Marshall Story Archives - West Virginia Public Broadcasting

The Postal Service, The Legislative Auditor, Fossils And Statues, This West Virginia Week

West Virginia Week is a web-only podcast that explores the week’s biggest news in the Mountain State. It’s produced with help from Bill Lynch, Briana Heaney, Chris Schulz, Curtis Tate, Emily Rice, Eric Douglas, Jack Walker, Liz McCormick, and Randy Yohe.

On this West Virginia Week, the state legislature got to work as the session drew closer to its final stretch. Lawmakers talked about home schooling, raw milk, keeping youth safe online, allowing 14-year-olds to work, and creating a lasting monument to one of the state’s most beloved figures, war hero Woody Williams.

We’ll also hear about the United States Postal Service’s proposed changes to mail processing, what the legislative auditor’s office does, and finally, we’ll talk to a Marshall University professor who studies fossils.

Curtis Tate is our host this week. Our theme music is by Matt Jackfert.

West Virginia Week is a web-only podcast that explores the week’s biggest news in the Mountain State. It’s produced with help from Bill Lynch, Briana Heaney, Chris Schulz, Curtis Tate, Emily Rice, Eric Douglas, Jack Walker, Liz McCormick, and Randy Yohe.

Learn more about West Virginia Week.

Dementia And The Holidays, Hope For Opioid Settlement Money And Concerning Health Trends, This West Virginia Week

On this West Virginia Week, we hear about some of the health challenges facing West Virginians — including lung disease, HIV/AIDS outbreaks and recovery.

On this West Virginia Week, we hear about some of the health challenges facing West Virginians — including lung disease, HIV/AIDS outbreaks and recovery.

We also learn how to meet the challenges of the holidays with aging family members.

Chris Schulz is our host this week. Our theme music is by Matt Jackfert.

West Virginia Week is a web-only podcast that explores the week’s biggest news in the Mountain State. It’s produced with help from Bill Lynch, Briana Heaney, Caroline MacGregor, Chris Schulz, Curtis Tate, Emily Rice, Eric Douglas, Liz McCormick, and Randy Yohe.

Learn more about West Virginia Week.

Full Scale Community Response Exercise Simulates Mass Casualty Incident

Cabell and Wayne county first responders, Marshall University personnel and the military will test an all-agency response to a simulated mass casualty incident during a Thundering Herd football game.

About 150 volunteer victims will be tracked, triaged, decontaminated if needed, and treated by local hospitals.

Jerry Beckett, chairman of the Cabell Wayne Local Emergency Planning Committee, said a mass casualty incident test is required once a year for hospital accreditation.

“It also tests many facets of the hospitals,” Beckett said. “Not only their emergency room, but their operating rooms, or ability to provide blood or pediatrics or burn centers, several different aspects of it, and they ramp up all of that and actually bring people in to simulate these.”

Beckett called the event all-encompassing for first responders.

“We bring all of our community partners together,” Beckett said. “The hospitals, the West Virginia National Guard, our fire departments, law enforcement, health department’s Tri-State Transit Authority, there are several other organizations, including the Salvation Army. We all come together for this community wide exercise to evaluate our resources and see where we have any gaps so that we can fix those in a timely fashion.”

Beckett said in the past, the testing has identified gaps in communications or inter-agency cooperation and allowed for fixes.

“It gives us an opportunity to test not only the equipment that we have, but also the knowledge of the users,” Beckett said. “There could be some training opportunities that come out of this that we may need to beef up. We may need equipment. We have to work those issues out, and it’s best to do that in an exercise rather than a real world event.”

Beckett said the West Virginia National Guard will have a major presence this year, doing some urban search and rescue and will have their own medical unit on-site.

Marshall University’s New Cyber Security Institute Poised To Become National Leader

MU President Brad Smith noted that U.S. News and World Report has said the best job right now in America is a cyber security job.

In a press conference and bill signing at Marshall University (MU) on Tuesday, school president Brad Smith said university and state leaders have been working since 2016 to establish a state-of-the-art Institute for Cyber Security.

“We said we need to look into the future,” Smith said. “What are the greatest secular trends? What are the greatest unsolved problems that our world is wrestling with, that we as West Virginians have proven that we can be distinctive, we can be excellent, and we can bring solutions to those problems. And when doing so we strengthen our own economy and prepare a better tomorrow for our next generation. Cybersecurity was at the top of that list.”

Gov. Jim Justice signed House Bill 117 into law that invests $45 million taxpayer dollars into the program.

House Speaker Roger Hanshaw, R-Clay, said that he and Smith had the opportunity recently to spend an afternoon with a defense contractor in Seattle, Washington.

“And the leader of our tour there that day said that it was their mission to defend America, on sea, on air, on land, in space, and in cyberspace,” Hanshaw said. “It takes a new kind of a new kind of professional to defend our country against the kinds of threats that we will face because those threats come in new ways today.”

The proposed downtown Huntington facility will house state-of-the-art cyber security technology and training programs and become the cyber locus, where industry from throughout Appalachia and the country will find training, mentoring and learn the most up-to-date cyber trends.

Smith noted that U.S. News and World Report has said the best job right now in America is a cyber security job.

“There are 714,000 open positions for people with these credentials today,” Smith said. “It’s projected that from now to 2031, the job growth in cyber security will grow by 35 percent.”

Smith said the new institute will position the university at the national forefront of cyber defense and research.

Click here for more details on the Marshall University Institute for Cyber Security.

Marshall University Receives $25 Million Gift for Business School

Marshall University has announced a $25 million gift to the Lewis College of Business from Intuit Chairman and CEO Brad D. Smith and his wife.

University President Jerome A. Gilbert said Thursday the gift from Smith is one of the largest in the university’s history. Gilbert said these funds will be used for “new and dynamic opportunities for current and future business students.”

The College of Business will name its schools the Brad D. Smith Undergraduate School of Business and the Brad D. Smith Graduate School of Business.

Brad Smith graduated from Marshall in 1986 with a bachelor’s degree in business administration.

The Smiths previously established a scholarship at Marshall for West Virginia and Ohio students.

Marshall to Hold Annual Memorial Ceremony

Each year the Marshall University Community gathers around the Memorial Fountain on the Marshall campus to remember those lost in the 1970 plane crash that killed the Marshall football team, staff and supporters.

The son of one of the dozens who died when a plane carrying the Marshall football team and staff crashed will speak at the annual memorial service.

Stephen Ward was only 5 when the plane crashed on Nov. 14, 1970, killing 36-year-old Parker Ward and 74 others. The Student Government Association conducts a memorial service each year on the anniversary of the crash, which this year falls on a Saturday. Since Marshall has a home football game at 3:30 p.m., the service will start at 10 a.m. rather than the traditional time of noon.

The service will be held at the Memorial Student plaza.