With extremely high rates of COVID-19 plaguing the Dan River Region, cases among students and staff members continue to grow in educational facilities. Figures dipped for a week after winter weather forced schools to either close or switch to a virtual mode. Now they have rebounded.

Loudoun County Supervisor Caleb Kershner has threatened to withhold funding for the Virginia school system unless it releases a law firm report it commissioned to investigate the system's handling of two sexual assaults at two county high schools involving a then-14-year-old boy, that Kershner's law firm, and he personally represented.

RICHMOND, Va. (WRIC)- A local middle school student says more state funding is urgently needed as the pandemic drives an increase in mental health problems among children. Fourteen-year-old Elijah Lee, a student at Swift Creek Middle School in Chesterfield and the founder of "Hear Our Voices," asked members of the General Assembly to make this a priority as lawmakers craft the two-year budget.

2020 was a year marked by hardships and challenges, but the Fauquier community has proven resilient. The Fauquier Times is honored to serve as your community companion. To say thank you for your continued support, we'd like to offer all our subscribers -- new or returning -- 4 WEEKS FREE DIGITAL AND PRINT ACCESS.

Nearly two years' worth of emotions and views on face masks, their effectiveness or lack thereof, was at the forefront of a public comments session of the Amherst County School Board's special called Jan. 27 meeting on the subject. The board took more than a dozen comments, most spoken and some written, before discussing the executive order from Gov.

Fairfax County Public Schools will recognize more religious holidays in its calendar, coming after contentious debate and years-long frustrations among some parents in Virginia's largest school system. The changes, which bring Fairfax into alignment with surrounding school systems in the state, will give students days off for the Jewish holidays of Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur, the Hindu festival Diwali and Orthodox Good Friday.

With the state embroiled in controversy over systemic racism in schools, a lawsuit against Albemarle County Public Schools could make the area a battleground. The lawsuit targets Albemarle County schools' plan to eliminate racism and close long-standing achievement gaps among student groups.

In Virginia Beach, a mother is sending frantic emails to her school board, begging them to reverse their mask-optional policy to protect the life of her 14-year-old daughter who has a heart condition.

WILLIAMSBURG-JAMES CITY COUNTY - Williamsburg-James City County (WJCC) Schools will continue to follow the adjusted school schedules through the remainder of the school year. In a Wednesday, Jan. 26 announcement, the division said that the adjusted school schedules, which were put in place in the fall, will continue for the rest of the year for the convenience of the school community.

The Albemarle County School Board says it needs residents of the Samuel Miller magisterial district to serve on two of its advisory committees.