I support HB66 as written if it brings school divisions in compliance with Fire Codes, but if not, bi-monthly fire drills should be adequate, and a fair compromise after the first 20 days of each school year to minimize interruptions to education time. If there is not, there should be at least one fire drill per Summer School Session, as often times, students attend Summer Programs in buildings which are not their 'home schools' for Summer programming and are unfamiliar. Thanks, Mrs. Marshall

Careful what we wish for https://neuroclastic.com/autism-fire-alarms-school-fire-drills/

I support HB98. It makes sense given the JROTC training requirements.

Please vote in support of HB121. As an adult with lifelong food allergies, I was the ONLY student in my elementary school with this disease. Today, 2 of my children have food allergies &, on average, 1 in 13 children have them. Strict avoidance keeps us alive, and the quick use of epinephrine in the event of a reaction can save us. Epipen administration is simple; the hardest part for many people is getting over the fear of using it. The more one practices (with a trainer that has no needle) and the more one knows about signs of reactions & what to do in the event of one, the more likely one will be to take action in the event of an actual emergency. I commend the students at McLean HS for taking initiative with this project. Thank you for educating others on how to save my life and those of my children.

The Virginia PTA supports allergic reaction training for High School students.

The Virginia Association of Secondary School Principals (VASSP) has concerns regarding HB 121. We feel that this would negatively impact valuable instructional time for students and teachers. As our educators work diligently to help students recover from the effects of Covid on education, we feel that this information could be built into the Health and Physical Education curriculum, thereby reducing the effect on instructional time.

I support this bill. Can we get some attention on Special Education Students who have no access to Education as required by Federal Laws, that school divisions are violating day after day without repercussion, while students and families go broke fighting corrupt school divisions who always seem to have more than adequate funding to send millions of taxpayer education dollars to their Third Party School Board Attorneys instead of providing Appropriate Accessible Education as required by FAPE and IDEA?

We have failed to produce quality teachers and our educational outcomes demonstrate this. Rather than this proposed residential training, please require teachers to hold a master's degree in a core subject such as English, Math, History, Science and THEN and only then offer pay that will attract and retain them.

Vote no on HB145. With an ongoing teacher shortage crisis, requiring each scholarship recipient to intern/extern at low-income, and often less safe schools, will chase candidates away. Virginia will make more headway to maybe NOT continue to be 50th in the USA, if scholarship grant recipients can begin practicing their teaching skills at any school. THEN incentivize with annual bonuses and differential pay for those who work in positions of higher demands, like Title 1 schools and providers of Special Education services.

The Virginia Assocation of School Superintendents supports this bill.

On behalf of the Virginia Chamber of Commerce, I write in support of House Bill 145 establishing the Virginia Teacher Residency Training Corps. Recruiting and retaining a robust and diverse teacher workforce to address the critical teacher shortage in Virginia is a priority for the Virginia Chamber. Research has shown how successful these hands-on programs can be with teacher recruitment and retention when you couple theory and practice with support from experienced mentors. We ask that you support HB145.

Two years ago, I attempted to convince Del. Maldonado to do something similar to this, so it is high time it has come. As a former teacher of 30 years, I know it is hard to find good teachers. They replaced me with one who shows movies all day. There is simply no hidden lair where teachers are. You must create them by attracting good quality people, of excellent character, AND PAY THEM WELL for their work. Starting at $38,000 when they can earn at least $70,000 someplace else is not going to attract people like a younger me who love the work, love the kids. One step better than this outreach to younger folks -- create a program to bring in the best from everywhere and put our VA surplus toward it.

Comments Document

FACS (Faith Alliance for Climate Solutions) supports HB166. The largest problem trying to expand composting in Virginia schools is the lack of information on how to do it – what works, and what doesn’t. There are many school systems across the nation that are composting, but each Virginia school official that wants to compost must figure out how to do it on their own. We need an organized approach. There is not a one-size-fits-all method that will work for everyone. DEQ should be the clearinghouse for information on what works around the nation, what works currently in Virginia and what is being evaluated or should be tested. FACS has been asking Fairfax County Schools to develop a compost diversion program for their schools. The County’s own audit (JET report) found compostable food was 30% of the total trash thrown away in the trash dumpsters. There was more compost than trash. FACS is a Virginian faith-based organization of 2,000+ members from over 200 faith communities. My letter, in PDF format, is attached. Thanks.

I support this important bill. Promoting schools to implement a composting program will provide an educational opportunity for students to learn about its benefits and ways they can use these techniques in their daily lives, but academic opportunities to learn of more advance ways for waste Managment. Schools could also lower costs of waste removal and by using compost material to enhance the soil and plant quality in school landscapes and gardens.

Dear delegate friends, Guidance and development of procedures at the division level would be of tremendous help to the rapidly growing number of schools, clubs and parent groups building gardens and mini-farms to create and demonstrate sustainable communities. They take care of garbage the school produces instead of burying it in landfills and also grow food for families and students, or the kitchens (both the lunch and breakfast kitchens and also the Culinary Arts classes). I've been an educator for over 40 years, thirty of them as a full-time licensed teacher here in Virginia. When I was a teacher of students eligible in the categories of Emotional Disabilities, Learning Disabilities and Other Health Impaired (for thirteen years in Virginia), one class project was always to design, develop and maintain a medium-size garden to grow vegetables for school and families. As a Latin teacher in the state for seventeen years, the students or Latin Honor Society usually undertook a project to develop a small biological area for teaching the school community about scientific names, binomial nomenclature and words derived from Latin. Composting was sometimes part of the project. We always had to cobble together permissions, authorizations and access to kitchen garbage because there was no guidance (at first) on this sort of thing. As a PTA advocacy chair I find more and more that PTAs are developing gardens for sustainable agriculture and communities, which of course involves composting. Again, consistent guidance developed would multiply the ease of access of such projects and increase the number of them in the state. Thank you for reading, Robert Rigby, Jr. Fairfax County, Virginia

Dear Delegates/Friends, I've been a licensed educator in Virginia for 30 years. The greatest need in the state in my eyes is assistance for homeless youth. Under the "Katrina law" we assisted youth fleeing disasters to a degee. HB168 brings awareness to and adjusts school residency policies to assure an education to minors and youth who are homeless. There are many more such children and youth than the counts attest to and the need is truly dire. HB168 also prepares some additional school-based services for homeless children and youth. School is often (maybe usually) the only place that such students have come into contact with state and local services; without 168 many young people will continue to "fall through the cracks." Please approve and HB168 as it is written and move it to the full committee and the floor of the House, If it becomes law we can all be more proud to be residents of Virginia, a truly humane state. Thank you for reading, Robert Rigby, Jr. Fairfax County Retired teacher and current substitute

The Virginia NAACP supports the following HB168 Keys-Gamarra Homeless students; Dept. of Ed. to develop a resource document on supports and services. HB181 Feggans School counselors; decreases public school staffing ratios. HB187 Clark Teachers and support staff; compensation at or above national average salary.

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Hi I am writing to you on behalf of The Well Connection UK, a media and publishing company. We could easily get virginia.gov featured in various publications such as magazines, online blogs and news sites. This would undoubtedly help virginia.gov with publicity, reputation, domain authority and organic search engine rankings. We have a wide range of options including completely free collaborations, sponsored posts, guest posts and banner ads. If this sounds of interest, please reach out to the senior business development manager, Anita at info@thewellconnection.co.uk and whatsapp +447395206515 (GMT) Kind regards Clifton Junior Outreach Assistant

I am writing to express enthusiastic support for HB181, HB187, HB748, and HB937 as an educator and strong advocate of reducing VMT as a way to combat the climate crisis. HB748 is a fantastic way to mitigate the climate crisis, by providing incentives for e-bikes. Most car trips are under 3 miles, and an electric assist bicycle can obviate some of the disadvantages of using a standard bicycle. Reducing VMT, meanwhile, remains a crucial part of slowing the climate crisis. It's not enough just to have more electric cars - we need fewer cars, period, and e-bikes are a great solution! I support 937 as an advocate of Safe Routes to Schools programs for similar reasons. Active transportation to get to school - like bike buses, walking, etc. - are also wonderful for kids' mental health and physical fitness. I support 181 because it will be good for both students and counselors. And as a teacher, I know how underpaid educators are and 187 will help fix that.

Hello. I am a parent of a 9th grader, and 1st grader and I have a Four year old starting school this fall. I believe that all of these bills will work hand in hand to bring a positive change to the Norfolk Public Schools System. Many of Norfolks schools are performng below average specifically in low income communities that are majority black. The public schools in these communities have a history of being underserved and overlooked. I believe that all students should have a quality education that will prepare them for success and ensure that they excel not only academically, but also socially and economically. The implementation of a community schools model would significantly improve the performance of the students while helping the community thrive. Community school based model assess the specific needs of the school and the community and work together with each other and organizations to provide solutions to the problems that the school needs to tackle to ensure that the students staff and parents thrive. Also, increasing childrens access to school couselors is a need that can be very beneficial to the success of students and can take the some of the burden off of the teachers. Lastly, but definitely the most important is the need for a competitive salary for our teachers. They have one of the hardest and most essential roles in the field and that is building the next generation. Teachers serve as mentors, couselors, and sometimes even mediators. Some of our teacher even have to deal with hostile enviroments. In my opinion, They deserve top dollar because they are the backbone of the community. All in all I support each of these bills and I hope that they pass.

The Virginia School Counselor Association supports this legislation. As the ideal ratio recommended by the American School Counselor Association, data has shown academic, career and social emotional gains in schools where it is applied. Data indicates a 94% rate of school attendance, 91% graduation rate, and 2% discipline rate. School counselors are uniquely trained to help students achieve social emotional, academic, and career success; and provide support to all students. Help support the success of all Virginia students!

The Virginia Council of Administrators of Special Education (VCASE) supports HB 181, toward decreasing the ratio of students to each counselor in Virginia public schools. Virginia's local special education administrators and teachers work closely with counselors in schools, where counselors work with documenting a suspected disability toward eligibility consideration, play a significant role as an IEP team participant, assist students with social emotional counseling, and counsel students in course selection toward successful school completion. Special educators partner with counselors throughout their service to students, addressing individual learning needs and promoting strong student performance. Please revise the SOQ counselor ratio to reduce the counselor student caseload to better serve our students in this time as we witness greater student mental health needs and teachers addressing significant student behavior disruptions in their classrooms. Thank you for supporting all of our students with expanded counseling services.

The Virginia Council of Administrators of Special Education (VCASE) supports HB 181, toward decreasing the ratio of students to each counselor in Virginia public schools. Virginia's local special education administrators and teachers work closely with counselors in schools, where counselors work with documenting a suspected disability toward eligibility consideration, play a significant role as an IEP team participant, assist students with social emotional counseling, and counsel students in course selection toward successful school completion. Special educators partner with counselors throughout their service to students, addressing individual learning needs and promoting strong student performance. Please revise the SOQ counselor ratio to reduce the counselor student caseload to better serve our students in this time as we witness greater student mental health needs and teachers addressing significant student behavior disruptions in their classrooms. Thank you for supporting all of our students with expanded counseling services.

Social Worker and Lynchburg Public Schools Equity Advisory Task Force member Nicole says SUPPORT HB181 and HB187. 181- Decrease in staffing ratios for guidance is an excellent step! Although there is still a shortage of providers, those currently working are beyond capacity. 187- Increased compensation is essential for retention.

HB181 is an important step in supporting student mental health and wellness. Virginia children and youth are experiencing unprecedented rates of depression, anxiety, self harm and suicidal ideation. School counselors are spread too thin and unable to pay attention to the children in need of attention, including notifying parents and connecting them with additional resources.

The Virginia NAACP supports the following HB168 Keys-Gamarra Homeless students; Dept. of Ed. to develop a resource document on supports and services. HB181 Feggans School counselors; decreases public school staffing ratios. HB187 Clark Teachers and support staff; compensation at or above national average salary.

Please support HB181 which provides additional counselors for students at a time when mental health and guidance support is critical. In addition to needs from pandemic traumas, we have been increasing the number of programs that move students into career and college readiness, but those programs require guidance and administrative support which our current counselor ratios cannot implement due to case overloads. Please help students find success by providing enough counselors to enable access to the programs they need. Thank you, Cheryl Binkley President 4 Public Education 703-328-8238

I agree there needs to be a decrease. Family needs to be involved. I support guidance counselors as along as they first contact the home to get written permission from the parent(s) or legal guardian before speaking to the child. Transparency is essential.

I support guidance counselors as along as they first contact the home to get written permission from the parent(s) or legal guardian before speaking to the child. Transparency is essential.

Glad to see more counselors. Especially after how torturous mine was. We need more options here!

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Hi I am writing to you on behalf of The Well Connection UK, a media and publishing company. We could easily get virginia.gov featured in various publications such as magazines, online blogs and news sites. This would undoubtedly help virginia.gov with publicity, reputation, domain authority and organic search engine rankings. We have a wide range of options including completely free collaborations, sponsored posts, guest posts and banner ads. If this sounds of interest, please reach out to the senior business development manager, Anita at info@thewellconnection.co.uk and whatsapp +447395206515 (GMT) Kind regards Clifton Junior Outreach Assistant

I am writing to express enthusiastic support for HB181, HB187, HB748, and HB937 as an educator and strong advocate of reducing VMT as a way to combat the climate crisis. HB748 is a fantastic way to mitigate the climate crisis, by providing incentives for e-bikes. Most car trips are under 3 miles, and an electric assist bicycle can obviate some of the disadvantages of using a standard bicycle. Reducing VMT, meanwhile, remains a crucial part of slowing the climate crisis. It's not enough just to have more electric cars - we need fewer cars, period, and e-bikes are a great solution! I support 937 as an advocate of Safe Routes to Schools programs for similar reasons. Active transportation to get to school - like bike buses, walking, etc. - are also wonderful for kids' mental health and physical fitness. I support 181 because it will be good for both students and counselors. And as a teacher, I know how underpaid educators are and 187 will help fix that.

Hello. I am a parent of a 9th grader, and 1st grader and I have a Four year old starting school this fall. I believe that all of these bills will work hand in hand to bring a positive change to the Norfolk Public Schools System. Many of Norfolks schools are performng below average specifically in low income communities that are majority black. The public schools in these communities have a history of being underserved and overlooked. I believe that all students should have a quality education that will prepare them for success and ensure that they excel not only academically, but also socially and economically. The implementation of a community schools model would significantly improve the performance of the students while helping the community thrive. Community school based model assess the specific needs of the school and the community and work together with each other and organizations to provide solutions to the problems that the school needs to tackle to ensure that the students staff and parents thrive. Also, increasing childrens access to school couselors is a need that can be very beneficial to the success of students and can take the some of the burden off of the teachers. Lastly, but definitely the most important is the need for a competitive salary for our teachers. They have one of the hardest and most essential roles in the field and that is building the next generation. Teachers serve as mentors, couselors, and sometimes even mediators. Some of our teacher even have to deal with hostile enviroments. In my opinion, They deserve top dollar because they are the backbone of the community. All in all I support each of these bills and I hope that they pass.

HB187: No. 1) Cost of living is different in different areas. 2) Boosting pay of campaign donors. 3) Noninstructional staff who don’t deal with students aren’t in the line of fire. 4) More taxes to pay isn’t affordable when Va is nationally 8th highest for state/local taxes. 5) Academic scores have to come up. Education before indoctrination. Minorities in this area, including the bills’ patron, are falling further behind.

Social Worker and Lynchburg Public Schools Equity Advisory Task Force member Nicole says SUPPORT HB181 and HB187. 181- Decrease in staffing ratios for guidance is an excellent step! Although there is still a shortage of providers, those currently working are beyond capacity. 187- Increased compensation is essential for retention.

I wanted to first thank Delegate Clark for submitted this bill for consideration and ask the members of the committee to pass this bill on for formal consideration on the House floor. Our educators and support staff have been continuous in their efforts to provide quality education, compassion and structure to our children. This has been the case despite a constant lack of resources, inadequate support from administration, dealing with classroom sizes of 22+ students, all while listening to many members of our government and the local public demean and disparage their work. Ensuring they are paid a national average and competing with adjacent states, and even districts, is critical to their financial wellbeing and the knowledge that they are valued and supported in the Commonwealth. As a part time employee in one of public schools, for now 6 years, I have seen the mental heath decline of our students and our staff and the added element of a higher cost of living is something we should strive to address. Thank you for your time and consideration and please remember our public schools and their success are the backbone of our community and the Commonwealth of Virginia’s future!

Different areas in Virginia have different levels for living standards. It costs more to live in Northern Va. than it does in Southwest Va. Makes no sense to pay state wide based on living standards elsewhere in the state. No other profession gets that. Only starts a bidding war when the problem is not just pay, it is the lack of discipline in the classroom, parents behavior/attitudes and lack of support from a top heavy administration.

The Virginia NAACP supports the following HB168 Keys-Gamarra Homeless students; Dept. of Ed. to develop a resource document on supports and services. HB181 Feggans School counselors; decreases public school staffing ratios. HB187 Clark Teachers and support staff; compensation at or above national average salary.

A decent salary is important based on years of teaching. Honestly, I knew I would not earn a great deal of money in this profession and that is fine. I was thrilled to see students learn new concepts as the year went on. No, it was never about the salary. Respect, integrity, transparency, communication, and high expectations and standards were missing.

This bill is impractical and extremely costly in the long run. Not every teacher can be paid above average. By definition, half all teachers nationally will be paid below the average teaching salary, even if teacher pay increases to very, very generous levels. If each state tries to pay its teachers at or above average, teacher pay will skyrocket above all other professions, as school systems constantly raise teacher salaries to try to keep with other states and the rising national average, and states will eventually go bankrupt as a result of this bidding war. In the mythical Lake Wobegon, all the children are above average. But in real life, half of all people have to be below average, by definition. Half of all people in America are paid below average, especially in places with very low living costs, where the vast majority of people are paid below the national average. There is no reason why a teacher in an area with much lower than average living costs should be paid at or above the average. Many areas of Virginia are cheaper to live in the average place in America, even cities like Roanoke, Amherst, Lynchburg, Harrisonburg, Staunton, and Waynesboro (rural counties are often even cheaper). In most places, teachers don’t need to be paid the national average for teachers to have a middle-class standard of living, especially in areas where housing is cheap. There are counties in Virginia where the median hourly wage is well under $20 per hour (for people in general, not teachers), yet most people in those counties own their own home, showing that such a wage is clearly a living wage there. Even though such a wage generates an annual income far below the average teacher salary in Virginia, and below the average teacher salary even in such low-living cost places. (The median hourly wage for people in Virginia’s Roanoke region was only $18.09 per hour in 2021, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (that's the hourly wage for people in general, not teacher pay, which is of course higher). Yet the area is mostly middle class.).