Last week, I had the pleasure of returning to my hometown of Charlottesville to visit the Botanical Garden of the Piedmont alongside Virginia Secretary of Natural and Historic Resources David Bulova. Surrounded by budding gardens and scenic trails, we discussed the important role outdoor spaces play in fostering curiosity, creativity, and meaningful learning opportunities for students across the Commonwealth. 

Although the Garden is still under development, it is already making a remarkable impact through hands-on field trips, innovative early childhood programs such as Create with Nature, Every Kindergartner in the Garden, and Explore to Read, as well as environmental partnerships with the City of Charlottesville. 

The visit was a powerful reminder of the opportunities that emerge when communities invest in spaces that connect young people with nature, learning, and one another. As I continue my work across Virginia, I'll be thinking about how students can benefit from the many community resources, outdoor spaces, and educational experiences being created in their own backyards. 

The 2026 state entitlements for Career and Technical Education (CTE) secondary programs and adult programs (formerly “occupational preparation programs and occupational adult education programs”) for eligible school divisions, including regional centers, have been determined. The regional center entitlements will be paid directly to each center’s fiscal agent school division. The state entitlement amounts identified will be paid to school divisions in one payment on June 30 by electronic funds transfer. In FY 2026, these entitlement payments are funded with state lottery funds.  

State funds distributed to eligible school divisions are based upon actual expenditures from the prior FY and the total funds appropriated by the General Assembly. To determine each school division’s FY 2026 allocation, state funding is calculated using the total of all school year 2024-2025 local expenditures for CTE secondary programs and adult programs. For FY 2026, it has been determined that each eligible school division will be reimbursed for 36.38% of its school year 2024-2025 CTE secondary program expenditures and 36.38% of its CTE adult program expenditures.  

The VDOE Office of Behavioral Health and Student Services, in collaboration with the Office of School Improvement, invites attendance leaders to participate in a one-day Attendance Symposium on August 13 at The Cultural Arts Center at Glen Allen, or August 17 at the Wytheville Meeting Center. Attendance leaders are encouraged to register for the location that best meets their needs. To register, complete the 2026 Attendance Symposium Registration Form by noon on July 22. Priority consideration will be given to schools identified for support through the School Performance and Support Framework (SPSF). 

VDOE is also seeing qualified attendees willing to share their expertise and experience at the conference. Interested individuals should apply through the Request for Proposals (RFP) process. Complete the 2026 Attendance Symposium RFP Form by June 18. 

All facilitator’s guides and resources are available on the 2024 SOL Instructional Resources | Virginia Department of Education webpage. 

School Food Authorities with eligible elementary schools may now apply for the 2026-2027 Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Program (FFVP). Applications are due June 26 at 5 p.m. Eligibility requires the school to be defined as elementary in the Education Registry Application (ERA), participates in the National School Lunch Program (NSLP) and the School Breakfast Program (SBP), and has at least 70% of students determined eligible for free or reduced-price meals. 

FFVP provides funding for schools to offer fresh fruit and vegetable snacks to all students during the school day at a time other than meal service paired with nutrition education. Funded schools will receive $65-$75 per student, serve snacks at least three times weekly, begin service during the first full week of school, provide nutrition education, and submit monthly reimbursement claims. Priority will be given to schools with strong prior participation and full use of previous funds. 

Please review SCNP Director’s Memo #2025-2026-47 for more information about FFVP and the application process. 

USDA’s Product-Based Added Sugars Limit Tool helps school food authorities (SFAs) ensure that breakfast cereals, flavored milk, and yogurt comply with product-based added sugar limits. While USDA is working to update regulations following the release of the 2025-2030 Dietary Guidelines for Americans, SFAs may elect to reduce sugar beyond the maximum limits, but must provide meals that meet current added sugars limits that went into effect July 1, 2025 (Child Nutrition Programs: Meal Patterns Consistent With the 2020-2025 Dietary Guidelines for Americans final rule). SFAs may review SCNP (Dir.) Memo #2025-2026-48 for the current product-based limits. 

Expanded Milk Options in Child Nutrition Programs 

The USDA has issued a final rule that expands fluid milk options by allowing whole and reduced-fat milk to be offered to child nutrition program participants in the National School Lunch Program, School Breakfast Program, Seamless Summer Option, Child and Adult Care Food Program, and Special Milk Program, effective June 8, 2026. This rule codifies milkfat requirements following the enactment of the Whole Milk for Healthy Kids Act. 

SFAs and community sponsors are not required to make changes to menus and have discretion to decide which varieties of fluid milk to offer. Review SCNP Director’s Memo #2025-2026-49 for more information on the milk requirements and how to comment on this final rule. 

In preparation for the next school year, VDOE collects information for the Educational Registry Application (ERA). The application is VDOE’s official means of identifying schools and staff for mailings, contacts for web-based data submissions, and the Virginia Educational Directory. Items of particular importance include the division superintendent’s contact information used for official communication, school-year calendars, and the official names of schools published on the School Quality Profiles, certificates, and announcements from VDOE. Additionally, data reported in ERA are used in the School Performance and Support Framework (SPSF) to assign school models and identify paired schools. 

Beginning July 6, updates to school division, regional center, school, and staff data can be made through the ERA web-based form in the Single Sign-on for Web Systems (SSWS) portal.  The ERA Verification form must be submitted by the division superintendent or regional center director through the Superintendent Data Collection Approval (SDCA) Application by August 21.