Chris Hurst
For the better part of the last month, I’ve been exploring the possibility of an endorsement from the Virginia Education Association.
Unfortunately, at the end of this week the VEA will endorse Delegate Joseph Yost for re-election, without hearing my vision for the future of Virginia’s public schools.
So I’m offering my take on Virginia’s public education system to you – the teachers, parents and supporters of public education. While I would appreciate saying this directly to the VEA’s local representatives in a formal interview, you are the people who deserve to know where I stand.
Virginia’s schools, specifically in Southwest Virginia, are on life support. Class sizes keep getting bigger, teachers are asked to do more (with less money) and legislators in Richmond are content with the status quo.
Virginia’s schools, specifically in Southwest Virginia, are on life support. Class sizes keep getting bigger, teachers are asked to do more (with less money) and legislators in Richmond are content with the status quo.
Since I’ve announced my departure from WDBJ and my candidacy for the House of Delegates, I’ve had the privilege of meeting school board members, superintendents, county administrators and, most importantly, teachers who are all frustrated with the same essential problem.
We don’t invest in our public education. It means that county budgets are tighter, often having to decide between tax increases and cutting services to fund the bare minimum of what local school divisions need. Superintendents are left trying to figure out how to cut down on an already lean budget, and teachers feel the effects in the classroom.
Virginia ranks 29th in the nation in teacher pay and the VEA estimates hundreds, if not thousands, of teacher vacancies have gone unfilled this school year.
How has Richmond responded to this? Legislators will point to the two percent teacher pay raise they voted for at the end of this legislative session.
What they won’t tell you is that oftentimes, especially in places like Montgomery and Giles County, the county is forced to foot a large portion of the bill because their “two percent raise” doesn’t extend to all teachers.
The Commonwealth spends about as much per pupil in the 12th District as it did almost a decade ago, sending the bill to the local taxpayer. If you live in the D.C. suburbs, that may not sound so terrible. But if you’re in rural Giles County, with a smaller tax base, the families feel the pinch.
Southwest Virginia doesn’t just need someone who votes well on one issue. You need a fighter, somebody who will get up each and every day and put our children and families first. Teachers often say students are more than just their test scores. The same is true for legislators.
They need to be accountable for more than just their voting records. So, to my friends at the VEA, I look very much forward to a day when I’m not only voting to support your initiatives but also championing them. Our children and teachers deserve as much.
Hurst is a resident of Blacksburg and is seeking the Democratic nomination in the 12th House District race.
