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Commonwealth to Recognize Class of 2020 with Statewide Graduation Event |
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Governor Ralph Northam and First Lady Pamela Northam in partnership with Virginia Public Media, announce a Virginia-specific graduation celebration to recognize the Commonwealth's class of 2020. “Virginia Graduates Together” will premiere on May 29 at 5 pm on Virginia PBS stations and Facebook LIVE. During this 30-minute program broadcast we will feature the accomplishments and experiences of Virginia’s remarkable class.
- Click the image to view Dr. Lane's Special Message to the Class of 2020:
 For more details, visit: (need to add info to graduatetogetherva webpage)
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#ICYMI: VDOE Joins National #GraduateTogether Celebration
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As coronavirus has prompted the cancellation of high school graduation ceremonies across the country, partners like the Lebron James Family Foundation, XQ Super Schools, the Council of Chief State School Officers and former President Obama all came together on Saturday, May 16 to pay tribute to millions of high school seniors, their extraordinary teachers, and their families, as rally everyone around a message of hope and unity. The national broadcast also featured Richmond's own and 2019 National Teacher of the Year, Rodney Robinson, as part of the all-star line up!
Watch the broadcast here:
View Virginia's and other state webpages here:
More Information:
Media:
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Education Work Group to Help Guide Process for Safe, Equitable Reopening of Schools |
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Governor Ralph Northam announced a diverse set of education stakeholders participating in the Commonwealth’s COVID-19 Education Work Group to help chart a path forward for determining how schools can safely reopen later this year. The group is comprised of representatives from Virginia’s public and private early childhood, K-12, and higher education systems, and includes teachers, superintendents, parents, college presidents, state agency personnel, special education advocates, museum directors, and student perspectives. This wide variety of education stakeholders represent the whole of Virginia’s education system and come from every region of the Commonwealth.
Secretary of Education Atif Qarni formed the work group and chaired its first meeting along with members of the steering committee State Superintendent James Lane, Deputy Secretary of Education for Higher Education and Museums Fran Bradford, and Director of the State Council of Higher Education for Virginia Peter Blake on April 23. Since then, the work group has been focused on developing recommendations to align policies throughout the Commonwealth’s PreK-20 education system and ensure continuity of learning.
Following the directive to close all schools in Virginia due to the pandemic, the Virginia Department of Education established the Continuity for Learning (C4L) Task Force consisting of more than 120 teachers, leaders, and collaborating educational partners across Virginia to help school divisions to develop and implement continuous learning plans in partnership with local county health departments, families, staff, and local boards of education. Virginia’s COVID-19 Education Work Group will develop recommendations on key issues schools must address before reopening and help determine how to ensure continuity of learning for Virginia students from cradle to classroom to career. After this guidance is developed, the work group will transition to focus on long-term recovery plans to include addressing learning gaps and social emotional needs of students resulting from school closures.
More Information:
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VDOE to Host 'State of Early Childhood' Webinar |
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The Virginia Department of Education (VDOE) will host a "State of Early Childhood" webinar on May 27 at 12:00 pm to provide updates from the 2020 Legislative Session, discuss plans and key initiatives for the 2020-2021 academic year. Chief School Readiness Officer, Jenna Conway, will walk stakeholders through next steps and timelines.
More Information and registration:
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SNAP Program Benefits Expanded for Virginia Families with School-Age Children |
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The Virginia Department of Social Services (VDSS) will provide Pandemic EBT (P-EBT) benefits to families of school-age children who no longer have access to
free or reduced-price school meals due to public school closures. Virginia is one of 20 states granted by the United States Department of Agriculture’s Food and Nutrition Services to implement the P-EBT program, which provides temporary food assistance to cover the cost of meals missed while schools are closed.
Eligible Virginia households include students who receive free or reduced-price school meals, as well as students enrolled in schools that provide free meals to all students through the Community Eligibility Provision. Families are not required to be current SNAP participants or complete an application to qualify for P-EBT benefits.
VDSS is working with the Virginia Department of Education (VDOE) to operationalize the program. Eligible households that are currently receiving SNAP benefits can expect to have P-EBT benefits added to their EBT card within the next two weeks. P-EBT cards will be mailed to households that do not receive SNAP benefits within the next four to six weeks.
"School nutrition programs across the state are doing an amazing job feeding children and delivering meals to students and families," Superintendent of Public Instruction James Lane said. "But we know that even with these heroic efforts, many children need much more support. The P-EBT program will connect more children with nutritious meals while schools are closed."
More Information:
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#CoronavirusHeroes: Maggie L. Walker Governor's School Student Educators
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Schools may be closed for the remainder of the academic year, but that hasn't stopped students at Maggie L. Walker Governor's School from leading the charge on continuity for learning for fellow students in the central Virginia area. Check out these student-led, non-profit organizations that were formed to keep instruction going during the #COVID19 pandemic and stay-at-home orders:
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#COVID19 & Virginia Public Schools Resources
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- The Virginia Department of Education (VDOE) continues to work closely with the Governor’s Office, the Virginia Department of Health, and other state agencies to ensure our public schools and communities have the most up-to-date information and resources. The health and safety of our children and staff are our top priorities: COVID-19 & Virginia Public Schools
- Visit #GoOpenVA:COVID-19 Extended Closing Resources for materials provided by Virginia school divisions to support educational activities when schools are closed.
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Blue Ridge PBS, VPM, WETA and WHRO Public Media have partnered with VDOE to create “VA TV Classroom” to provide instruction to students in grades K-10 who are unable to access other distance learning options due to a lack of high-speed internet. Visit whro.org/classroom for more details on programming.
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WHRO is offering students, teachers, parents and administrators access to twenty-five high school online courses for free during the COVID19 pandemic.
- FREE EQUITY WEBINAR: Equitable Practices for Teaching Online from Intercultural Development Research Association (IDRA). This webinar helps teachers rethink their lesson plans for an online platform, including resources, tools, and ways to ensure students have access. #EdEquityVA
- The VDOE’s Training and Technical Assistance Centers (TTAC) can also serve as a high quality resource for additional support and options for the use of virtual platforms for students with disabilities.
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