2 weeks Ago
My name is Matt Cummings and I am a proud member of the Virginia Beach School Board. But today, I’m writing not as an elected official, but as a parent, a student advocate and a member of this community.You see, I was raised and have led both my professional and personal life according to a simple principle: to do what you can to care for those around you.
It was that principle that drove me to get involved in education, providing support for students and pursuing the kind of leadership that uplifts and empowers.And it was that same principle, one that is shared all across the Virginia Beach community, that was undermined when I saw the president’s executive order seeking to dismantle the U.S.
Department of Education (USDOE).While we’ve been bombarded by national headlines, the reality is that the impacts won’t only be national; they’ll be felt all over the commonwealth, including right here by Virginia Beach’s students, families and teachers.If the administration’s goals come to fruition, critical programs right here in our backyard directly funded by the USDOE would be harmed.
That includes Title I funding, which is federal government support that goes directly to schools with large populations of low-income students. In Virginia Beach, we have 16 Title I schools.This would also impact our students who rely on special education services.
If the USDOE is gutted, our Virginia Beach kids who receive these specialized education resources would be left without hope and without recourse.That’s our low-income students, students with special needs, and every student that relies on critical funding support who stand to lose if the USDOE is dismantled.What’s even more worrisome is the intent by the current administration to not only demolish the USDOE, but the ongoing attacks on public education in general, seemingly with the long-term goal of privatizing our community schools through voucher schemes and diverting taxpayer funds away from public school and into charters that lack both transparency and accountability.
That means fewer resources for Virginia Beach students, less funding to attract and retain amazing teachers, and turning back the clock on equity and access for every child. We only need to look at fraud, waste and abuse discovered in Indiana and Arizona, both states that embraced charter and voucher schemes and who are still trying to recover from the fallout.But that isn’t to say we aren’t in dire need of reform.
We need federal and state leaders who aren’t eager to undermine public education and hobble the USDOE, but who are instead inspired to strengthen and improve both.So instead of more ineffective, damaging and potentially illegal executive orders, I encourage our federal partners to embrace several new initiatives that would directly impact our students here in Virginia Beach, across the commonwealth and nationwide.We need a significant federal investment to address the teacher shortage crisis by improving recruitment, training and retention.
We need the USDOE to provide support to help curb the out-of-pocket expenses that roughly 90% of teachers incur when they purchase their own classroom supplies.Sign up for Viewpoints, an opinion newsletterWe need resources to improve school infrastructure. Too many school districts struggle with outdated buildings and structural issues, and we need long-term investment to finally modernize the facilities we use to educate our children.
A high-quality public education system is essential for a strong democracy, economic success and an equitable society. The funding USDOE provides is essential to accomplishing these ambitious goals. Instead of attacking, destroying and privatizing, our federal leaders should focus on building, improving and fulfilling our shared obligation to the students of Virginia Beach and the nation.
I began by mentioning my guiding principle: “Do what you can to care for those around you.”When it comes to education, our elected officials would do well to take this message to heart.Matt Cummings represents District 7 on the Virginia Beach School Board.
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