Richmond tackles education. How it might impact Rappahannock

The 2020 Virginia General Assembly Session is upon us, a 60-day session (usually) where state politicians get legislating. Many of the anticipated 3,000 plus bills are sure to directly or indirectly affect public education, according to the Virginia Association of Secondary School Principals (VASSP).

In fact, Rappahannock County School Board Member Rachel Bynum on Tuesday was “in Richmond and head to the Capital soon to meet with Delegate [Michael] Webert and Senator [Mark] Obenshain to advocate for our budget priorities as a Small Rural School Division. The governor’s proposed budget includes a substantial increase to ‘At-Risk Add-On’ funding, which seems encouraging.”

Rappahannock County Schools Superintendent Dr. Shannon Grimsley, meanwhile, told this newspaper Tuesday that RCPS will receive $56,348 more in state revenue than last year, which is good and bad.

“Most of this is because of the reinstatement of the Virginia Preschool Initiative (VPI) funding for Rapp,” she said. “While we are thrilled for this reinstatement of VPI funding, the governor's budget after filtering through the LCI formula for Rapp falls far short of covering the costs of meeting all the mandates and the needs of our students.”

Grimsley at the school board meeting on Tuesday night began the task of crunching the budget numbers for the coming school year to somehow make ends meet.

As an aside, newly proposed revisions to the Standards of Quality are on the Richmond legislative agenda, along with “rebenchmarking” for public education discussed (numbers based on actual expenses incurred by school divisions and

represent reimbursement for costs over and above prior funding received).

Reviewing the education bills that failed to pass in 2019, VASSP said, could shed light on what might materialize during the ongoing legislative session — “priority issues on our ‘watch list’ for 2020.”

They include:

➜ 1. Disorderly conduct:

Redefine “disorderly conduct” and requiring, in most instances, inschool alternatives to suspension/ expulsion.

➜ 2. Lockdown drills: 24-hour notice to parents and staff.

➜ 3. Student dress code:

Prohibit certain prescriptive and detailed language concerning inappropriate dress for students (i.e., “provocative”).

➜ 4. Student fees: Prohibit all student fees, including for driver’s education, field trips, extracurricular activities, etc.

➜ 5. Student counseling services:

Expand parental rights and oversight that could prevent timely intervention.

➜ 6. Homeschool students:

Allow participation in public school programs, including driver’s education and JROTC programs.

➜ 7. Elective course on the Bible:

Require Board of Education to create SOL.

➜ 8. SOL: Codify certain

SOL, including reading, writing, mathematics, biology, and Virginia and U.S. history; prohibit end-of-course assessments from being performancebased.

➜ 9. Student journalists: Declare that student journalists have the right to freedom of speech and of the press in school-sponsored media.

➜ 10. Family Life Education programs: Parents to have a right to review prior to student participation; opt-in.