top of page



Take Action: Provide Input on Comprehensive Sex Education by June 10th!
Please take five minutes to take this survey to support comprehensive sex education in Fairfax County Public Schools (FCPS). Currently,...

Vanessa Hall
May 23, 20244 min read


Outlawing Cell Phones in School? Are You Kidding Me?!!
Pardon the inflammatory title, but that is the response I’ve heard from parents and students about current proposals to severely curtail...

Vanessa Hall
May 16, 20246 min read


Focus on Equity, Literacy, and Excellence
2025 FCPS Budget Public Input At the May 14, 2024 Public Hearing in front of the Fairfax County School Board on the 2025 Budget, the...

Vanessa Hall
May 15, 20242 min read


DEI is here to Stay
You can’t just ignore problems away. Author's forward: I wrote this piece on a snowy day in January. Dr. Claudine Gay had just resigned, and I feared that more officials (both at the college and local levels) were next. While there are copious articles about how states and entities actively dismantling DEI programs, I wasn’t finding much on why it’s important in itself... until recently. WHY are we letting billionaires frame our discourse? They have benefitted from legacy a

Anjy Cramer
May 1, 20249 min read


Fairfax County Public Schools 2025 Budget
It is that time of year again: Fairfax County Budget approval, and like clockwork complaints are raised about how much our county is...

Rick Clayton
Apr 20, 20243 min read


Lawsuits, Another Far Right Tool To Defund Public Education
The National Merit Commended Certificate "Crisis" School Districts are Under Fire School districts across the country are under fire. The assaults on our school systems are not just being fought just at school board meetings and by FOIA, but they are also being conducted through politically motivated lawsuits and investigations, many of which lack merit. Here in Northern Virginia, we are in the eye of the storm with near constant politically-motivated news coverage, lawsuits

Vanessa Hall
Mar 28, 202423 min read


Fostering a Welcoming, Inclusive Education Environment in School
Fairfax County School Board Matters: March 7, 2024 First, I want to address the elephant in the room: I was unable to attend in-person last week because I suddenly realized that my tax deadline was less than 24 hours later. I love watching civic engagement in action, but to paraphrase Benjamin Franklin: death and taxes come for everyone. I also did not attend the 2/22 meeting either. I have a family who twisted my arm to miss the "excitement" of a school board meeting. Nevert

Vanessa Hall
Mar 14, 20246 min read


Innovation to Fix Delays in School Renovation
School Board Matters, February 8, 2024 meeting School Board meetings are ground zero for the culture wars. Our “School Board Matters” blog will include analysis and links to video, agenda, and votes that affect you and your student(s), including links to primary source documents to support involvement in your student’s experience and education. We hope this will provide better access to and understanding of the Fairfax County School Board, including their powers and duties,

Vanessa Hall
Feb 15, 20247 min read


Honoring a Civil Rights Leader by Doing the Work
School Board Matters, January 25, 2024 meeting School Board meetings are ground zero for the culture wars. Our “School Board Matters” blog will include analysis and links to video, agenda, and votes that affect you and your student(s), including links to primary source documents to support involvement in your student’s experience and education. We hope this will provide better access to and understanding of the Fairfax County School Board, including their powers and duties,

Vanessa Hall
Jan 31, 20244 min read


Fairfax's School Board Gets Right to Work with Great Ideas!
School Board Matters, January 11, 2024 meeting School Board meetings are ground zero for the culture wars. Our “School Board Matters” blog will include analysis and links to video, agenda, and votes that affect you and your student(s), including links to primary source documents to support involvement in your student’s experience and education. We hope this will provide better access to and understanding of the Fairfax County School Board, including their powers and duties,

Vanessa Hall
Jan 17, 20244 min read


Anniversary of an Expensive Manufactured Crisis
If you care about public education, then you have noticed that school districts across the country have been under fire for the last...

Vanessa Hall
Dec 20, 20232 min read


Welcome to Fairfax County's New School Board
On November 7, 2023, Fairfax County elected 12 School Board members to serve a four-year term, beginning on January 1, 2024. Each took the oath of office on December 13, 2023, which was administered by Fairfax County Circuit Court Judge Robert J. Smith. The ceremony took place at Jackson Middle School. The new School Board is composed of three At-Large members, Kyle McDaniel, Ryan McElveen, and Ilryong Moon. District representatives are Rachna Sizemore Heizer for Braddock, M

Marianne Burke, PhD
Dec 20, 20231 min read


School Board Matters: Honoring Outgoing School Board Members
December 14, 2023 School Board meetings have become ground zero for the culture wars. Our “School Board Matters” blog will include analysis and links to video, agenda, and votes that affect you and your student(s), including links to primary source documents to support involvement in your student’s experience and education. We hope this will provide better access to and understanding of the Fairfax County School Board, including their powers and duties, as governed by the Cod

Vanessa Hall
Dec 19, 20233 min read


School Board Matters: Conflict on the Dais
December 4, 2023 School Board meetings have become ground zero for the culture wars. Our “School Board Matters” blog will include analysis and links to video, agenda, and votes that affect you and your student(s), including links to primary source documents to support involvement in your student’s experience and education. We hope this will provide better access to and understanding of the Fairfax County School Board, including their powers and duties, as governed by the Code

Vanessa Hall
Dec 14, 20235 min read


Parents Feel Doubly Violated by a Privacy Breach
Like tens of thousands of parents, I received a letter this week indicating that FCPS inadvertently released my child’s private...

Vanessa Hall
Dec 14, 20234 min read


School Board Matters: Blue Skies and Smiles Shining So Bright
November 9, 2023 School Board meetings have become ground zero for the culture wars, so 4 Public Education is introducing a new blog called “School Board Matters” for 2023-24. It will include analysis and links to video, agenda, and votes that affect you and your student(s), including links to primary source documents to support involvement in your student’s experience and education. We hope this will provide better access to and understanding of the Fairfax County School Boa

Vanessa Hall
Nov 15, 20238 min read


Reading the Tea Leaves this Election
Election analysis from 4 PE Leadership continues with Public Testimony at the Fairfax County Public Schools (FCPS) School Board meeting on Thursday, November 9th. Read the remarks and watch the video clip below: Good evening, I am Rick Clayton on behalf of 4 Public Education. I don’t need to be a fortune-teller to interpret the results of this week’s election. I can read the tea leaves. Chaos, transphobia, anti-CRT and lack of civility were trounced by the voters, by the pa

Rick Clayton
Nov 10, 20232 min read


Tuesday’s Elections Send Message: Parents Want Robust Libraries, Inclusiveness, Truthful History
Pundits cast Virginia’s Tuesday general elections as a referendum on abortion rights. It was more than that. Further down the ballot those votes also sent a strong message to those trying to disrupt public education: listen to parents. Parents who came out to vote in Fairfax, Loudoun and even Spotsylvania, the epicenters of vitriol and fantasy, voted with a resounding “no” to candidates who focused on anti-CRT, book bans and transphobia. Parents overwhelmingly voted for moder
Holly Hazard
Nov 8, 20232 min read


School Board Matters: Academic Growth and Family Engagement
October 26, 2023 School Board meetings have become ground zero for the culture wars, so 4 Public Education is introducing a new blog called “School Board Matters” for 2023-24. It will include analysis and links to video, agenda, and votes that affect you and your student(s), including links to primary source documents to support involvement in your student’s experience and education. We hope this will provide better access to and understanding of the Fairfax County School Boa

Vanessa Hall
Nov 2, 20235 min read


Op-ed: Northern Virginia in the Crosshairs
Even before he was elected, Virginia Gov. [Glenn] Youngkin focused his attention on harmful, fabricated fibs about public education. He...

Marianne Burke (PhD) and Vanessa Hall
Oct 30, 20234 min read
Subscribe to our Newsletter!



Fake Scandals Create Real Legal Costs for Fairfax County Taxpayers
Explore the impact of on school systems due to fake scandals that create real legal costs for taxpayers. Discover how the legal costs associated with the manufactured abortion scandal has likely exceeded $6 million in one year!


Independence 250: Embracing Our Diversity for a United Future
Independence Day marks a milestone in American history, but it also represents something deeply personal for each individual. As the nation celebrated its 250th anniversary this weekend, it was clear that independence means more than just a date on the calendar. Whether people attended local celebrations or those on the National Mall, Independence Day means the freedom to express, to celebrate, and to honor this day in ways that reflect our unique values and traditions.


Compromise Achieved: How the Proposed Budget Will Impact Public Education
Explore how the budget compromise will impact public education in Virginia. Discover key changes and their positive effects on K-12 funding today.
bottom of page
