquatic Center last week for the 18th MATE (Marine Advanced Technology Education) International ROV Competition. Seventy teams took part in a multi-tasked competition in which they designed, built and operated robots to perform a series of tasks simulating actions that would be taken by underwater dam repair rob ...

Dr. James Hurley, Tusculum University’s president, delivers the news that Tusculum is now classified as a Level V higher education institution. Tusculum University has achieved another significant milestone in its vision to develop the Niswonger College of Optometry as a national leader in contemporary eye care with its receipt of the green light to offer doctoral degrees. The Southern Association of Colleg ...