From left to right are Covington Councilperson Susan Crowder, outgoing VML Presdent D. Dwayne Tuggle (Mayor of Amherst), Covington City Manager Allen Dressler, Covington Councilman David Goff, and Covington Vice Mayor Susan Wolfe.

Covington Receives Statewide Recognition For STEM Program   Covington, VA (Oct. 12, 2026) - The City of Covington received statewide recognition after being notified that its STEM program (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math) involving the raising of plants, flowers and vegetables in cooperation with Virginia Tech-ART and area students at a facility on Lexington Ave. as well as its Discovery Center and retired engineers. The Virginia Muncipal League's most recent conference, held this past weekend, noted several other communities and their community efforts. Here they are: • Community Health Award: City of Newport News – Care Where You Are: Community Health Bus • Economic Development Award: Town of Culpeper – Heritage Park • Environmental Quality Award: City of Portsmouth – ROC the Block: Reclaiming Our Community One Block at a Time • Risk Management Award: City of Norfolk – Risk Management Day – Community Outreach • Working with Youth Award: City of Covington – Discover STEM Hands on Student Education • Communications Award: City of Fredericksburg – Fredericksburg: Still Making History • Public Safety Award: James City County – RESTORe-CARE Said city manager Allen Dressler: "The education and awareness of our STEM program to teachers, busineses, and citizens has been critical to our early beginnings of STEM education. The greenhous and hydroponic growing was easy as our public/private realtisonhip both have great interest in educating students."

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