February is VSBA School Board Appreciation Month
Join VSBA President Janet Turner Giles in saluting the service of the almost 850 school board members in Virginia all February during School Board Appreciation Month. The theme — 115 Years of Providing Leadership Advocacy and Support — reflects the partnership of the Virginia School Boards Association with local school board members as they serve their local divisions and advocate for public education with local, state, and federal leaders on behalf of all students.
February 17, 2021, VSBA Title IX Best Practices in Training & Compliance
With claims of sexual harassment and sexual misconduct hitting newsstands everywhere, Title IX coordinators and other senior staff need to be confident in their knowledge and enforcement of their divisions’ policies. Prevention and thorough investigations are the best ways to…
Budget negotiations wait on new revenue, special session
Teachers want pay raises, and so do state employees. The Board of Education says Virginia needs to spend almost half a billion dollars to meet its own standards for public education. Home health agencies say they need a big boost in Medicaid reimbursements to cover their…
Pandemic learning takes another turn: Will teachers be in person in classrooms?
After nearly a year of online learning, parents in the Washington region were thrilled to hear announcements from public schools, some of them tumbling out rapid-fire in recent days, that in-person learning will resume next month for students who choose it. But families quickly…
Charlottesville expands upcoming in-person classes to students through sixth grade
The Charlottesville school division said Friday that it will expand in-person classes to those in sixth grade and younger. The classes will be offered four days a week, with Fridays being for virtual learning. The classes are set to start March 8 after the School Board gave its final…
McClure attends virtual school board conference
Amy McClure, a Lunenburg County Public Schools (LCPS) School Board member, attended the Virginia School Boards Association’s Capital Conference held virtually Jan. 25 and 26. The event provided an opportunity for school board members, superintendents, state delegates…
Danville school board recognized for service in February
Danville Public Schools will join 131 other school divisions throughout the state to celebrate School Board Appreciation Month in February. Almost 850 elected and appointed school board members throughout Virginia will be recognized by schools and communities for their service…
Northam says he wants Virginia schools to open by March 15. Will they?
Gov. Ralph Northam was unequivocal Friday: He wants schools open and open soon. About a third of school districts didn’t have in-person classes as of late January, according to the Virginia Department of Education. Those districts combined enroll almost 500,000 students. Even…
For RCPS, An Unusual ‘ First’ Day Of School
Katie Dulo has been a freshman at Spotswood High School for five months now, but Thursday was the first time she has ever stepped foot in the school. “I was a little scared. I got lost a few times,” Dulo said. “ But everyone was really nice to point me in the right direction.” It’s…
Alexandria City Public Schools sets date for reopening; Arlington refuses to follow suit
Alexandria City Public Schools this week joined a flood of Northern Virginia school systems in setting firm timelines for reopening classrooms, vowing to welcome all students back for in-person learning by mid-March. But in Arlington, school officials aren’t committing to return…
Prince William Co. on track to get kids in classrooms within a month
Students in Prince William County, Virginia’s second-largest school district, are on-track to return students to in-person learning in all grades, by March 3. Unlike most Northern Virginia counties that implemented 100% distance learning after a December 2020 jump in positive…
Cox Calls on Lawmakers To Reopen Schools Quickly
Delegate and candidate for governor Kirk Cox announced a series of education proposals Thursday. The former House speaker and high school teacher says schools need to return to five days of in-person learning each week as soon as possible. The Virginia Education…
Some Virginia school systems say they’ll lose out under enrollment loss funding formula
Virginia schools have lost thousands of students over the course of the COVID-19 pandemic. According to the most recent figures from the Virginia Department of Education, enrollment has dropped by 45,000 students statewide, with the biggest decreases in kindergarten classrooms…
Goochland County Mourns District 2 School Board Member & Former Supervisor William E. Quarles, Jr.
Goochland County is honoring the memory and service of District 2 School Board Member and former Supervisor William E. Quarles, Jr., who passed away on February 3rd. This year was the start of Mr. Quarles’ second year of service on the School Board. Last month he was elected…
New desks provided
Twenty-five Prince Edward County students were given handcrafted desks specially designed to be quickly taken apart and reassembled for easy storage. The desks were provided by Chuck and Candy Dowdy who partnered with George and Kim Melnyk of Premier Millwork in Virginia…
School board drafts fiscal year 2022 budget
The Greene County School Board met at William Monroe High School on Wednesday, Jan. 27, to kick off the fiscal year 2022 budget process. The proposed schools’ budget is $41,071,680, which is a 1.22% increase over last year. “Of course, a huge factor is COVID impact—the…
Loudoun County Public Schools to resume hybrid learning Feb. 16
After two months of virtual classes across the board, Loudoun County Public Schools will resume the implementation of its hybrid in-person learning model no later than Feb. 16, with all grade levels set to be back in the classroom part-time by March 3. The School Board voted…
Amid pandemic, Virginia Beach schools’ proposed budget calls for raises for teachers
Amid a pandemic that upended public school funding last year, Virginia Beach Schools Superintendent Aaron Spence proposed an $828.8 million operating budget that focuses on the same bread-and-butter issues listed as priorities in previous years. The proposal, which was…
March 17, 2021, VSBA March Hot Topic
Join us as we gather virtually for an informative and important conference. This conference will be focusing specifically on multiple hot topics in education. You will hear from three leaders in public education throughout the event speaking on the topics of Race and Equity…
VSBA Legislative Update Blog
During the Virginia General Assembly session, VSBA lobbyists regularly provide updates via our legislative blog. In addition to the Legislative Blog, VSBA will also be filming quick video updates to keep you informed on what is happening throughout the year. Those videos, as available, will be posted on our Video Blog page.