New River Valley

Thousands of students flow into Southwest Virginia for college every year.

A new initiative hopes to stop the "brain drain" as they graduate and leave the area for work.

Small towns aren’t what they used to be.  Once the ‘go to’ center of community life, the idea of the ‘town square’ has all but disappeared. But in southwestern Virginia, they’re working to bring back the glory of small towns and new residents with them. This week, they're holding a  two-day workshop in Pulaski they’re calling a "revitalization revival.” 

In a perfect world, all adults would have the literacy skills they need to navigate modern life. But fourteen per cent of us, do not live in that world.  In Virginia’s New River Valley, it’s eleven percent of people who can not read. But there’s free help out there for people who need it. Robbie Harris reports. 

Race relations in the U.S. reached a low point a few years ago, and in many parts of the country, that trend is holding steady.  But in Montgomery County, Virginia, it’s a different story. People there have been working together for the past several years, to tackle racial inequality and injustice.

Every three years, Carilion Clinic puts together community health assessments throughout southwest Virginia. The latest one found some new concerns.