Tag: public schools
Study: Threat assessment teams making positive impact in Virginia schools
The presence of threat assessment teams in Virginia public schools is making a positive impact, according to a report released today that analyzed the teams during the first year they were required by state law.
Ken Plum: Yes, Virginia, there is a Santa Claus
The editorial in the September 21, 1897 New York Sun, responding to a letter from eight-year-old Virginia O’Hanlon who had inquired about whether there was a Santa Claus, has become the most reprinted newspaper editorial, according to the Newseum.
UVA research finds academic ability of New York teachers has increased
A new study of New York State teachers shows that since 1999, the academic ability of both those certified to teach and those hired to teach has increased substantially.
C.F. Richards Junior Academy hosting Fall Festival in Staunton
This Sunday, November 2, 2014, C.F. Richards Junior Academy is hosting their annual Fall Festival in Staunton and invites the entire community to come out for some old-fashioned family fun!
Ken Plum: Saved by the Feds
As I wrote in a column several months ago, Virginia has historically ceded decisions to federal authorities on major issues on which the state had been unwilling to move forward, despite the Commonwealth’s historic antipathy toward the federal government.
State announces 2015 Virginia teachers of the year
Eight educators today learned of their selection as 2015 Virginia Regional Teachers of the Year during surprise classroom visits and announcements made by their division superintendents.
McAuliffe announces recipients of 2014 Governor’s Public Service Awards
Governor Terry McAuliffe on Thursday announced the recipients of the Governor’s Public Service Awards at an Executive Mansion ceremony honoring seven state employees.
Bob Goodlatte: Protecting college choice
Across the Sixth District and the nation, new college students are moving onto campuses for the first time, setting up dorm rooms, preparing for classes, and are just beginning to embark on their higher education.
Community Foundation opens Dawbarn Awards nominations
Is there someone in our community who you think exemplifies the spirit of service for our children in public education? If so, consider nominating them for a prestigious 2014 Dawbarn Education Award. A total of $100,000 will be awarded to 10 deserving individuals that inspire, encourage and foster learning.
Chris Graham: More echoes of the civil rights era in Ferguson
The grainy footage from the civil rights era protests of the 1960s is getting an update in HD with the ongoing unrest in Ferguson, Missouri, stemming from the police shooting of an unarmed teen two weeks ago.
Princeton Review, Money Magazine, Forbes rate UMW among nation’s best
The University of Mary Washington has recently been ranked among the nation’s best colleges by the Princeton Review, Money Magazine and Forbes.
Improving chemical safety: A baby step in the right direction
In the aftermath of the explosion of a fertilizer storage facility in West, Texas last year that killed 15 people and destroyed three schools and a nursing home, federal officials realized there are serious gaps in federal oversight authority of facilities that house dangerous chemicals.
Virginia music teacher elected secretary-treasurer of nation’s largest union
Princess Moss, an elementary school music teacher from Louisa County, Virginia, who has long championed bringing back music and fine arts education to America’s public schools, has been elected secretary-treasurer of the National Education Association.
Cigarette smoking down among Virginia high school students
The Virginia Foundation for Healthy Youth (VFHY) and the Virginia Department of Health (VDH) announced Friday that youth smoking rates in Virginia have plummeted to an all-time low.
Randy Forbes: Banning the American flag?
In 2010, five students went to school at their public high school in California wearing T-shirts that displayed the American flag. That sentence seems anything but newsworthy. In fact, it seems extremely ordinary in a nation where citizens proudly display our flag on apparel, outside our homes, on our cars, inside our schools, and across our towns.
ACLU applauds governor’s veto of school prayer bill
Gov. Terry McAuliffe vetoed a bill that would have compelled schools to sponsor student prayer at official school events where students (and other members of the school community) are a captive audience, such as graduations, assemblies, and sporting events.
ACLU: General Assembly session mixed on civil liberties
The 2014 session of the Virginia General Assembly left the ACLU of Virginia and its 10,000 members and supporters with little reason to cheer and significant reason to worry about the state of civil liberties in the Commonwealth when the General Assembly adjourns sine die. “
Prayer in school: Un-American
At age six, I’m faced with a dilemma. Should I learn this prayer and say it along with everyone else? That’s up to you, my mother tells me. I could say it, or remain silent while everyone else recites, or she offers to request that I be excused from the room during the prayer.
Chris Graham: Why did Senate Democrats kill the Tebow Bill?
Senate Democrats are crowing about how they killed the so-called Tebow Bill, which would allow home-schooled students to participate in athletics on public-sports teams. Congratulations for your hard work to deny opportunities to innocent teenagers.
State Senate Democrats killed Tebow Bill
The Senate Committee on Education & Health voted 9-6 on Thursday to defeat a so-called “Tebow bill” that would have effectively forced public school districts to allow home school students to participate in their athletics programs. The vote took place along party lines, with all Democrats opposing the bill.
Ken Plum: Virginia prefers to leave it to the feds
Despite Virginia’s historic antipathy toward the federal government, the Commonwealth has nonetheless historically ceded decisions to federal authorities on major issues on which the state had been unwilling to move forward.
Chris Graham: Marriage equality now the law of the land?
Virginia is hardly the leader of the pack in the area of marriage equality, but maybe we can be an interesting bellwether. Just as the state’s votes for Barack Obama for president in 2008 and 2012 broke the Solid South politically, maybe today’s move by Attorney General Herring can ignite a wave of change in the South regarding the last remaining civil rights issue of our time.
Poll: Majority of Virginians believe better mental health services would prevent gun violence
A new Commonwealth Poll from Virginia Commonwealth University’s L. Douglas Wilder School of Government and Public Affairs indicates that a large majority of Virginians believes better mental health services would help in the prevention of gun violence.
Poll: Are you concerned about impact of SOLs on education?
Large majorities of Virginians have concerns about how mandatory testing is impacting students and teachers in the classroom but also think Standards of Learning tests help with school accountability and academic standards.
ACLU releases 2014 Virginia General Assembly legislative priorities
The ACLU of Virginia today released its 2014 General Assembly Session policy priorities by hand-delivery to all legislator offices. The organization has prioritized several legislative initiatives that will advance the civil rights and liberties of all Virginians.
Analysis: Dickie Bell gets attention from local Democrats for science education bill
Local Democrats are seething over a controversial bill introduced by Del. Dickie Bell, R-Staunton, that would require school boards to “find effective ways to present scientific controversies in science classes.”
Dickie Bell bill would require public schools to teach science ‘controversies’
Legislation proposed by Staunton Del. Dickie Bell would require school boards in Virginia to “find effective ways to present scientific controversies in science classes.”
McAuliffe nominates Anne Holton as Secretary of Education
Gov.-elect Terry McAuliffe announced at a press conference on Friday the nomination of Former First Lady Anne Holton to be his Secretary of Education.
McDonnell continues commitment to K-12 education reform
Building on his commitment to ensure that every child in Virginia, regardless of their zip code, has access to a top quality education, Gov. Bob McDonnell today announced that his FY 2015/2016 budget will include $582.6 million in increased funding for the biennium for K-12 and pre-kindergarten education.
A Halloween to remember
By Crystal Graham freepress@ntelos.net (This is the second installment in a six-part series on The Valley Responds, an effort that links the Shenandoah Valley with residents of Long Beach, Miss.) In Long Beach, Miss., children celebrated Halloween just like most children here in Virginia. At school, the children were outside getting their faces painted – […]
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