RICHMOND, VA – Today, Governor Glenn Youngkin was joined by Boeing CEO Dave Calhoun and Virginia Tech President Tim Sands to announce a public-private partnership uniting industry, government, and academia to drive talent development and increased labor force participation in Virginia.

The partnership builds upon Boeing’s $50 million, multi-year commitment that helped jump-start the development of Virginia Tech’s Innovation Campus, which offers a new model for graduate education in computer science and engineering, and aims to create the most diverse technology campus in the United States. 

Boeing became the Virginia Tech Innovation Campus’ first foundational partner in 2021 to broaden its technology focus across Aerospace & Defense applications, bolstering Virginia as a global innovation hub. The campus will become an internationally recognized research center for Artificial Intelligence, Quantum Software, Wireless Communications and Intelligent Interfaces.

Governor Youngkin also announced the formation of the Boeing Center for Veteran Transition and Military Families on Virginia Tech’s Innovation Campus, which will work in concert with the Commonwealth’s Veterans and Defense Affairs Secretariat. The new center will be a key part of his plan to establish a statewide network of resources for Veterans and their families. This initiative includes the creation of an integrated, best-in-class digital hub that seamlessly connects Veterans and their families to services and benefits provided across the Commonwealth. The State has also committed employees from the Department of Veterans Services to staff the Center on Virginia Tech’s Innovation Campus. 

“Boeing’s recent announcement to move its headquarters to Virginia and reaffirm its commitment to building the next generation of tech talent is a timely development for the Commonwealth, and is made more exciting by their extensive partnership with Virginia Tech,” said Governor Glenn Youngkin. “The relocation of a world-class company like Boeing to Virginia is testament to the wealth of talent and human capital in our state. Their pledge to create the Boeing Center for Veteran Transition and Military Families ensures that the Commonwealth and its businesses continue to invest in diverse career pathways for veterans and students alike, all the while helping businesses thrive.”

“We know that Virginia and Northern Virginia particularly have a high concentration of service members and their families. When separating service members look for their next career step, we want them to choose Virginia. We are committed to making Virginia the best choice for Veterans and their spouses to live, work, and raise a family. This statewide network of resources and connectivity is a step in the right direction to make that a reality,” said Secretary of Defense and Veterans Affairs Craig Crenshaw.

As part of the Boeing-Virginia Tech partnership, the world renowned Aerospace & Defense company has committed to providing student scholarships, facilitating recruitment of world-class faculty, funding K-12 STEM pathway programs, and supporting programs for non-traditional undergraduates, including veterans, to enroll in its state of the art programs.

“I applaud Boeing for their long-term commitment to the Commonwealth and investments in Virginia’s human capital,” said Secretary of Education Aimee Guidera. “This partnership in K-12 and higher education will further develop our talent pool to ensure we bolster Virginia's current workforce while also strengthening the pathways for our increasingly diverse citizenry to be prepared for the knowledge economy. Virginians will reap the benefits of this government-corporate-academic collaboration for generations.”

“Boeing has a long, proud history of supporting veterans and their families during and after their service. We’re also a leading employer of service members, with veterans representing more than 15% of our workforce. So we’re honored to join Virginia and Virginia Tech to build on Boeing’s commitment to veterans with this Center for Veteran Transition & Military Families,” said Boeing President and CEO Dave Calhoun. “This initiative will unlock new career opportunities for veterans and their families and help develop leading technical talent while affirming our continued investment in Northern Virginia.”

“Virginia Tech has a long history of successful partnerships with Boeing and the Commonwealth, and we look forward to working with them to provide a home for this important initiative for veterans at the Innovation Campus,” said Virginia Tech President Tim Sands. “We know veterans bring unique talents and abilities to our campus, and the commonwealth’s workforce.” 

Boeing, Virginia Tech, and Governor Youngkin made the announcement today at an event at Boeing’s office in Arlington, VA.

RICHMOND, VA – Today, the USDA Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) announced the release of an extension to several nationwide waivers to help providers in the Virginia Department of Health’s (VDH) Child and Adult Care Food Program (CACFP) to continue to meet the nutritional needs of child and adult participants during the public health emergency caused by COVID-19.

CACFP is a federal program that provides reimbursements for nutritious meals and snacks to eligible children and adults who are enrolled for care at participating child care centers, day care homes, and adult day care centers.

The extension now allows these waivers to remain in effect through June 30, 2023.

The following waiver requests provide the following information:

• This flexibility applies to all CACFP entities impacted by COVID-related supply chain disruptions and are unable to provide a complete, reimbursable meal.
• It is expected that CACFP entities document any changes to their menus caused by COVID -related supply chain disruptions issue(s); i.e. delivery delays, product unavailability, etc. State agencies must also document instances where flexibilities are provided; as appropriate.
• States should continue to encourage their CACFP entities to report any impacts to services associated with COVID-related supply chain disruptions and forward to their MARO state desk contact.

The waivers include:

• Non-Congregate Meal Service [42 U.S.C 1753(b)(1)(A) and 7 CFR 226.19(b)(6)(iii)] – this waiver allows national school lunch programs, including the seamless summer option, school breakfast program and CACFP operators to provide non-congregate meals.
• Parent/Guardian Meal Pick-Up [7 CFR 226.2] – this waiver allows national school lunch programs, including the seamless summer option, school breakfast program and CACFP operators providing non-congregate meals during COVID-19 to distribute meals to parents or guardians to take home to their children.
• Meal Service Times [7 CFR 226.20(k)] – this waiver allows national school lunch programs, including the seamless summer option, school breakfast program and CACFP operators to serve meals outside of standard meal times.
• State Agency Onsite Monitoring Visits [7 CFR 226.6(b)(1) and 226.6(m)(6)] – this waiver waives the requirement for state agencies to conduct onsite visits and monitoring of CACFP programs, but program operations should continue to be monitored offsite.
• Sponsoring Organization Onsite Monitoring Visits [7 CFR 226.16(d)(4)(iii)] – this waiver waives the requirement for sponsoring organizations to conduct onsite visits and monitoring of CACFP programs, but program operations should continue to be monitored offsite.

For more information about the CACFP program, please call the help desk at (877) 618-7282 or email the Division of Community Nutrition at  CACFP@VDH.Virginia.gov.