VIRGINIA DECLARES STATE OF EMERGENCY AS EAST COAST BRACES FOR HURRICANE DORIAN

Gov. Ralph Northam declared a state of emergency Monday as Hampton Roads braced for a storm that experts say could bring punishing winds, coastal flooding and several inches of rain to the region on Thursday and early Friday.

LABOR DAY CELEBRATIONS BRING POLITICS TO FOREFRONT IN BUENA VISTA

Labor Day parades are a tradition for many hometowns during the holiday weekend, but in Buena Vista, every year the theme is politics. Families claimed curbside seats Monday morning along Magnolia Avenue as the bands marched through.

WHY DID PASSING RATES ON STATE EXAMS FOR ENGLISH LEARNERS PLUNGE IN VIRGINIA?

The numbers appeared troubling. During the 2016-2017 school year, 64 percent of English-language learners who took state reading exams in Virginia passed, according to state data. Two years later, passing rates plunged to 35 percent.

PORT OF VIRGINIA POSTS RECORD JULY FOR VOLUME

Cargo handlers at Virginia’s container terminals saw one of their busiest months this summer. The port handled 265,559 containers in July, up roughly 5% from the same month last year.

NEW CAMPAIGN BYPASSES MINIMUM WAGE DEBATE BY PRAISING COMPANIES THAT PAY WORKERS MORE

Instead of lobbying for policy changes in Richmond and Washington, a new group is pushing for raising workers’ pay by gathering voluntary commitments from — and cheering on — local employers that pay their staff a “living wage.” “Labor Day is a time to celebrate workers,” Amanda Silcox said at the launch event for the Harrisonburg-Rockingham Living Wage Campaign at Gray Jay Provisions on Monday morning. Silcox is the Economic Justice Program Manager for the Virginia Interfaith Center for Public Policy, a non-partisan advocacy coalition that helped the local campaign’s launch.

WITH CLASSES STARTING, CHESTERFIELD OFFICIALS WRESTLE WITH FALLOUT FROM LEGIONELLA FINDINGS

Health officials looking for the cause of this summer’s spike in Legionnaires’ disease cases in Chesterfield County were alarmed by the conditions they found at school cooling towers in the northern part of the county. At Midlothian Middle School, they found grayish mineral buildup scaling on a pair of cooling towers, which are commonly blamed for the spread of the Legionnaires’, a form of pneumonia.

THIS COULD BE THE LAST POST-LABOR DAY START FOR SOME HAMPTON ROADS SCHOOLS

Tuesday’s first day of school might be the last of its kind: Now that districts have permission to start classes before Labor Day, this could be the last year that all Hampton Roads students come back after the holiday. One district — Suffolk — already is polling students, teachers and parents for their thoughts on changing the calendar.

QUESTIONS FOR CANDIDATES

Labor Day is now done, football is back and that means one thing: The person knocking on your door will either be a local kid selling something as a fund-raiser for school or a candidate looking for votes. If it’s the neighborhood kid, buy whatever it is he or she is selling. It’s for a good cause. If it’s a politician, though, be a little more wary about buying. Herein are some handy questions to have for candidates.