Tucked into Governor McAuliffe’s 2016 budget is $268,000 to build a badly-needed jetty on Tangier Island out in the Chesapeake Bay. The project took three years for the Army Corps of Engineers to study and will take another two years before it will be built. Islanders say they need it now —  and that more needs to be done to save the island. Pamela D’Angelo reports from Tangier.

Since the recession state funding for higher education across the country has plummeted, including here in Virginia, where it remains a quarter below what it was before the recession. Governor McAuliffe revealed details today about how he’d like to fund higher education in the state for the next two years. Mallory Noe-Payne reports from Richmond.

It’s a budget year in Virginia — meaning during this year’s legislative session the Governor and General Assembly will work to craft how the state spends its money for the next two years. Governor Terry McAuliffe won’t reveal his proposed budget until next week, but Wednesday in Richmond he did announce a plan to issue two-and-a-half billion dollars in bonds. Money from those bond sales will largely go to the state’s colleges. Mallory Noe-Payne reports.

Politicians in Richmond are already gearing up for 2017 elections — Delegate Rob Bell announced Thursday afternoon that he’s running for Virginia Attorney General.  Mallory Noe-Payne reports.

Although recent international terrorist attacks have shocked the world, they’ve had little impact on the day-to-day lives of most Virginians. But for one private school outside of Richmond, incidents of global terrorism have hit close to home. Mallory Noe-Paye reports.

Yesterday, we shared with you the story of Tysons Corner – a fast-growing suburb in Northern Virginia, grappling with traffic, noise and sidewalks that don’t always connect.  Ironically, it’s evolving next to one of the nation’s first planned communities – a place designed to avoid those very problems and to offer instant community.  Reston is the subject of a new documentary which had its debut at the Virginia Film Festival.  Sandy Hausman reports on why Reston was once a revolutionary place, and why it’s now a model for other suburbs. 

With more than thirty thousand people in prison, Virginia’s Department of Corrections is the most expensive agency in the state.  To cut costs and assure public safety, officials need ways  to assure that inmates don’t go back to a life of crime when they are released.  At Virginia Commonwealth University, one professor is promoting a novel idea – helping inmates to write their way out.  Sandy Hausman has that story.

Richmond is making headlines, placing in a top spot on “Travel and Leisure Magazine’s” annual “Best Places to Travel List.” Among Caribbean beaches and European canals, Virginia’s capitol finds itself in good company — the magazine picked out 50 cities from around the world, and Richmond placed 3rd. Mallory Noe-Payne reports.

Virginia Republicans are trying to derail the global climate change talks in Paris. Matt Laslo reports on the battle raging in Washington that will be felt across Virginia. 

Heroin drug use is up in the state of Virginia. In fact, more Virginians died of overdose from heroin and prescription drugs than car crashes in 2014. The Attorney General’s Office is hoping a new film premiering today can help. Mallory Noe Payne reports.

Tysons Corner is a model for what urban planners call an Edge City – located outside Washington, D.C., it’s the commercial center for Fairfax County, with two major shopping malls and countless corporate headquarters.  This year, the Metro arrived there, sparking new residential development and the prospect of much more pedestrian traffic – people walking to and from the train.  That prompted a team from the University of Virginia to launch a walking study of the place – hoping to document just how hard it is to get around Tysons on foot or bicycle, and to explore possible solutions.  Sandy Hausman tagged along and filed this report.

Virginia is touting itself as the East Coast oyster capitol, last year harvesting more than half-a-million wild and farmed oysters valued at nearly $34 million. The growing industry is making it more tempting to poachers. Pamela D’Angleo reports from the Rappahannock River.