VASS and VASBO kicked off the new year by hosting the State and Local Business & Legislative Advocates Annual Conference in Richmond, VA. Current Governor Ralph Northam was one of the conference headliners. He emphasized the importance of increasing teacher pay, expanding funding for counselors in an effort to decrease their student ratio from 450 students to 250 students, and additional funding to support “At Risk” students. He also discussed the importance of renovating and building school facilities. He said innovation, STEM, broadband, and technology help support school structures. 

It is no secret that America’s schools face great challenges, including a shortage of high-quality teachers and an ever-growing achievement gap in many underserved communities. 

This issue has been recognized for decades, tracing back to the pivotal date in 1983 when President Ronald Reagan’s National Commission on Excellence in Education disseminated “A Nation at Risk,” a seminal report that has shaped reform efforts to the present day.

Despite the changes and innovations spawned by this report, our public schools have continued to struggle under the weight of misguided reform and legislation. Meanwhile, politicians neglected to consider the thing that might improve education the most but never emerged as part of a far-reaching solution set: investing more public money in our teachers and children. Today, we must rectify that mistake and properly fund our schools. 

Hampton City Schools Superintendent and VASS Past President Jeffery Smith was recently selected by AASA as one of four finalists to compete in the National Superintendent of the Year competition.  The distinction of National of Superintendent of the Year honors school system leaders throughout the country who are making a positive difference in the lives of the students they serve. 

Jeffery will compete with three other superintendents for the national honor which will be announced at the AASA National Conference on Education in San Diego, February 13-15.   

Dr. Jeffery O. Smith, Superintendent of Hampton City Schools, was named Virginia’s Superintendent of the Year at the Virginia Association of School Superintendents (VASS) Annual Awards Luncheon today  in Roanoke.  He was selected by the State Superintendent of Public Instruction, the Presidents of the Virginia Board of Education, the Virginia Education Association, the Virginia Parent and Teacher Association, the Virginia School Boards Association, the Virginia Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development, the Virginia Association of Elementary School Principals, and the Virginia Association of Secondary School Principals, and the President-elect of the Virginia Association of School Superintendents.

VASS worked with Strategic Value Media to create the guide, a web portal to a large network of vendors that supply goods and services to educators. The guide, which highlights companies that are VASS Business Members, is designed to help school division leaders make efficient and fully informed purchasing decisions.