Governor Glenn Youngkin (R) celebrated on Monday as all 131 Virginia school divisions finalized and submitted their “ALL in VA” plans with the governor’s office. Youngkin originally challenged Virginia’s schools to finish their plans by October 16.
In a statement, Youngkin said he is “pleased all of Virginia’s school divisions have heeded my call to urgently and aggressively take action to help our students recover” from the learning loss suffered as a result of pandemic-era restrictions. Youngkin said the submissions mean Virginia schools “embraced that challenge and are committed to getting our students back on track academically.”
The “ALL In” program was unveiled by Youngkin earlier this year, and includes $418 million in funding for schools to address students’ continuing struggles that stem from pandemic-era school closures and virtual learning.
However, many school divisions were slow to respond. By October 16, just 26 school divisions had submitted their spending plans, and the number had only increased to 70 by November 2. The number of divisions with submitted plans increased to 110 by November 24, when Youngkin revealed the divisions who submitted plans included “all regions of the commonwealth.”
Virginia Education Secretary Aimee Guidera called the submissions a “milestone” in a statement, adding it demonstrates “the leadership and commitment of our school divisions and community volunteers to students and families.”
Data released in November revealed current Virginia students scored six points lower in reading and 15 points lower in math than students in the same grades prior to the pandemic. More than half of Virginia students between third-grade and eighth-grade are at risk or failing to meet the state’s standards for reading, and more than two-thirds are at risk or failing to meet the academic standards for math.
Virginia Superintendent of Public Instruction Lisa Coons commended the school divisions in a statement, declaring the educators were “thoughtful in their planning” and submitted “meaningful plans to help their students catch up and step ahead to prepare them with the solid academic foundation they need to recover and be successful.”
Youngkin requested an additional $500 million to fund mental health for children enrolled in Virginia’s public schools and colleges last week, when he also promised legislation to ban TikTok for minors and restrict other social media companies’ ability to gather data about children in the commonwealth.
The governor said his extra funding will expand mental health services from 50,000 students to 500,000, and establish plans to offer “telebehavioral health for children in grades six through 12,” with the offering eventually expanding to Virginia’s public higher education institutions.
Youngkin also requested an additional $448 million for after school programs and childcare earlier in December, when he warned Virginia families will be left without options after pandemic-era funding runs dry.
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Tom Pappert is the lead reporter for The Tennessee Star, and also reports for The Georgia Star News, The Virginia Star, and The Arizona Sun Times. Follow Tom on X/Twitter. Email tips to [email protected].
Photo “Glenn Youngkin” by Virgina Governor.Â
