Two faculty members based in the Virginia Tech Richmond Center have been recognized by the Virginia Educational Research Association (VERA) for their inquiry and scholarship through the COVID-19 pandemic.

Jodie Brinkmann and Carol Cash, both faculty members in the School of Education’s Department of Educational Leadership and Policy Studies, were selected as co-recipients of the 2023 VERA Charles Clear Research Award, announced during the association’s annual conference on Sept. 22.

Brinkmann and Cash began their research on the impact of the pandemic on PK-12 school divisions in Virginia as early as March 2020. Their work included five consecutive studies over a three-year period, collaboration on three peer-reviewed journal articles and two book chapters, and presentations at state, national, and international conferences.

According to VERA, the award is “given annually to the individual, group, or organization that has made a sustained contribution to educational research or evaluation in the Commonwealth of Virginia or the nation.” The award is named for a prominent Virginia educator who contributed to the association’s early development.

Brinkmann and Cash were nominated for the award by Susan Johnstad, director of the Richmond Center, and selected as recipients by VERA’s executive board.

Carol A. Mullen, a fellow faculty member in the School of Education, received the award in 2016.