In 2021, many observers say parents’ rights in education was the key issue in Glenn Youngkin’s victory. Surveys show the topic is still on the minds of Virginia Voters.
Polling in January ranked education as the top issue for voters and though specific numbers continue to shift throughout the summer, education remains an important issue on the minds of Virginians, especially parents.
When surveyed, more than 60% of adults and 68% of school parents support school vouchers for independent schooling and charter schools. Those numbers jump to 68% of adults and 75% supporting Education Savings Accounts.
School Choice’s popularity is at an all-time high and technology is driving innovations in schooling unseen in a century. From shared global classrooms to microschools that give teachers pay increases and students individual attention, the education landscape is shifting both nationally and locally.
Even though the Commonwealth ranks fourth in the nation for education, repeated school scandals involving teachers paying for abortions, lavish administration perks, sexual assault, and cameras in locker rooms, have shaken parents in key school districts.
Lt. Governor Winsome Earle-Sears has taken a strict policy that schools recognize a student’s biological sex, something that Spanberger has rejected and that statewide Democrats vehemently oppose.
“Bills targeting LBGTQ+ youth have no place in our Commonwealth after years of legislative attacks,” said Delegate Danica Roem a transgender legislator.
“It’s time to get the culture wars out of our schools and let teachers teach,” Spanberger said shifting conversations to gun control issues. (RELATED: FINALLY: Spanberger and Sears Face-Off Set as Democrat Lead Narrows)
Earle-Sears has been an outspoken advocate of parental choice and classroom innovation as a solution to education concerns, believing that tutoring programs, microschooling options, and emphasis on family support will help some of Virginia’s most disadvantaged districts.
Spanberger’s official stance has emphasized teacher pay, increased support for unions, and removal of oversight to give teachers increased freedom in the classroom. This echoes statewide Democrats who have loudly opposed any reforms that create education alternatives.