Education-Related Articles and News
Conference Carolinas Sponsoring Women’s Flag Football
FERRUM, Va. – Conference Carolinas announced today the addition of women’s flag football as a conference-sponsored sport starting in 2025-26.
Conference Carolinas is the first NCAA Division I or II conference to sponsor women’s flag football, and second NCAA conference, joining Division III’s Atlantic East.
The league will have at least six institutions in the inaugural season… Read More
Tiffany Franks, Averett University President
Ahead of her first job interview there, Tiffany Franks visited Averett University’s campus with her husband to scope it out — a bit of “mystery shopping,” if you will. “We fell in love,” she recalls. “It was a match made in heaven.”
Franks became Averett’s 14th president in 2008, making her the first woman to lead the university since its founding. Her tenure has been defined by… Read More
Danville Aviation Training Facility Receives Federal Funding to Develop Workforce
Danville has received a $4.1 million grant from the U.S. Department of Commerce to build a new aviation training facility at Danville Regional Airport. The 12,532-square-foot facility will be used by students at Averett University and Danville Community College.
The new facility is meant to support aviation workforce development in the area, according to a news release from the… Read More
A Missed Opportunity: Why Virginia Must Reconsider Lab School Exclusions
The president of Ferrum College urges lawmakers to reconsider provisions that ban applications from private schools unless they have a four-year public school sponsoring them.
As the president of Ferrum College, situated in the heart of Southwest Virginia, I am compelled to address a critical oversight by Virginia’s elected officials — the exclusion of certain institutions, including… Read More
Building Futures: Ferrum College and Build Smart Institute Unite
It's a meeting of the minds and construction know-how as Build Smart Institute joins forces with Ferrum College. Emily learns about what is involved and what this means to the future of the Virginia workforce.
Read more on the ABC13 News website HERE.
The CARC Celebrates Member Institutions' Graduations
RICHMOND, Va., May 8, 2024 – As commencement ceremonies are held throughout Virginia, Commonwealth Alliance for Rural Colleges member institutions are collectively graduating 1095 students. After beginning their studies at Appalachian School of Law, Averett University, Bluefield University, Eastern Mennonite University, and Ferrum College in the bleak, COVID-19 ravaged days of 2020, members of… Read More
Commonwealth Alliance for Rural Colleges Announces Interim President
RICHMOND, Va., May 1, 2024 – The former longtime director of the State Council of Higher Education for Virginia (SCHEV) has been selected to serve as interim president of the Commonwealth Alliance for Rural Colleges (CARC). Peter Blake began his new leadership position today.
“"I am excited to join a team whose mission is to expand access to affordable and high-quality education,” said… Read More
Ferrum to Move to Division II, Join Conference Carolinas
Ferrum College will move to NCAA Division II and join Conference Carolinas, becoming the 16th school in the athletic conference.
It’s the latest in a string of changes that the small, private college in Franklin County has made to attract students and fight off dwindling enrollment that has plagued it in recent years.
President Mirta Martin made the announcement at a press… Read More
Averett University Aeronautics Reveals New Plane at Aviation Day Celebration
Averett University’s Aeronautics Department celebrated its annual Aviation Day with students, alumni, and their families on Friday.
Pilots who fly all over the globe came back down to their stomping grounds for the special occasion and spoke to students about how to take off into the world of flight in the aviation industry.
“When prospective students are starting out, a… Read More
Ferrum College Announces Transformative Six Schools Structure
FERRUM, VA, February 23, 2024 – Ferrum College, Virginia’s Opportunity College nestled in the heart of the Blue Ridge, proudly announces a transformative shift in its academic structure for Fall 2024. In a strategic move to better align with the evolving needs of industry… Read More