Sign on for Continued Investment in Virginia's Students!

"...We have to educate our way to a better economy." U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan, June 9, 2009

The Governor, General Assembly, and Virginia Board of Education are making big decisions that could affect how education is funded in Virginia for many generations to come.

If we don't take the time to speak up NOW, education funding in Virginia could be permanently reduced.

Virginia already ranks in the bottom half of states when it comes to state funding for public education.  Virginia ranks 37th among the states in the percentage of state funding per pupil for public education, even while we rank 8th in per capita income.  A permanent reduction in state support will set us back even further, and hold up efforts to eliminate the acheivement gap in Virginia.

Changes to the Standards of Quality that are justified only by the state’s balance sheet will harm Virginia’s students and Virginia’s economic prosperity. 

Please sign the petition and post your comment today! 

To post a comment, scroll down after adding your signature and contact information.

We the undersigned ask the Governor, the Board of Education and the General Assembly not to weaken the Standards of Quality in any way. The Standards of Quality are the “minimum foundation the Commonwealth must provide to meet its constitutional obligation to maintain ‘an educational program of high quality’ for the children of Virginia.”* Article VIII Section 2 of the Virginia Constitution requires that the Standards of Quality be prescribed by the Board of Education, subject to revision only by the General Assembly. The Constitution further places a duty on the General Assembly to establish a funding system that meets the Standards of Quality. This funding system should include sufficient State resources for students and schools to achieve the outcomes mandated by the State in the Standards of Accreditation and Standards of Learning. We believe that the Virginia Constitution requires the Board to determine what resources are needed for students and schools to achieve the outcomes mandated by the state in the Standards of Learning and Standards of Accreditation. Accordingly, the Standards of Quality must include sufficient resources to allow each student access to a Fully Accredited school and a meaningful opportunity to earn a Standard Diploma. Accordingly, we ask all policymakers to reaffirm Virginia’s commitment to educational quality by rejecting the proposed cap on state funding for support staff. Changes to the Standards of Quality that are justified only by the state’s balance sheet and without a valid educational justification will harm Virginia’s students and Virginia’s economic prosperity. Students at risk of educational failure need the supports and services provided by attendance, guidance, health, social services, and other departments in our public schools, especially in times of financial stress. Reducing school support staff will place a greater burden on classroom teachers, and students will lose valuable instructional time. We applaud the high standards that the Virginia Board of Education has set for our students and schools, and ask the Governor, the members of the General Assembly and the members of the State Board of Education to ensure that schools have sufficient resources to meet our expectations. Virginia’s long-term investment in education should not waver due to short-term fluctuations in state revenue. *Resolution on Standards of Quality funding, adopted by the Commonwealth of Virginia Board of Education on February 21, 2008.

Optional Member Code

First Name*

Last Name*

Email*

Street

Street 2

City

State/Province Select a state Alabama Alaska American Samoa Arizona Arkansas California Colorado Connecticut Delaware D.C. Florida Georgia Guam Hawaii Idaho Illinois Indiana Iowa Kansas Kentucky Louisiana Maine Maryland Massachusetts Michigan Minnesota Mississippi Missouri Montana Nebraska Nevada New Hampshire New Jersey New Mexico New York North Carolina North Dakota Northern Mariana Islands Ohio Oklahoma Oregon Pennsylvania Puerto Rico Rhode Island South Carolina South Dakota Tennessee Texas Utah Vermont Virgin Islands Virginia Washington West Virginia Wisconsin Wyoming Armed Forces (the) Americas Armed Forces Europe Armed Forces Pacific Alberta British Columbia Manitoba Newfoundland New Brunswick Nova Scotia Northwest Territories Nunavut Ontario Prince Edward Island Quebec Saskatchewan Yukon Territory Other

Zip/Postal Code

Name of State Senator

Name of State Delegate

How would your community be harmed by cuts to public school budgets? Please offer specific examples.

Sarah Geddes is the attorney responsible for this material. Contact:  sarah@justice4all.org, 804-643-1086, Legal Aid Justice Center, JustChildren Program, 123 East Broad Street, Richmond, VA  23219.

25-50 of 1753 signatures

Number	Date	Name	Location	How would your community be harmed by cuts to public school budgets? Please offer specific examples.
1728	October 13, 2009	linda walser	,
1727	October 13, 2009	Michelle Bevis	Alexandria , VA
1726	October 11, 2009	odessa Sickels	Haymarket, VA
1725	October 11, 2009	Sue Piskor	springfield, VA
1724	October 11, 2009	Eunice Williams	Alexandria, VA	Special Education - increase in class size minority achievement - programs to help
1723	October 11, 2009	patricia mayers	arlington, VA
1722	October 10, 2009	Jane O'Hara	alexandria, VA	If you don't see a child each day, justify your position. A4sistant Principals. Watch the whole child and eachh child is important.
1721	October 10, 2009	Jane O'Hara	,
1720	October 10, 2009	Christian Donlon	Fairfax, VA
1719	October 10, 2009	Debra Kay Robinson Lindsay	Springfield, VA	The fine and performing arts, considered by No Child Left Behind as a core subject, are indeed being left behind. Look how many programs have been eliminated. How sad for Virginia's youth!
1718	October 10, 2009	Donna Kline	Oak HIll, VA
1717	October 10, 2009	Marie Schryver	McLean, VA	The community is known for its schools, people move here so their children can receive a superior education.
1716	October 10, 2009	Susan Miles	Herndon, VA	I have been involved in VA education as a student in Alleghany/Bath and as a teacher in Fairfax. It is getting harder and harder to keep good teachers, as they are being offered less money and given more responsibilities. Until education gets more than lip service, we will continue to lose our best to the buisness world.
1715	October 09, 2009	Ann Minor	Alexandria, , VA	Here in Alexandria we have a high risk population that struggles with the curriculum due to lack of experiences and exposure to many topics. They are lacking in problem solving skills and coping skills which are much better taught in smaller groups. Social skills often need to be worked on to a great extent. Teachers are finding much less support at home and less literacy. It will be important to provide extra support to these students with better teacher to student ratios, high quality materials and intervention materials for the many students who do not have the prerequisites and background knowledge to be successful with the current curriculum. Sincerely, Ann Minor
1714	October 08, 2009	Tammie Looney	Covington, VA	Our locality is trying to survive the cuts that have been made so far, there is no way we can survive more cuts. The government expects that no child be left behind but they want to cut our funds which will directly affect the opportunities we will be able to give them.
1713	October 07, 2009	Matthew Larson	Midlothian, VA	Less funds means lower level of education for the general public, leading to a less productive society
1712	October 07, 2009	Caitlin Wood	Powhatan, VA
1711	October 07, 2009	Caitlin Wood	Powhatan, VA
1710	October 07, 2009	Terry W. Mullins	N. Tazewell, VA	Standards should be on the rise as students face the challenges of a 21st. Century Education. These proposals move Virgnia in the opposite direction harming Virginia's students today and Virginia's leadership potential tomorrow.
1709	October 06, 2009	Isaac Lynch, Jr.	Petersburg, VA	We need to increase our "Cost-per-student in Virginia. Virginia is 34th in the Nation. We need to individually increase the "Cost-per-student" in each of our 135 School Districts. Do not expect the high scores if a School District's "Cost-per-student" is lower than the city /county next door. Let's face it. Money talks. Otherwise teachers are walking.
1708	October 06, 2009	Sarah Gross	Richmond, VA
1707	October 05, 2009	Paige Goodpasture	Richmond, VA	Children need to feel valued, and seeing there schools falling down around them and sitting in classrooms with too many students for teachers to attend to does not lead to a sense of their importance. Secretary Duncan said it best when he said that our future economy depends on the quality of our education. Virginia's current economy is the beneficiary of many years of excellence in education, and we cut back on this legacy at our peril.
1706	October 01, 2009	Ann Voss	fairfax, VA	The decrease in funding will harm student achievment in the Commonwealth as class become larger, and there are fewer opportunities to take rigorous classes, such as I.B. and A.P. due to the budget decreases. More districts will ask for waivers for SOQ, and soon there will be no compliance. What does will that say to the public about the importance of students receiving a rigorous education that will produce competent, ethical citizens?
1705	October 01, 2009	Monica Bagley	, VA	Less quality education for our children. We would lose quality teachers as they would have to find jobs elsewhere in order to receive higher salaries.
1704	October 01, 2009	Laura McKinney	, VA	Remediation program funding would be diminished and students would not be able to get the tutoring they need in order to not be "left behind." Much needed renovation plans would be put on hold leaving students in overcrowded classrooms. Staffing would be diminished leaving children unattended and their needs being diminshed because of stress levels in schools by faculty, staff and children. New books would be put on hold because the money would no longer be available so helping students receive updated information and skills would be hindered. Being able to teach to individual needs would be lost because we wouldn't have supplies, time, or ability due to the loss of staffing and materials since budgets are cut, and finally, good teachers would probably be on the look out for new jobs because they will not get a cost of living increase in their paychecks leaving them with the inability to take of their families financially; not to mention the exhaustion emotionally and physcially because of the numbers that have to be dealt with.

Next ->