A nearly $900,000 grant has been awarded by the National Science Foundation’s Advanced Technological Education program that will help Virginia Western Community College students get jobs in geospatial technology. The Expanding Geospatial Technician Education Through Virginia’s Community Colleges project will  create academic pathways and train faculty on the use of geospatial technology. Additional participating community colleges include Thomas Nelson Community College, Southwest Virginia Community College and J. Sargeant Reynolds Community College.

Here is the press release from Virginia Western Community College.
ROANOKE – A new grant by the National Science Foundation’s (NSF) Advanced Technological Education program will help Virginia Western Community College create a pathway for students to gain employment in the growing field of geospatial technology. According to the U.S. Department of Labor, employment in geospatial technology is expected to increase 35 percent by 2020. Read more »

A new iPhone app launched by General Shale makes it easier for construction workers and home owners to browse and purchase materials needed for construction projects. The app offers a product browse function and calculators to help estimate material costs. To download the app via the iPhone App Store, visit http://delivr.com/1lz9b_qr.

Here is the press release from General Shale.

ROANOKE, Va.—General Shale has launched an innovative, state-of-the-art tool to assist construction professionals and homeowners with designing buildings, selecting products, calculating costs and purchasing materials for their projects. Read more »

Community Housing Partners is collaborating with two NeighborWorks organizations to create a curriculum for a web-based, green property management training program. A $150,000 grant from NeighborWorks America’s Collaborative Model program will aid efforts made by the collaboration between CHP, Community HousingWorks of San Diego, Calif. and Southwest Minnesota Housing Partnership. The group will work together to create an online education program that will teach environmentally-responsible management skills to  property managers .

Here is the press release from Community Housing Partners.

Christiansburg, Va. – With a $150,000 grant from NeighborWorks America’s Collaborative Model program, Community Housing Partners (CHP) will work for the next two years with two additional NeighborWorks organizations to assemble and develop curriculum for a comprehensive web-based, green property management training program.
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The new building that houses the  office of Drs. Randolph Dickey, John Singleton and Sean Lynch is the first green dental office built with Passivhaus technology, according to a press release from Structures Design Build.

A ribbon cutting will be held Wednesday at the new location on Franklin Road in Roanoke. According to Dr. F. Randolph Dickey, the dentists have been operating in the new building since Jan. 21.

Structures constructed the office that uses triple pane windows, heating and cooling energy recovery systems, and a fresh air ventilation system to reduce the amount of energy used to operate the building.

The press release  said Passivhaus technology reduces a building’s energy usage by 70 percent.

An earlier article about the new green dentist office can be found here.

-Danielle Dunaway

Blacksburg Eye Associates is donating funds to help Optometry Giving Sight, an organization that provides eye exams and glasses to developing communities world-wide. For every frame the optometrist sells, $3 will be donated to the organization through the office’s fundraising program, Seeing Eye to Eye.

Here is the press release from Blacksburg Eye Associates.

John M Dovie, OD, FAAO, from Blacksburg Eye Associates is responding to a call to optometrists to raise funds to help eliminate one of the leading causes of blindness worldwide – uncorrected refractive error – simply the need for an eye exam and glasses. Read more »

Michael Aldrich

A Wells Fargo Distinguished Lecture will take place at Virginia Tech on Feb. 5 at 3:30 p.m. Michael Aldrich, head of client service at Brown Advisory in Baltimore, Md., will give a talk titled “Goals without plans.” The talk is sponsored by the Pamplin College, and is free and open to the public. For parking information, call 231-3200.

Here is the press release from Virginia Tech.

BLACKSBURG, Va., Jan. 28, 2013 – Michael H. Aldrich, Pamplin College of Business alumnus and head of client service of Brown Advisory in Baltimore, Md., will give the Wells Fargo Distinguished Lecture, sponsored by the Pamplin College, on Tuesday, Feb. 5, at 3:30 p.m. at the Holtzman Alumni Center’s Alumni Assembly Hall. Read more »

Roanoke-based Internet site developer, SiteVision has been selected to synchronize the Georgia Hospital Association’s web portal with an external emergency high-speed notification system. SiteVision will work to synchronize GHA’s Georgia911 with a third-party  notification system from Twenty First Century Communications. Georgia911 is a crisis care website that aids in disaster preparedness. The new change will allow GHA911 members to receive SMS and text messages from the alerting system.

Here is the press release submitted by SiteVision.

Roanoke, VA January 24, 2013: The Georgia911 effort is a Crisis Care website specifically designed to assist hospitals and related services in their disaster preparedness – whether natural or manmade. The new effort will synchronize the existing online portal with an external emergency high-speed notification system provided by Twenty First Century Communications (TFCC). Read more »

A  public service announcement video for Help Save The Next Girl received a 2012 W3 Silver Award from the International Academy of the Visual Arts. The video was created by area public relations firm SAKinterMedia and advertising firm B2C Enterprises.

Help Save The Next Girl is a campaign started by Dan and Gil Harrington after their daughter was abducted and murdered after leaving a concert at John Paul Jones Arena in Charlottesville. This is the only campaign from western Virginia recognized in the competition.

The awards recognize creativity on the web, and the creative and marketing professionals who create award winning sites, programs and videos created for the web.

Here is the press release from B2C Enterprises and SAKinterMedia.

Roanoke, VA (January 2013) – The locally produced Help Save The Next Girl video PSA (HelpSaveTheNextGirl.com), created by SAKinterMedia and B2C Enterprises of Roanoke, VA gained international recognition last month when it received a 2012 W3 Silver Award from the International Academy of the Visual Arts (IAVA).  The W3 Awards honor creative excellence on the web, and recognizes the creative and marketing professionals behind award winning sites, marketing programs, and video work created for the web. In its seventh year, the W3 Awards received over 3,000 entries from ad agencies, public relations firms, Interactive agencies, web & graphic designers worldwide. Read more »

A Startup Readiness Workshop will be offered Feb. 28 in Forest. Virginia’s Region 2000 Partnership and VT KnowledgeWorks will be hosting the workshop that will help prospective entrepreneurs understand what it takes to start a business. Topics covered include managerial practices, money, factors for startup success and more. The price for the all day workshop is $150 for one person, $250 for two from the same company or $350 for three people from the same company. Register online at www.vtknowledgeworks.com.

Here is the press release from VT KnowledgeWorks.

(Blacksburg, VA) – Virginia’s Region 2000 Partnership, in conjunction with VT KnowledgeWorks, is hosting a Startup Readiness Workshop on Thursday, February 28, 2013, in Forest, Virginia.  This full-day workshop at The Center for Advanced Engineering and Research helps prospective entrepreneurs test the strategic essence of their business concept, tighten up on managerial focus, and review the overall business start-up process. Read more »

An online course is being offered that will teach Virginia forest landowners how to manage their woods. Offered by the Virginia Cooperative Extension and the Virginia Forest Landowner Education Program in Virginia Tech’s College of Natural Resources and Environment, the 12-week course will begin March 4. The registration fee is $45 per family and covers three reference books, two CDs, online reading materials and assignments. Click here to register.

Here is the press release from Virginia Tech.

BLACKSBURG, Va., Jan. 22, 2013 – Virginia forest landowners looking to gain an understanding of how to keep their woods healthy and productive can do so in the comfort of their own home.

Virginia Cooperative Extension and the Virginia Forest Landowner Education Program in Virginia Tech’s College of Natural Resources and Environment are offering an online course to help private landowners become better stewards of their land. Read more »