A Call to Advocacy for SB21 and HB509 I am a parent of a dyslexic student. When it became clear in first grade that our daughter could not read, we had to pay for private testing to ensure that our daughter accessed dyslexia services in FCPS before she fell so far behind that she could never catch up or was so filled with self-doubt that she was convinced that she would never succeed. Due to the support of amazing FCPS teachers and staff, our daughter is reading close to grade level and excelling in high school.  Nevertheless, some Virginia colleges would force us to pay for private testing again to demonstrate that she still has dyslexia in order to access learning disability support in college. Not every college…just some. Which means that we would need to navigate a complex analysis of Virginia colleges based on the accessibility to disability services, in addition to excellence and curricula. It could also mean that my family would likely have to pay out of pocket (again!) for expensive testing after waiting six months (or more) to be tested and another couple of months for results, which means my child could be a Sophomore in college before she would get dyslexia support. As a proud James Madison University graduate, I might have to focus our college search elsewhere based on the relatively abysmal rates of disability services at JMU versus Virginia Commonwealth University or Mary Washington. Obviously, this issue would apply to all learning disabilities, from ADHD to autism. Equally obvious is that some families cannot afford private testing which costs $500-2,500, and typically isn’t paid for by health insurance. This doesn’t even include more rural areas of Virginia where private testing may not be available! Ultimately, this means a lower likelihood of success in college and a greater likelihood that their child would need to drop out of college.  Fortunately, some thoughtful legislators, Delegate Laura Jane Cohen and Senator Saddam Azlan Salim, have brought forward bills HB509  and SB21 , respectively, in the General Assembly to ensure that students with Individualized Education Plans ( IEPs ) and 504 Plans ( 504s ) are treated equally by all Virginia colleges. As the Autism Society  states: This legislation ensures that students with disabilities will thrive in college. It would streamline the process of qualifying for disability services and require state-supported universities and colleges to accept various forms of documentation of a disability, including an Individualized Education Program (IEP), 504 Plan, notice from a doctor, or evaluation by a psychologist. Currently, many schools require a new evaluation by a psychologist.  This is important as significant barriers exist for students with disabilities when they enter college, and they need to obtain a new psychoeducational evaluation to receive accommodations in college courses. Unfortunately, some legislators lack the understanding of what IEPs and 504s mean to our students and families. Some also feel it necessary to degrade students by referring to “emotional support donkeys,” like Delegate Garett and Zehr  did last week, thereby suggesting a likelihood of fraud and abuse (without any evidence) by students with 504s and IEPs. I’m impressed by Delegate Cohen who responded to this repulsive comment with, “the specious argument of a support donkey is not particularly compelling in this case,” in other words, the scenario described by delegates Garett and Zehr is so ridiculous as to be false. Her grace in this situation demonstrates why I might not have the temperament to serve in the General Assembly, because I would have made a less "appropriate" comment about donkeys. Remind these legislators t hat about 94% of students with specific learning disabilities receive accommodations in high school, yet only 17% receive some kind of accommodation in college. Additionally, it is a struggle for many students to find information about the college accommodations process for disabilities, while significant numbers of students cannot afford to pay for an updated diagnosis. If a student had diabetes, no college would force them to take an expensive test to prove that they still needed their insulin, so why should an autistic or dyslexic student be treated any differently. Chronic health conditions require a lifetime of care and support. Every Virginia college should offer the same level of access to disability services for students with IEPs and 504s. By the time my daughter graduates from high school, she will have had her IEP for close to a  decade. I believe that her IEP shouldn’t end at a Virginia university door. Please fight for Virginia student’s access to equitable disability services at Virginia universities by writing to your delegate and senator:

February 3rd will end the third week of the 2024 Session of Virginia’s General Assembly. At the time of this writing, one priority education bill has cleared the Senate (SB14) and most of the other priority education bills 4 Public Education endorses are working their way through the committees. One of the bills we opposed (SJ9) was defeated. The early success this year is at least in part due to the vigorous support of these bills by public education advocates who have been contacting legislators in support of or in opposition to the bills. The current status of each priority education bill can be found at this link. Readers will continue to be emailed opportunities to advocate for those bills so get on our mailing list if you want to be contacted. Currently, we are sending out two notifications each week: an email early in the week and a link in our newsletter on Friday. Each release of these calls to action contain new action items that are created when each bill changes status, and new groups of legislators need to be contacted. We want to be sure citizens know that if they believe that they have already addressed a call to action for a bill that they are seeing again, it is because the bill has advanced to a new committee or to the floor of the chamber. Changes happen frequently as bills work their way through the process; therefore, your advocacy is time sensitive, so timely notifications for when advocacy is needed for each bill will help get these bills passed or defeated. This is the link to the most up to date advocacy needs for the end of this week. Many of the bills currently being considered by the House of Delegates and State Senate are addressing recommendations made by the Joint Legislative and Audit and review Commission (JLARC) who have reported on the inadequate funding of our public schools and need to restore the teacher pipeline to resolve there not being enough well trained public school teachers in Virginia. Other priority education bills include those that call for the protection of our most vulnerable students and one for changing a policy to restorative instead of punitive discipline for less serious infractions. It won’t be long before we are addressing budget amendments in response to Governor Youngkin’s proposed 2024-2026 Budget. The House Appropriations Committee and Senate Finance and Appropriations Committee are working on those amendments, so 4 Public Education will share them when released by the House and Senate committees. Budget amendment bills use a slightly different process than legislative bills. The Budget amendment bills are proposed changes to the 2024 -2026 proposed budget that Governor Youngkin submitted to the legislature last fall. Any amendments to the budget bill will be brought to the floor of each chamber by their appropriations committee, where the bills will be debated and votes on the amendments will be taken. Any amendments passed will cross over to the other chamber where again the amendments will be debated and a vote will be taken. Ideally, this will all happen before the 2024 General Assembly adjourns, after a conference committee resolves any differences between the versions passed by the two chambers. Then the amended budget bill will go to the Governor for his signature. Of course, Virginia’s budget process rarely goes that smoothly. Last year, a special session of the General Assembly was needed to finalize amendments to the 2023-2024 budget, and a compromise budget bill wasn’t signed until September of that year. Because many public education advocates have objected to the 2024-2026 budget, there is probably much work to be done before this budget is finalized. 4 Public Education will provide calls to action for budget amendment bills so advocates can contact appropriation committee members to ensure that our public schools get the resources they need to provide excellent educations to our children and support teachers.

Last year, public education advocates were unsuccessful at getting the 2023 priority education bills passed in the General Assembly. This was because the majority party in the House (GOP) tended to be less supportive of public education than the minority party (Democratic). Although the Democratic members in the Senate were in the majority, bills could not advance that year because each bill must pass both chambers before they have a chance of being signed into law by the Governor. The few education bills that were passed were weakened in their effectiveness because they were highly amended. This year, the Democrats hold the majority in both chambers so 4 Public Education is hopeful that many of the 2024 priority education bills will pass onto Governor Youngkin’s desk to be signed. Public education advocates can help bills be successful by using the one-click calls to action sent by 4 PE (see signup link in the last paragraph below to receive these alerts if you don't already) that help legislators know what the constituents want. These tools that make advocacy easy are produced in collaboration with Network NOVA and Virginia Grassroots Coalition. It is too early to know if Governor Youngkin will sign or veto the education bills that make it through both chambers, but early indications are that he may be softening his stance on some education issues. For example, there are bills based on recommendations in the Joint Legislative and Audit Review Commission (JLARC) reports that address the serious underfunding of Virginia’s public schools and the need to restore the teacher pipeline in Virginia. Unfortunately, the chair of the Virginia Board of Education either has not read or does not believe the JLARC reports as she claims Virginia’s public schools are not underfunded. We hope that by now she has read the JLARC reports. The status of each of the 4 Public Education priority education bills can be monitored on the education bill tracker that is managed by the Virginia Grassroots Coalition. That tracker provides links to the bills, the name of the chief patron and the status of the bill in the legislative process, and will eventually provide the outcome of the bill. Also, as indicated above, there is a link to the one-click call to action that education advocates can use to contact legislators and tell them how they should vote on specific bills. For those who want to receive notices when calls-to-action come out and when it is time to respond to them, please be sure you are on our email list and you will be sent these easy one-click tools for appropriate bill or bills.

Like many parents of high school seniors, my family has been knee deep in college applications since October. My son managed to meet all of the deadlines to request transcripts, request recommendations, and apply to colleges, but now we are in the next step: submitting financial aid forms. In fact, the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) was the first thing on my list for 2024…and then my pen stopped working, which I’m hoping isn’t an omen. Applying for merit- and need-based aid has been trickier than expected, because the primary form used for all financial aid determinations, the FAFSA, was overhauled and thus was delayed until its “soft release” on New Year’s eve 2023. The “soft release” involved frustrated parents and students unable to access the form. I even joked with a friend that “soft release” may need to be defined as a failure, as in, “Hey mom, I soft released the cleanup of my room!” Cue: filthy room. It is now ten days after the soft release of FAFSA and things have improved, but many first-timers are confused about who needs to fill out the FAFSA and when to fill out the FAFSA, so I will provide some pointers for those who are brand new to FAFSA. Also refer to the FAFSA site, via FAFSA youtube videos, or on reddit (in the case of glitches) for more information. What is the FAFSA? It is the “largest source of financial aid” for students: scholarships, grants, work-study funds, and loans. Who must fill out the FAFSA? Anyone who is a potential “contributor” which includes students, spouses, parents, stepparents, guardians, and anyone else with a potential financial role. This means each contributor must create an account. On a personal note, I mistakenly thought that FAFSA would send links to my spouse and son when I added their data to my form, but no, each contributor needs to initiate an account. Ask other contributors to create an account as soon as possible, because new accounts often require social security number verification that can take one to three days. (Yes, Virginia. This is a frustrating process.) When is the FAFSA due? As soon as possible. Each state or school may have their own deadline and FAFSA has a deadline, but experienced parents know that there is a finite amount of aid available, which means getting in your completed FAFSA form from all contributors should be a priority. Due to issues during the initial launch, they said they will not be releasing information to organizations until the end of January. As of January 10, 2024, the U.S. Department of Education announced that over one million 2024-25 FAFSA forms had been submitted. What do I need to fill out the FAFSA? You need social security numbers of all contributors, 2022 tax forms, alimony and/or child support payments, financial documents showing balances and net worth (e.g., savings, checking, investments, businesses, secondary properties) from all contributors, and a little patience. The tax forms requested are from the last year filed (i.e., in 2024, it would be 2022 tax forms) and the financial documents are to be current. I’ve seen that they want you to report all monies, including assets “stuffed in your mattress,” which means you need to be honest and as complete as possible. Any contributor lacking a social security number can still create an account. How long does it take to fill out the FAFSA? About 10-20 minutes if you have all of your information at hand. For other contributors, it may take less time. Are there any glitches in the new form? Yes! The first glitch has been that the form has been occasionally inaccessible as they continue to work on it. This happened periodically, including the first three days and first weekend of the FAFSA release. The second major glitch is an account creation glitch, or as one college administrator called the “loop of doom.” Essentially, for some contributors, it will not let you add your address to create an account. If you add your address, it will loop back to the page as if you did something wrong. Kudos to my son for finding the reddit solution for this glitch, which involves deleting your address (and sometimes phone number) to create the account. Later on, there will be an opportunity to add contact information. A friendly parent from my high school just shared another major glitch: some contributors have been invited to fill out the form (by their student or another contributor), but when they go to their account, no form is to be found. To be honest, my spouse asked me about the same issue last night, so I'm "thrilled" to find out that it is just another glitch. Per a couple of reddit threads, it is a "known issue" where applications are not showing up in contributors' accounts even if the social security numbers match--of course, there is "no known timeframe of when this will be resolved." (updated 11/11/24) I finally got through via FAFSA chat today regarding this last issue, the FAFSA representative said, "If you are unable to view any cases open in your activity, we would advise for the student to resubmit the parent invite. With the soft launch still in effect we are experiencing issues with the availability of the FAFSA form and we would advise to try again at a later time. This is currently something we are looking into, several have had the same issue. I would try to have your son initiate the invite on his portal to see if that makes a difference. We currently do not have a timeframe as to when all of these issues will be fully resolved, i apologize." (updated 1/12/24) DO NOT TAKE THIS ADVICE unless you record your financial data first. My entire FAFSA form was deleted by this process. If you choose to go this route, be sure to print out what you have already done to make it easier to re-enter all of the information. I'm still working out the kinks and will have another update soon. (updated 1/14/24) How else do I apply for financial aid? Be aware that the FAFSA is not the only financial aid tool used by colleges. Check your colleges to see what other forms they may require. In the absence of the FAFSA’s availability in 2023, a number of schools required the College Scholarship Service (CSS) form to be submitted in addition to the FAFSA. However, most colleges have additional applications, essays, and requirements for various financial aid at their schools. In many cases, parents and guardians do not receive these notices, so check in with your Senior to see what has come into their email inbox. Thus far, the majority of my son’s colleges have required additional forms and information, including essays. Final thoughts on college applications and financial aid forms: students are expected to be responsible for initiating and completing nearly all of the forms, except those outlined above. Nevertheless, most students will need both support and some reminders. Try to make this process as pleasant and collaborative as possible. Each family should recognize the extreme pressures on our kids to do school work and after school activities or work while dipping their toes in the adult world of forms, applications, and finances. National organizations, Virginia organizations like VirginiaCan and GRASP, and school counselors are resources to help students who may have less support in the home. Also, many local high schools host FAFSA information sessions to explain how FAFSA works. In Fairfax, the College Partnership Program has a program to support middle school students, to reduce barriers from accessing college.

2023 was a busy year for 4 Public Education. In addition to our presence at school board meetings, key education events, and a robust on-line presence, we also elected new officers. We would like to introduce: Cheryl Binkley, our President, and Vanessa Hall, our Vice President. Cheryl Binkley is a retired high school and community college English and Theatre teacher. Like many public school advocates, she began as a classroom mom, PTA member, and local PTA president. Her two children are graduates of Annandale High School, and her grandson graduated from Centreville. Cheryl’s academic credentials include an M.Ed. from the University of Virginia and she is a graduate of One Spirit Interfaith Seminary in New York. Her credentials include licensure in Special Education, Emotional Disturbances, and Advanced Academics. She was an International Baccalaureate and Dual Enrollment teacher and a department chair. In addition, she is a published writer of curriculum and teacher handbooks. She blogs as “3rd Millennium Teacher.” Like Vanessa Hall, our vice president, Cheryl was a co-founder of 4 Public Education and has been an active voice of support for public education by speaking at school board and Board of Education meetings, rallies, and policy actions, and has provided testimony to state legislature about education components of state budgets. Her other public school advocacy and support includes being an early member and state coordinator for the VirginiaBATs, Virginia’s wing of the national Badass Teachers Association which has 60,000 members, and as a co-founder of Virginia Educators United that coordinated the 2019 Virginia RedforEd March. She continues to serve on district advisory committees and supports fellow retirees on the boards of FEA-Retired, and FCRE (Fairfax County Retired Educators). As incoming president, I’d like to thank Holly Hazard for her leadership during our first two years. She will continue as a board member, but we are excited for her as she joins the staff of the Virginia Senate for the 2024 General Assembly session. 4 Public Education began as a firewall to protect our local students, public schools, and school board members from radical, even violent, threats and attacks. We’ve been  successful at banding together with other organizations of parents, community members, and students to meet the threat and provide a voice for the importance and successes of our public schools. Our advocacy has centered around four critical ideas that will remain the grounding of our mission: Public schools build local communities. They are the foundations of civic life and democracy, Public money is for public good, and Universal respect and access to highest quality services and practices for all students is necessary for our society and children to flourish. During 2024 we will add stronger outreach to like-minded Virginians across the state and expand our connections to individuals and organizations that share our goals. I would like to invite all who share those values and goals to join us in support and advocacy 4 Public Education in the coming year. Vanessa Hall is 4 Public Education’s parent-in-the-trenches. She has two children in FCPS. In the last three years, she has attended over 75 school board meetings, spoke at more than 25 school board meetings, and become a local expert on dark money and astroturf organizations. She also has a Bachelors from James Madison University, a Masters from Duke, and other certifications. Vanessa is a 10-year scout leader, long-time Sunday school teacher, trained OWL educator, former Science Olympiad coach, and active PTA member. She has always tried to be an active helpful volunteer in her children’s schools, whether it was serving on the board at Arlington Unitarian Cooperative Preschool, or supporting students and teachers in Fairfax County K-12 schools. She is currently serving as a co-director of FCPS Pride and a parent representative on FLECAC. Across Virginia, school boards have taken up the mantle for 2024. In Fairfax, there are eight new and four returning school board members who will need public input and support, as they begin their four-year commitment to the families and employees of FCPS. Every school board needs students, parents, educators, and citizens to speak up about what is important to them, so that boards can hear public concerns, especially when their words, actions, or votes may run counter to student, family, and educator needs. As a parent, I see vulnerable students and equity under attack. Of the myriad of vulnerable students at risk, LGBTQIA students, especially transgender students, have been the focus of Virginia’s Governor and attacks by the far right; however, they are also a proxy for all vulnerable students whose rights and access to public education are at risk if we do not steadfastly reject angry rhetoric and culture war disinformation. We need to continue to defend librarians and inclusive and diverse books in our schools, so that every student can see themselves reflected in the books they choose to read and the classes they attend. Similarly, equity has been under attack under the pretense that equity and merit are mutually exclusive. Our students can not be defined merely by standardized test scores irrespective of classroom experience, disabilities, or diverse needs and experiences. Equity ensures that students are given the support and tools they need to succeed whether it is a team-taught classroom experience for a child with ADHD or advanced math for an aggressive learner. Ultimately, the attacks on equity are attacks on funding. Equitable funding of all students provides opportunities for each and every student to succeed in and out of school. Just in case you were wondering, our work is not done. Despite major election blows to anti-public education activists, we need to remain vigilant. Their strategies will change, so our public schools remain vulnerable. We, at 4 Public Education, will continue to meet the challenge head on by pushing back against disinformation and anti-public education policies and activists. At the same time, 4 Public Education will continue to advocate for improvements to public policy and our public schools so that students, teachers, and families are best served in our communities.

The Board of 4 Public Education is disappointed with the proposed budget released by Governor Youngkin on December 20, 2023. It seems that the Youngkin administration has dismissed the report by the Joint Legislative Audit and Review Commission (JLARC) and their recommendations regarding the serious underfunding of public schools in Virginia. Also, the Governor has dismissed the results of an expansive study that concluded “efforts to close the learning gap should look at the more fundamental reasons for the disparity in achievement between affluent and disadvantaged children”, with the ‘quality and funding of schools’ among the factors with the greatest impact on closing achievement gaps.” For more than two years the Governor has been using manufactured crises to inflame culture wars as a means of distracting Virginians from the true problems in our public schools – that they are seriously underfunded, understaffed, and teachers are undercompensated. The JLARC report concluded that Virginia school divisions need 66 to 93 percent more funding, depending on the model used to estimate the degree of underfunding. Adjusting the funding formula to reflect the actual expenditures of school divisions would require an increase in state funding by 45 percent, or $2,700 per student. Of course, local funding obligations would also increase, but according to the JLARC report, “all localities are already contributing more than what is required; three-quarters are already contributing 45 percent or more above what is required.“ Instead of planning ahead for when the funding formula is corrected, Governor Youngkin’s proposed budget significantly reduces funding for public education in Virginia. Instead of paving the way to improve public education, his budget reveals his lack of commitment to a quality public education in Virginia. He has the mistaken notion that his proposed reduction in state taxes, which would mostly benefit the wealthy, would encourage people to move into the state. The truth is that low state tax levels are ineffective at attracting people, and it is the quality of public education that is the major factor motivating people to move to a state. The Board of 4 Public Education encourages Virginia’s legislators to pass bills and budget amendments that will revise the out-of-date funding formula that Virginia uses, and increase rather than decrease funding to public education in Virginia. There is an urgent need to correct the way school divisions are funded as Virginia’s current formula still uses funding reductions that were put in place during the Great Recession of 2008, resulting in the serious underfunding of public education in Virginia. We urge leaders of localities and other sectors of the Commonwealth to object to the Governor’s proposed budget and support amendments to his budget that will be proposed during the General Assembly session in January. We must realize the Governor’s proposed budget will damage the education of Virginia’s children, and the future of our economy.

If you care about public education, then you have noticed that school districts across the country have been under fire for the last three years. It feels there is a new outrage, investigation, controversy, or lawsuit every day from some corner of the nation. Unfortunately, Northern Virginia has been in the eye of the storm with near constant interference and investigations of its public school systems by the Governor’s office. It doesn’t matter whether one lives in Loudoun or Fairfax county–the actions of the school boards have been under constant scrutiny by politically motivated groups who have tried unsuccessfully for the past three years to recall and remove democratic members of those school boards. These attacks are mainly about politics. If they can make school districts and boards look like they are breaking the law or violating civil rights, it makes it that much easier to defund and dismantle public education. These attacks on our public schools’ reputations are intended to make public schools look like they are corrupt, dysfunctional, and inept rather than underfunded with overworked staff. The manufactured crisis over delayed notification of National Merit commended certificates is a perfect example of this effort. One year ago, on December 21, 2022, an inflammatory and exaggerated article was published that accused school administrators of intentionally delaying notification of National Merit commended certificates. The accusation was that the delay was part of a long “war on merit,” rather than an administrative oversight by an overworked school system. This story was published in the City Journal, a publication by the conservative Manhattan Institute for Public Policy Research, a right-wing non-profit think tank that promotes education policies like vouchers and privatization. The City Journal is the same source for Chris Rufo’s fabricated Critical Race Theory crisis in 2020, and it has fomented the culture wars through an unrepentant anti-LGBTQIA stance in 2023. This story on the delayed notification to students was amplified throughout the right-wing media-verse and on social media before it hit mainstream media in January 2023. Somehow, a media frenzy that began over the 2022-23 winter break triggered a 9-month long investigation and lawsuit by the Attorney General under the Office of Civil Rights. In the new year, 4 Public Education will examine this particular manufactured crisis in order to estimate its impact on the school district, which involved an expensive investigation by FCPS, vilification of the school district via significant negative national and local media coverage, and multiple lawsuits racking up substantial legal costs for FCPS and the Commonwealth. If you care about your public schools, then you should care about this particular story, because it involves hundreds and thousands of taxpayer dollars spent on a manufactured crisis, rather than the education of students. Something similarly sinister may be coming to your school district.

Although most of us think of Christmas when we talk about the December holidays, there are eleven cultural and religious holidays celebrated worldwide this month. These holidays celebrated in some communities in Virginia and around the world include: St. Nicholas Day (Dec. 5 or 6): The birthday of Saint Nicholas, the inspiration for Santa Claus. Immaculate Conception Day (Dec. 8): A Catholic celebration of the Virgin Mary, believed to be born without original sin. Bodhi Day, or Rohatsu (Dec. 8): A Buddist tradition that honors the day in which the Buddha achieved enlightenment. Hanukkah (sundown Dec. 7 -18 in 2023): The Jewish festival of lights. Feast Day of Our Lady Guadalupe (Dec. 12): In honor of the patron saint of Mexico. Yule (Dec. 21-Jan.1): Wiccans and neo-pagans celebrate the Winter Solstice, the shortest night of the year, and look forward to the return of light as days grow longer. Christmas (Dec. 25): A Christian holiday celebrating the birth of Jesus. Boxing Day (Dec. 26) A British tradition that occurs the day after Christmas Kwanzaa (Dec. 26-Jan. 1): A cultural holiday honoring African-American heritage. Zarathosht Diso (Dec. 26): Honoring the death of the Iranian prophet Zoroaster New Year’s Eve (Dec. 31): The last day of the year, often celebrated by parties, festivals, and fireworks. Virginia has a sizable immigrant population, with more than 12% of the Commonwealth’s population being foreign-born, making Virginia ethnically and culturally diverse. In an attempt to be more inclusive, some school systems in Virginia have started to adopt school calendars with more religious holidays. For example, Fairfax County Public Schools' (FCPS) calendar has reflected the Jewish holidays of Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur, the Hindu holiday Diwali, and Orthodox Good Friday. Also, when the holidays Eid al-Fitr and the Lunar New Year fall on school days, they have been recognized with school closures. Another new school holiday is Veterans Day, when it falls on a school day.  These changes have helped some communities in Virginia to positively recognize the growing diversity of Virginians, as well as be more inclusive and welcoming. Principal Herman Mizell, of Langston Hughes Middle School in Reston, VA said it best when he sent a letter to his community saying in part: Greetings to each of you and your extended families around the globe! We are so fortunate to be in a school community that blends many traditions and cultures. While events, words and decorations may be different, we can all find a common thread in our traditions among family, love, celebrations, and devotion to giving our students rich, robust, and meaningful learning experiences. The entire team at 4 Public Education wishes the Happiest of Holidays to all in our community and beyond.

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 Code of Virginia. Although this blog will primarily focus on Fairfax County, we will share school board meeting reports from around the state, when possible. The 12/14/23 Fairfax County School Board (FCSB) meeting began with a performance of the National Anthem by the Glasgow Middle School Band Wind Ensemble. Although the agenda was fairly short, the meeting ran quite long, because there were eight proclamations honoring the outgoing School Board Members for their years of service and dedication, some of whom had served for twelve years. Many in the audience learned new things about school board members. I, for one, learned that many of them have deep friendships and relationships that go back over a decade or more. Also, I learned of long commitments against discrimination, for equity, and in support of improving mental health. These proclamations gave a different perspective to each of these hardworking women–I strongly recommend a listen to better understand them. Many thanks for your years of hard work and steadfast desire to improve education, support students and teachers, and represent the interests of families and your constituents. Public Input Surprisingly, we lost very few speakers after close to two-and a half hours of proclamations. In fact, a few additional speakers were added to the list. Most of the speakers expressed appreciation for the dedication and hard decisions that the school board needed to make during and after the pandemic, including the Fairfax PTA and two leaders of 4 Public Education (Robert Rigby and Vanessa Hall). Quite a number of the speakers thanked specific school board members including speeches by two school board members’ husbands: most of us laughed out loud at a funny, poignant speech by Mrs. Corbett Sanders’ husband and I doubt that I was the only one with tears in my eyes during a sweet speech by Ms. Abrar Omeish’s husband. There was criticism also laid at the feet of FCPS by a student and her brother describing bigotry from and a lack of consequences for a teacher at Lake Braddock, and two fathers demanding action and accountability after a data breach exposed over 35,000 students’ data. A student from Oakton High School spoke of the need for a more robust driver’s education program and pedestrian safety after too many accidents and deaths involving student pedestrians. School Board Business Student Representative Matters. Strategic Plan Baseline Report on Goal 1: Dr. Ried provided an update on Strong Start, Goal 1 of the Strategic Plan, covering priorities related to the availability of pre-K programs and language progress for english-language learners that meet the community’s needs. Action Items: Three action items were on the agenda: FY 2024 Midyear Budget Review. Ten voted yes and two abstained (Ms. Omeish and Ms. McLaughlin). Strategic Plan Goal 1 Baseline Report: Strong Start: Pre-K-12. After significant discussion, nine voted yes and three voted no (Ms. Heizer, Ms. Cohen, and Ms. Omeish). Amend School Board Policy 2418. Three votes were held regarding the policy: Amend School Board Policy 2418 to include that high-school credit-bearing classes will utilize the 100 point letter grade scale with pluses and minuses. Eleven voted yes and one voted no (Ms. Meren). Have the aforementioned policy to be effective August 2024. Seven voted yes, one abstained (Ms. Meren), and four were not present during the vote (Ms. Heizer, Ms. Cohen, Ms. Pekarsky, and Ms. McLaughlin). Direct the Superintendent to share the findings of the Grading Working Group in a work session for further evaluation. Nine voted yes and three were not present during the vote (Ms. Heizer, Ms. Cohen, and Ms. Pekarsky). This is the last meeting of the School Board elected in 2019. It adjourned at approximately 12:21 am on December 15, 2023, requiring part of the meeting to be on a different youtube video. The next school board meeting is scheduled for January 11, 2024. Starting in January 2024 School Board meetings will include the twelve newly elected FCSB members who were sworn in on December 13, 2024. All twelve took the oath of office and swore to uphold the Nation’s and Commonwealth’s constitutions with Fairfax Circuit Court Judge, the Honorable Robert J. Smith. It was a moving ceremony filled with solemn reverence for the important job they would hold for the next four years. Each school board member chose to individualize their swearing-in ceremony by the personal books they chose and who held those books. For more information about the incoming FCSB, please see our blog.

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 of Virginia. Although this blog will primarily focus on Fairfax County, we will share school board meeting reports from around the state, when possible. The 12/4/23 Fairfax County School Board (FCSB) meeting began with a performance of the National Anthem by the Spring Hill Elementary School Select Band. You should listen, because that was one of the best elementary school band performances that I have ever heard–and my own son played in the band in elementary school! There were six proclamations since the November 20th meeting was canceled due to lack of quorum; however, only four are presented below–please check out the agenda for the rest: National Inclusive Schools Week Proclamation: Inclusion means more than it did when this effort began in 2001. It now includes ensuring that schools are welcoming to all students who are marginalized due to disability, gender, socio-economic status, cultural heritage, language preference, identity, and other factors. This year’s theme, “Draw Me In,” provides an opportunity to strengthen commitment to inclusive education, & redirect our talent, time and energy to improve outcomes for students & their families. Celebrating Our Local Native Tribes & Acknowledging Our Historic Origins Proclamation: From the first settlement of Jamestown, Native American Tribes are the original story of Virginia's sometimes tragic history with its then-over 50,000 native people, through 11 officially-recognized tribes who are indigenous to Virginia. The land known as Fairfax was home to thousands of indigenous people, including the Manahoac, Pamunkey, and Doeg nations. Tribal representatives of local native tribes were in attendance for this proclamation. National Hunger and Homelessness Awareness Week Proclamation: Despite the wealth in our county, housing and food insecurity “remain pressing in our community,” particularly as “hunger has surged and the rate of unhoused families with children has increased by 33% in 3 years, with a quarter of those who are unhoused in Fairfax County being children.” This affects their education, opportunity, success, and health. Honoring the 2023 Citizen Bond Committee and the Mount Vernon-Springfield Chamber of Commerce: “Members of the 2023 Citizen Bond Committee, led by Chairman Len Forkas and Co-Chair Catherine Hosek, and the Mount Vernon-Springfield Chamber of Commerce, led by President Holly Dougherty, have dedicated their time, energy and resources in support of passage of the 2023 $435,000,000 school bond referendum with 68% of the county’s voters voting “yes.” (Bravo! And many thanks from this parent!) Unfortunately, the proclamations and meeting were somewhat derailed by words chosen by a school board member that referenced global issues in Israel and Palestine during the proclamation honoring local native tribes. Four of the eleven school board members present (one member was online) excused themselves from the room, and many in the audience were dismayed. Responses from other school board members ranged from gentle reminders of the purpose of proclamations to clear and justifiable outrage that politics was inserted into this otherwise respectful occasion. Before the vote, Chairwoman Tholen reminded everyone that the proclamation should be considered separate from the personal remarks by Ms. Omeish, which is likely the primary reason that the proclamation passed. As an audience member, I was dismayed that a proclamation would be used to push a unrelated political agenda. Additionally, I felt that it was disrespectful to the tribal representatives to conflate a proclamation in their honor with the Hamas-Israeli conflict. Isn’t it bad enough that our ancestors perpetrated genocidal activities against the indigenous peoples of this land? Why insult them in person when you are meant to honor them? Public Input Since the November election, there are open speaking spots and fewer speakers, yet they are covering critical public school and school board issues like: A student from Annandale High School who applauds the educators at his school, but expressed strong concern about the heavy weight of tests versus class work (90% versus 10%), which he believes reduces interest in doing class work. Mr. Stuart Gibson, a 16-year former School Board member, condemned hateful social media posts from Ms. Omeish after Oct 7th, including posts that compared Jews to Nazis. He gave hard copies of the posts to the clerk. I’ve seen one of the posts. I’m astonished that a sitting board member in charge of ALL children’s education would post such things on Facebook (note: these were Facebook stories that were up for 24 hours). Representatives from UUCF and Fairfax AHAC declared support for the Hunger and Housing Proclamation. Both asked for continued collaborative community action because students who are hungry and unhomed cannot do their school work, much less focus in school. Two women spoke to Native Tribes proclamation. One asked that people stop erasing the Tauxenent/Doeg and Pamunkey tribes from history and the other reminded the room that the One Fairfax policy is critical for the inclusion of heritage of all people. School Board Business Academic Matters: Dr. Reid discusses youth survey results from the 2022-2023 school year which shows moderate improvement based on decreases in students reporting substance use, feeling sad or hopeless, suicidal thoughts or attempts, but persistant food insecurity with little variance since 2010. This generated significant amounts of discussion. (Note: a loss of Wifi and internet required a short 10-minute break.) Strategic Plan Update: Dr. Ried provided an update on Academic Excellence and Growth, goal 3 of the Strategic Plan. Student Representative Matters. Strategic Plan: Baseline Report presentation on Goal 3 covering priorities related to Academic Excellence in Education (i.e., reading by 3rd Grade, Algebra by 8th Grade, and advanced coursework in High School). Mid-Year Budget Presentation: Presentation by Ms. Burden, FCPS Chief Financial Officer. Action Items: Four action items were on the agenda: McLean Elementary School Capacity/Boundary Issues (formerly known as Kent Gardens ES Capacity Issues). No vote taken. 2024 FCSB State and Federal Legislative Program. Eleven voted yes, one was not present at the vote (Ms. Meren). Strategic Plan Baseline Report: Ten voted yes, one voted no (Ms. Omeish), and one was not present at the vote (Ms. Meren). Revisions to the Monthly Report on Employee Separation to present disaggregated data, etc. Eleven voted yes, one was not present at the vote (Ms. Meren). Consent Agenda. No objections to approval. New Business: Action will be provided on these items at a future meeting: FY2024 mid-year budget Amendment to policy 2418 (i.e., high-school credit-bearing classes will utilize the 100 point letter grade scale with pluses and minuses) Policy 1421 (guidelines for retaining consultants) Policy 2202 (change role of “parent” to “parent or guardian”). Board Committee Reports: Ms. Keys-Gamarra discussed results of discussion of the engagement process for Capital Improvement Projects. The meeting adjourned at approximately 11:56pm. The next meeting will be on 12/14/23 at 7:30pm. Changes to the School Board Matters Blog I know that this blog is less detailed than usual, so I apologize if I missed something that you care about. I like to be thorough, but like many of you, I’ve been a little consumed with family crises, the upcoming holiday, normal life, work, and the recent data breach revelations, so bear with me. We, at 4 Public Education, are having discussions about how to present this information, as this blog is quite time-consuming. If the meetings are nearly 5 hours long, you can imagine how much time must be spent to watch, digest, and analyze what happened.