Today, the ACLU of Virginia joined a coalition of education and civil rights organizations to urge the Virginia Board of Education (Board) to postpone its final approval of a state plan under the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) which seeks to improve school accountability and assist struggling schools.
While this plan will affect hundreds of thousands of students and educators across Virginia, the Board did not leave sufficient time for public review nor meaningful opportunities for public input ever since the draft’s release. It is imperative that the Board maximize public and stakeholder engagement before finalizing the plan to ensure that the plan adequately addresses the needs of all children in our public schools.
This is an issue with far-reaching implications, and we strongly urge the Board to postpone the July 27 vote to late August and invite the public to contribute to the conversation. Failure to maximize public input would undermine the Board’s commitment to education in the Commonwealth.
You can read our letter in the attached document below.
