Latest news with #Morgantown
Associated Press
2 days ago
- Business
- Associated Press
Monarch Learning Labs Closes Seed Financing to Expand Global Simulation and Training Platform
Investment accelerates Monarch's mission to modernize training for complex systems through simulation, personalization, and data. MORGANTOWN, WV, UNITED STATES, June 2, 2025 / / -- Monarch Learning Labs, a technology company delivering advanced simulation and training solutions, today announced the closing of a seed financing round, led by M&S Ventures with participation from the West Virginia High Technology Foundation. Monarch's cloud-based platform combines interactive simulation, multi-modal online learning, and AI-driven analytics to help professionals build mastery with complex systems — from surgical robotics to CNC machining. Already deployed globally by a leading medtech company, Monarch is expanding into new markets including advanced manufacturing, healthcare credentialing, and workforce development. The Monarch platform enables professionals to train anytime, anywhere in high-fidelity online environments, with personalized pathways and real-time performance insights. Dynamic content delivery keeps teams aligned with rapidly evolving technologies while reducing onboarding time and operational risk. 'We're building a modern training infrastructure for high-skill industries,' said Jeremy Kimmel, CEO of Monarch Learning Labs. 'The technology emerged from our team's direct experience with the limitations of traditional training. This funding validates the real-world impact we've already made — and positions us to scale across healthcare, manufacturing, and beyond.' 'M&S Ventures invests in scalable technologies with deep domain expertise, and Monarch exemplifies that,' said Ashok Aggarwal, Managing Partner at M&S Ventures. 'Their platform addresses critical workforce challenges across sectors that demand precision, skill, and continuous learning.' The funding will support continued product development, customer expansion, and delivery of high-impact simulation and training solutions for enterprise and institutional partners. About Monarch Learning Labs Monarch Learning Labs builds next-generation simulation and training platforms for professionals working with complex, high-skill technologies. By combining advanced simulation technology, immersive learning, and intelligent performance tracking, Monarch empowers teams to master advanced systems efficiently and confidently. The platform is used across sectors including medtech, advanced manufacturing, and workforce development. Learn more at Jeremy Kimmel Monarch Learning Labs [email protected] Visit us on social media: LinkedIn Legal Disclaimer: EIN Presswire provides this news content 'as is' without warranty of any kind. We do not accept any responsibility or liability for the accuracy, content, images, videos, licenses, completeness, legality, or reliability of the information contained in this article. If you have any complaints or copyright issues related to this article, kindly contact the author above.
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Townhall with more than 100 attendees criticizes Senator Capito and Representative Moore
MORGANTOWN, (WBOY) — The Mountaineers Indivisible Citizen Action (MICA) held a town hall on Saturday where concerned citizens aired their grievances with the representation from Senator Shelley Moore Capito and Representative Riley Moore. MICA said of the event on Facebook that they invited Senator Capito and Representative Moore and described the event as a 'Town Hall with (or without) Our Representatives'. Senator Capito and Representative Moore were not at the event. Instead, over 100 people filed into First Presbyterian Church in Morgantown to present their questions, concerns, and anger at two pictures of the Senator and Representative on stage. The grievances of the attendees of the town hall included cuts to Medicaid and SNAP, the executive branch overstepping its power, the abuse of the rights of immigrants and what attendees generally saw as the failure of Senator Capito and Representative Moore to speak out against these actions. A number of speakers presented their views on the Trump Administration's actions over the last couple of months. Towards the beginning of the town hall, West Virginia University Professor of Law Allison Peck said that the administration is not respecting the balance of power outlined in the Constitution. Peck went on to use the case of Kilmar Abrego Garcia as an example, saying that the Trump Administration is violating court orders to return Garcia and not respecting a congressional law passed in 1952 that Peck said Garcia had previously successfully invoked in immigration court. After Peck, social worker Danny Trejo, who said he works a lot with Latino families, spoke on the impact the last few months has had on the immigrant community in Morgantown. He said that after federal law-enforcement reach an immigrant, the family that remain face hard times. '[ICE] usually get the breadwinners,' Trejo said. 'A lot of the families I'm hearing of are having problems trying to make ends meet and trying to decide if they're going to stay here or if they're going to go back to Latin America, Mexico, or South America.' Trejo went on to say that he is trying to organize donations for these families. Trump tells US steelworkers he's going to double tariffs on foreign steel to 50% Attendees were also invited to speak their thoughts and questions into a microphone. One woman asked why Senator Capito and Representative Moore were not standing up to President Trump, who she saw as breaking the law. A scientist lamented what he sees as the Trump Administration's attack on science and research. An elderly man decried that Medicare is at risk of losing significant funding under the Trump Administration. One man voiced his anger that a family member, who is a legal resident of the United States but is from Central America, is afraid to leave the house due to the Trump Administration's crackdown on immigration. One of the organizers of the event, Mindy Holcomb, said she was heartened by the display shown at town hall. 'It's heartwarming, really, because they are concerned about their neighbors. They are concerned about their family. And they don't want to see people go hungry and they don't wanna see people suffer and die or become seriously ill.' Holcomb went on to say that MICA has tried to meet with Senator Capito and Representative Moore with little success, and that MICA will continue to put pressure on Senator Capito and Representative Moore to try to get them to hear their voices. 'When people have stories like you've heard today, when they have suffering, only they can convey that,' Holcomb said. 'Having someone write down notes about what they're saying and convey that in theory to the congressman or the senator, that's not the same thing. That's not answering their questions. That's not hearing the pain that they are going through.' Holcomb ended the interview by saying, '[Senator Capito and Representative Moore] don't work for the Trump Administration. They work for us. We are their boss, and they owe us answers.' Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
CBS News
4 days ago
- Climate
- CBS News
A breezy and cooler Saturday ahead of warmer temperatures in Pittsburgh, but wildfire smoke looms
The steady moderate to heavy rain from Friday has departed the region this morning, but skies will remain mostly cloudy today with breezy conditions and lingering rain showers. WEATHER LINKS: Current Conditions | School Closings & Delays | Submit Your Weather Photos Most areas north of Pittsburgh received around 0.25" or less over the last 24 hours; the Pittsburgh airport received 0.60", and the highest totals, as anticipated, occurred across our southern zones, with places like Morgantown receiving over 2". High temperatures and rain chances on Saturday KDKA Weather Center There will be some scattered lingering rain showers today through noon-1 p.m. Strong northwesterly winds will advect unseasonably cool air into the region. This will prevent daytime highs from reaching 60 in many spots, which is around 15 degrees or so below normal. The highest wind gusts could achieve 30mph in the afternoon and evening, so it won't necessarily be the nicest of late spring days. By Saturday night into Sunday, skies will slowly begin to clear, and winds will lighten up. Low temperatures on Saturday night KDKA Weather Center Most folks will see low to mid-40s for lows on Sunday with highs in the mid-60s by Sunday afternoon. A stray is possible during the midday to early afternoon hours in our northeast counties; otherwise, expect a partly cloudy sky and continued steady breeze out of the west around 10-15mph. Skies will clear Sunday night into Monday, and high pressure should leave us with several days of dry a nice weather to start next week. Lows will be in the mid-40s Monday morning before warming temperatures take hold for the middle portion of the week. We will be watching a mass of Canadian wildfire smoke that has been in place across the Upper Midwest to slowly migrate eastward by Monday into Tuesday. This could leave part of the region with smoky/hazy conditions. Looking ahead to potential wildfire smoke in our region early next week KDKA Weather Center At the moment, it is too soon to determine air quality impacts, but this is something we will watch. Temperatures will soar well into the 80s, and higher dewpoints will also move in. This will lead us into a more unsettled pattern between June 4-11 timeframe with the potential for storms and warmer air. 7-day forecast: May 31, 2025 KDKA Weather Center Stay up to date with the KDKA Mobile App – which you can download here!
Yahoo
5 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
How to save higher ed, according to Gordon Gee
MORGANTOWN, — Gordon Gee owns somewhere around 2,000 bow ties. About half are 'in retirement,' gradually being repurposed into quilts for his granddaughters. A couple dozen or so hang in his office at West Virginia University, where he's served as president for the past 11 years. The designs in his collection range from traditional to whimsical — classic stripes and polka dots to flamingos, Santa Claus heads, hearts and flip-flops. Ever since encountering his first bow tie in a doctor's office as a teenager in Vernal, Utah, the accessory has become his signature: a symbol of delight, abundance and a refusal to blend in. It's as eclectic as his leadership style, which has won him both admirers and skeptics throughout his 45-year career in higher education. On the day I met Gee in his office, the campus was winding down for the summer and he was preparing for his final commencement, capping the close of his second tenure leading WVU. He arrived a few minutes late, delayed by sorting through decades of belongings as he prepared to vacate the presidential residence on campus in June. He was gearing up for graduation festivities and dressed for the part: a bow tie emblazoned with the university logo, a yellow vest and blue-and-yellow socks peeking out beneath his trousers. West Virginia is where Gee's career as a university president started when, at 36 years old, he was appointed president. Now, after a 45-year journey leading five major universities — two of them twice — 81-year-old Gee is ending his career where it began. He is one of the most significant — and colorful — figures in modern American higher education. Over four decades, he's led more universities than any other person in U.S. history: the University of Colorado, Brown University and Vanderbilt University, as well as two stints as president of WVU and Ohio State. An ardent champion of public education, he pushed for ambitious changes in each school, raising billions and transforming the universities' structure, governance and athletics. But this charismatic, bow-tied man rarely managed to avoid causing a stir. Most recently, Gee led West Virginia through a sweeping and contentious 'Academic Transformation' in response to a deepening budget crisis and falling enrollment after the pandemic. The overhaul resulted in the elimination of 28 academic programs and about 300 jobs, including faculty and library positions, changes Gee believed were necessary to keep the institution financially viable. The changes drew national attention and sparked fierce protests from students and faculty. Gee recalled waving at them from his office window as demonstrators gathered outside his office in Stewart Hall. Despite the backlash, Gee says his decisions were guided by a central question: Was West Virginia University truly serving its students and the people of West Virginia? 'I think what we did is we reinvented the university — we repositioned it,' he told me. As he prepares to step down, Gee believes he is leaving the institution on 'solid financial footing,' with its bond rating reaffirmed. The new president, Michael Benson, who is leaving a job as president of Coastal Carolina University, is set to take the helm in July. At a time when public trust in higher education is eroding, intensified by the Trump administration's scrutiny of Ivy League schools, Gee believes universities are in the midst of an existential reckoning. The way forward, he believes, is through bold, student-centered change. 'Higher education has been in the same model for so many years,' Gee said. 'The reality is this: we either change as institutions — or we die.' Gee's office inside a Romanesque building on campus resembles an eclectic museum of curiosities. On his desk are a smattering of coins and pins — keepsakes collected from people he met over the years. He works at a hefty wooden desk with hand-carved features, his own 'resolute desk,' a nod to the storied Oval Office original. When he leaves WVU, the desk will go with him. Above it hangs an expansive landscape of Morgantown, painted by a WVU graduate. Gee calls himself an 'accidental president' when reflecting on how he came to the job that became his life's work. In 1981, while serving as dean of the law school at West Virginia, he had a call with the board of governors about the possibility of becoming president. Before hearing back from the board, he spotted the front page of The Dominion Post, a local newspaper, and saw a headline announcing he would be the university's next president. The formal offer came soon after. 'It was something that would not happen in today's world,' Gee told me. 'It was highly unusual, very West Virginia.' Gee may have aspired to a presidency someday, but the promotion came far sooner than expected, said John Fisher, a member of the dean search committee who later became Gee's chief of staff. 'I think people feel very comfortable with Gordon in a very short period of time,' Fisher said. A hallmark of Gee's leadership is that people don't work for him, but with him, he added. Gee was 36 when he stepped into the role. There was no playbook for being a university president, he told me, and he faced a steep learning curve. One of his first tasks was understanding the university's mission as a land-grant institution — part of a national system established under the 1862 Morrill Act to deliver practical education in agriculture, engineering and the sciences. In a state that ranks among the poorest and least educated in the country, Gee came to see the university's mission as inseparable from his own: to spur economic growth, expand health care and bring opportunity to every county of West Virginia. He's gearing up for his last tour of all 55 counties in the state, his annual summer tradition. 'The advantage and the disadvantage of this university is the fact that it is so tied to the future of this state,' Gee told me. 'It represents the hopes and dreams of all West Virginians.' Gee learned how to be a university president by trying things others hadn't. Early on, when he became aware of dust blowing from the air vents in the operating room of the state-owned and outdated university hospital, he knew changes had to be made. Though he had no background in health care, he understood the political risks: If the state Legislature funded a new hospital, they might relocate it to Charleston. So Gee proposed an unorthodox solution — creating a nonprofit public university corporation. He persuaded the West Virginia Legislature to separate the hospital from the university, paving the way for the school to ultimately take ownership of the hospital and build a new facility. The result grew into WVU Medicine, a sprawling system of 25 hospitals. 'We wanted to make certain that no one in West Virginia had to leave the state to get health care.' He later applied the same model at the University of Colorado. Gee's sense of purpose came through leading public universities — at Colorado, then at Ohio State, and ultimately back at West Virginia, where he had the longest tenure. Institutions hired him to shake things up, he told me. 'I made a living on being very disruptive,' he said. At Ohio State, he introduced selective admissions to what had been an open-access institution — a controversial move, particularly in rural parts of the state. Gee said many parents viewed him as 'the devil incarnate' for limiting access. But he believed the old model was failing students and families: Tuition was spent on students who weren't committed, and many would leave without graduating. He also undertook a major academic reorganization, consolidating five arts and sciences colleges — a task he likened to 'moving a graveyard' — and shifted the school from a quarter to a semester calendar. Public universities were more open to change than elite private ones, he found. At Brown University, where Gee served as president for three years starting in 1998 — his shortest stint — his attempts at reform quickly clashed with tradition. 'They wanted to remain a wonderful Ivy League institution, and when I started the disruption, I could tell that it was going to be hand-to-hand combat,' he said. After Brown, he became chancellor of Vanderbilt University, where he eliminated the athletic department and consolidated several programs — part of a broader effort across his career to streamline operations and cut bureaucratic redundancy. Gee believes higher education has grown 'isolated' and 'arrogant.' He points to the ongoing maelstrom at Harvard University. While he disagrees with the Trump administration's 'sledgehammer to a problem' approach, he's unequivocal about one belief: To regain public trust, universities must commit to self-examination and meaningful change. Instead of acting as 'architects of change,' universities have become victims of their own inaction, Gee said — unwilling to address thorny issues like free speech, open inquiry and cultural change. Now, he said, those problems are catching up with them. 'We need to make sure we're constantly asking the right question of how we make the institution better,' Gee told me. 'And how do we do it in ways that make common sense for the public that supports us?' Gee's disruptive streak — and his affinity for rural communities — took root in his upbringing in Vernal, Utah, a small town that didn't yet have a movie theater or television when he was growing up. His family owned an oil business that was started by his grandfather, along with several car dealerships and the only bank in town. For a time, all signs pointed to Gee becoming a third-generation banker. But eventually, the family sold the bank. Gee's childhood revolved around The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, the Boy Scouts and 4-H. His family emphasized the value of education. His mother was a schoolteacher, and Gee became a voracious reader and a regular at the local library. He served as student body president in both elementary and high school, graduating as valedictorian. 'I was the guy that everyone loved to hate,' Gee told me. At the University of Utah, where he studied history, Gee's path took a decisive turn. Although Gee initially considered a medical career, his plans shifted after meeting Neal A. Maxwell, a prominent educator and future member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Maxwell became a close mentor and friend, encouraging Gee to consider law as a route to leadership in higher education. Even in college, Gee's ability to work the room and befriend others stood out. 'He liked practical jokes, often on himself as well as anyone else,' recalled Cecil Samuelson, the former president of Brigham Young University who belonged to the same fraternity as Gee at the University of Utah. 'He was comfortable in his own skin, and he always wore a bow tie,' Samuelson said. After serving a mission in Bavaria, Germany, Gee earned both a law degree and a doctorate in education from Columbia University, completing both in four and a half years. He went on to clerk for a federal judge before becoming a judicial fellow and staff assistant to Chief Justice Warren Burger, a conservative on the Supreme Court who had been nominated by Richard Nixon. Gee later returned to Utah, where he joined the J. Reuben Clark Law School at BYU as a professor and associate dean before moving to West Virginia to become the dean of the law school and within two years, a university president. In 2006, Samuelson invited Gee to give a speech at the BYU Forum. 'Everything I know about being a Latter-day Saint, I've learned from running universities,' Gee said in the address. 'If you think this is a popularity contest, you're in the wrong business.' Gordon Gee While he was cognizant of politics, he managed to stay above the fray. 'He was not viewed as a political figure,' Fisher said, but as a president 'working to try to make the university the best it could be.' Throughout his career, Gee became known for his fundraising prowess — or 'friend-raising,' as he calls it. During his tenure, the West Virginia University Foundation raised record-breaking funds — in the last fiscal year, it brought in more than $282 million, the most ever in the foundation's 70-year history. He's viewed his presidency more as vocation, not a job — even a kind of ministry. Nearly every night, he spends two to three hours writing notes and emails to people he has met that week. Benson, who will succeed Gee on July 15, told me he's gotten a note from Gee after every single interaction and meeting he's had with him. 'He does it in genuine ways,' Benson said. 'Gordon has a unique trait to make everyone feel important.' Although Gee and Benson had known each other, Gee didn't know that Benson had applied for the job. 'He's going to be a great president,' he said. Sure enough, the day after I met Gee, I received an email from him, which said: 'As you can tell, the university presidency is a wonderful world in which to live but it is also very intense.' I asked Gee what it was like, personally, to watch his university community reeling from the upheaval that followed the announcement of layoffs and program cuts which included language programs. The experience, he said, was painful. 'If I didn't grieve for them, then I obviously wouldn't have a sense of human kindness in me,' he said. 'But I believed in the higher purpose.' In 2023, the university faculty voted no confidence in Gee, a move which is largely symbolic. While the the Board of Governors backed Gee, the faculty resolution accused Gee of financial mismanagement and failure to protect the academic integrity and mission of the institution. He anticipated the fallout, Gee said, and had calibrated the process and its timing: In 2023, he first announced his retirement, and shortly after, rolled out the sweeping academic cuts to address a $45 million budget shortfall or a structural deficit, which is a more accurate term, according to Gee. 'We determined that we were going to be very transparent, which is very difficult,' he said. 'Universities are very opaque institutions.' He believes that the cuts were essential for the long-term stability of the institution — and for preserving future jobs. 'There are many people now who have jobs who would not have had jobs had we not made those decisions,' he said. Gee stands by the choices he made: 'I believe that people of good will, if they had the same information that I have, would make the same decision.' Over the years, Gee has grown accustomed to criticism — from scrutiny over what some considered lavish spending at Vanderbilt to offhand remarks about Roman Catholics and questions over his administrative decisions. But Gee, whose self-effacing nature seems to make him only more relatable, is quick to admit his mistakes. 'Sometimes there was legitimate criticism,' he acknowledged. 'You always learn from those kinds of things.' Without thick skin and 'nerves like sewer pipes,' a university president doesn't stand a chance, he told me. 'If you think this is a popularity contest, you're in the wrong business,' he said. Samuelson told me one of the biggest challenges of being a university president is earning the trust of diverse constituencies — faculty, students, donors. 'And I think that's one of the things about Gordon Gee. People would say: 'Maybe we didn't always agree with him, but we felt he was fair and trustworthy. We could count on him to do what he said he would do.'' I asked Gee what accomplishment he was most proud of throughout the span of his career. 'After 45 years, the fact that I survived,' he joked. Then, in a more serious tone, he spoke about building a robust, high-quality health system in West Virginia that now serves about 90% of the state's residents and includes facilities like a new children's hospital and a planned cancer center. 'I came to realize very early on that without a healthy population, we can't do any of the other things,' he said. As we stepped out of the historic Stewart Hall, the college's film crew was waiting outside for Gee, ready to film his farewell message to the graduates, who were mingling for various end-of-year festivities. He then floated from one picnic table to another, chatting with students about their highlights at West Virginia and their plans after graduation. It was already 80 degrees and wasn't yet summer, but Gee didn't seem fazed. 'It's time to sit by the pool,' one woman told Gee. 'Sit by the pool?' Gee responded as if such a thing was utterly inconceivable. 'Not a fat chance. I'll do something.' After losing his first wife to cancer and his second to divorce, he's now engaged to be married again. In May he told graduating seniors, 'my best days lie ahead.' Gee hasn't committed to the next project — he's considering several possibilities, all of which would keep him in West Virginia. Before we said goodbye, I asked Gee where his audacity comes from. Some of it, he said, came with age. He couldn't have imagined carrying out the changes at West Virginia as a 36-year-old president. He would have been too worried about public perception, he said. Not anymore. What changed? He paused before answering. 'I wish I knew. It's in my DNA,' he said. 'I have no fear.'
Yahoo
5 days ago
- General
- Yahoo
Monongalia County Sheriff's Office sheds more light on motorcycle accident
May 30—MORGANTOWN — A motorcycle rider involved in Thursday's accident on the Mileground has life-threatening injuries, according to the Monongalia County Sheriff's Department. At 2:10 p.m. Thursday, deputies responded to the accident at the intersection of Mileground and Hartman Run roads. A press release states a Nissan Xterra was heading onto Hartman Run Road while a Yamaha motorcycle was traveling toward Easton Hill. The two vehicles collided head-on, throwing the rider off the motorcycle. The rider was taken to Ruby Memorial Hospital by Monongalia County EMS with life-threatening injuries, the release states. The identity of the rider has not been released. Due to the severity of the accident, the sheriff's department crash reconstruction team was called to the scene to assist in the ongoing investigation.
