Tag: Richmond Public Schools

Miyares Stops in Gilpin Court to Discuss School Safety, Hear Local Concerns

Eric Burk

RICHMOND, Virginia — Attorney General Jason Miyares stopped at the Calhoun community center in Gilpin Court, a low-income neighborhood with a local reputation for violence. Miyares met privately with local leaders and parents and handed out backpacks with school supplies to residents as part of a series of stops he is making around Virginia.

“I came here to the Calhoun Center to hear what was happening, and what people are saying is happening,” Miyares told reporters after the Thursday meeting. “A lot of it was about school safety, but also about larger issues in the community.”

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Seven School Boards Sue Over Youngkin Mask-Optional Order; Sen. Petersen Threatens Legislative Action if Schools Don’t Find Mandate Off-Ramp

Eric Burk

Seven school districts are suing Governor Glenn Youngkin over Executive Order Two, which requires schools to allow parents to opt children out of mask mandates. The lawsuit challenges Youngkin’s authority over school boards and his ability to override Senate Bill 1303, which requires schools to follow CDC guidelines.

“At issue is whether locally-elected school boards have the exclusive authority and responsibility conferred upon them by Article VIII, Section 7 of the Constitution of Virginia over supervision of the public schools in their respective communities, or whether an executive order can unilaterally override that constitutional authority. Also at issue is whether a governor can, through executive order, without legislative action by the Virginia General Assembly, reverse a lawfully-adopted statute,” Fairfax County Public Schools (FCPS) said in a Monday press release.

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Richmond Public Schools Taking Whole Week Off for Teachers’ Mental Health

Peter D'Abrosca

Citing teacher burnout, Richmond Public Schools (RPS) has decided to take an entire week off at the beginning of November. 

During that week, students were already set to have three days off: Nov. 2 for Election Day, Nov. 4 for Diwali, a Hindu holiday and Nov. 5 for parent/teacher conferences, according to a letter sent to the RPS community by Superintendent Jason Kamras. 

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Richmond Mom Accessed Explicit Content on School-Issued Virtual Learning Computer

Eric Burk

Richmond Public Schools (RPS) has tightened content filtering restrictions on school computers after Janet Kelly discovered she could access explicit YouTube content on her elementary-aged son’s computer. Kelly is pleased that the school responded to her concerns, but she’s worried about long-term harms linked to having children in front of computers constantly for virtual learning.

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No In-Person Classes in Virginia’s Capital: Richmond Public Schools to Remain Virtual for Spring Semester

Jacob Taylor

Richmond Public Schools (RPS) will continue with virtual learning only for the rest of the 2020-21 academic year.

During a Monday night meeting, the RPS School Board voted 8-1 to keep students away from the classroom for another several months after Superintendent Jason Kamras gave a presentation and recommended the school district remain virtual.

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RPS Has Worst Graduation and Dropout Rates in the Commonwealth

Jacob Taylor

Richmond Public Schools (RPS) has both the lowest graduation rate and the highest dropout rate among school districts in the state of Virginia, Superintendent Jason Kamras said.

In the daily RPS direct newsletter for Wednesday, Kamras gave an update on the graduation and dropout rates from the 2019-20 academic year for the school districts high schools. Included within Kamras’ online newsletter was data from a presentation given to the school board on Monday by RPS chief academic officer Tracy Epp.

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Richmond Public Schools Will Not Play Winter Sports this Year, Superintendent Says

Jacob Taylor

In a newsletter last Monday Richmond Public Schools (RPS) Superintendent Jason Kamras said the school system will not play high school or middle school winter sports this year.

“Athletics are important for many reasons: they motivate and inspire, improve student health, and can even lead to college scholarships. I am deeply sensitive to this,” Kamras wrote in his daily RPS direct newsletter. “At the same time, given our decision to go 100% virtual for the first semester, and given rapidly rising infection rates, we will unfortunately not be fielding any teams this winter.”

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