Hello, my name is Ariya Lee and I’m a junior at Chantilly High School. I’m testifying regarding Delegate Carr’s House Bill 1037, which would give local school boards instructional, peer-reviewed materials on climate change and environmental literacy to be distributed to teachers. In the last few years, as a student, I have been involved in climate advocacy, including promoting environmental literacy, which is why I decided to take AP Environmental Science (APES) this year. But until this year in APES, I have never learned about climate change in my science classrooms—not even in courses I have taken where it was in the Standards of Learning. I have visited over ten middle and elementary school classrooms with my friend to give presentations about the current human-caused climate change and global warming because I want students to be informed about the world that we live in. In presenting at these schools, working with my county K-12 Senior Science Curriculum Manager, and speaking to a biology teacher at my school working to incorporate climate change in her lessons, it is evident that though a lack of description in VDOE standards is also an issue, many teachers are unable to talk about climate change in their classrooms due to a lack of resources and lessons. VDOE’s updated science standards for advanced science classes are a good step in the right direction, but teachers of all science classes will need peer-reviewed resources, especially at a time where climate disinformation is prevalent, in order to make environmental literacy accessible throughout the state. In fact, in a 2020 report by the National Center for Science Education and Texas Freedom Education Fund evaluating how the nation’s states’ public schools address climate change with a letter grade, Virginia was one of the six states that received an “F” grade. Passing HB 1037 is a crucial step to fixing that ranking and ensuring Virginia leads in national environmental literacy. From my experience of presenting to students and talking to my peers, students are ready to learn, concerned and interested about the climate crisis. We must match this interest by providing educators the support to bring climate education to their classrooms, empowering the next generation to act, by passing this bill and doing everything in its power to address the climate crisis in classrooms. Thank you.

Attached is my written testimony which will also serve as the main part of my spoken testimony.

I hope you read this article regarding education for social studies. Thanks https://www.baconsrebellion.com/excluding-social-studies-from-accountability-to-preserve-inquiry-is-mistaken/

I am writing as a Virginia parent and constituent to respectfully ask that you oppose HB1374. My son is a member of the VMI Class of 2029. This past weekend, he completed his breakout. Seeing him go through that process was one of the most powerful moments of my life as a parent. In a short period of time, I have watched my child transform into a young adult with confidence, discipline, humility, and a deep sense of responsibility to others. He is a swimmer. He trains before dawn. He attends class all day. He upholds the demands of the Rat Line and the Corps. And somehow, he does it with pride. At VMI, he has forged relationships with cadets from backgrounds he never would have encountered otherwise. He has learned how to lead, follow, endure, and serve. We did not fully know what to expect when we sent him to VMI. But the Institute has surpassed every expectation we had. It is important to state clearly that today’s VMI is not the VMI of generations past. Much of the current narrative focuses on historical rhetoric rather than the reality of the modern Institute. VMI does not promote racism. VMI does not promote hate. VMI’s mission is to develop leaders of character, grounded in honor, accountability, and respect for others. Like any institution, VMI cannot control the isolated actions of every individual who may choose to violate its standards. However, the actions of a few individuals do not indicate a damaged or broken culture. They represent individual failures to uphold the Corps’ values. When behavior strays from the mission, it is taken seriously and addressed. That is evidence of a functioning institution, not a failing one. VMI is not perfect. No institution is. But it is exceptional in what it does: it develops leaders through structure, accountability, shared hardship, and purpose. My son is becoming the kind of young man who will make a positive and lasting impact on Virginia and his community when he graduates. Bills that question whether VMI should continue to exist as an independent, state-supported institution send a deeply discouraging message to the cadets who have voluntarily chosen this path of service and sacrifice. They also paint an incomplete and inaccurate picture of what VMI is today and the good it accomplishes every single day. HB1374 does not simply propose oversight. It places a cloud over the future of an institution that is actively producing officers, public servants, engineers, educators, business leaders, and community leaders for the Commonwealth. The damage from that uncertainty is immediate and real: to morale, recruiting, retention, donor support, and the families who have entrusted Virginia with their children’s education. VMI should be strengthened, supported, and held to high standards. Not destabilized or placed on an existential path. Accountability and improvement can occur without dismantling independence. I ask you, as a steward of Virginia’s future, to stand with the cadets, the families, and the many Virginians who believe in the mission of the Virginia Military Institute. Thank you for your time, your service, and your thoughtful consideration.

Oppose teaching our children about climate change unless it is the facts that solar, wind, and electric power batteries are limited. China and India are the biggest polluters compared to other countries. The Scandinavian countries know that green energy does not work because of the low quality, lack of efficient energy production and extreme high cost. It also makes our nation be dependent on China. We know East End and West End of Henrico don’t want the data centers . Why do democrats always push illogical and destructive policies on citizens and never think about the consequences? More and more Virginia taxpayer’s are dissatisfied with our public education system from the left wing. We don’t want be serfs on the government land.