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Miyares Finds Federal Case in Loudoun Locker Room
Virginia Attorney General Jason Miyares today announced his office has referred allegations that Loudoun County Public Schools administrators initiated “retaliatory Title IX investigation” against three students to federal authorities. The case involves three male students at Stone Bridge High School who claimed they were targeted for investigation after they were recorded in a school locker room making comments about a transgender student.
Senator pressures state to put history scores in school accountability system
Sen. Schuyler VanValkenburg, D-Henrico, is putting pressure on the Virginia Board of Education to include social studies exam scores in the state’s new school accountability system, which is set to take effect this fall. The new system will publicly rank each Virginia school in one of four performance categories: distinguished, on track, off track and needs intensive support. The criteria for each ranking include test scores in reading, writing math and science – but not social studies.
Pete Buttigieg endorses Levar Stoney in Lt. Gov. race
Former U.S. Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg endorsed former Richmond Mayor Levar Stoney in the Virginia lieutenant governor’s race. Stoney faces five other Democrats in the June 17 primary. “As a fellow former mayor, I know that some of the best leadership comes from our local leaders, because mayors have to solve problems,” Buttigieg said in a statement.
Early childhood education programs deserve robust support
President Donald Trump’s ill-suited choice to lead the Department of Education, World Wrestling Entertainment founder Linda McMahon, got it exactly right in recent testimony before the House Appropriations Committee: “The earlier we can start education, the better it is for every child.” Yet the Trump administration and many state governments — including Virginia — follow spending plans and policies that continue to fall short of providing universal access to early childhood education.
Yancey: Earle-Sears might benefit more from a big voter turnout than Spanberger. Here’s how.
We begin with one basic fact: Only about half of Virginia’s registered voters will bother to cast a ballot in this year’s election for governor. On the night of Nov. 4, we’ll know how that half of the electorate felt about who the next governor should be, Democrat Abigail Spanberger or Republican Winsome Earle-Sears. What, though, about the other half that won’t vote? Put another way, who would a larger turnout benefit — Democrats or Republicans?
Winters: We must tax billionaires if we want to save Virginia
Our president has been bought by greedy billionaires and corporations. The proof? In 2024, the fossil fuel industry spent $450 million to influence Donald Trump and Republicans in Congress. This funding included direct donations, lobbying and advertising to support Republicans and their policies. And for many billionaire oil and gas CEOs, this investment is already paying off. It’s clear that billionaires, many of whom get rich off of water- and air-polluting industries, are using their exorbitant wealth to take over our democracy and advance policies that make them richer at the expense of our planet.
Shushok: In Virginia, private colleges are the new front line for access
This summer marks three years since I became president of Roanoke College. When I arrived in 2022 after 30 years serving at large research universities, including nearby Virginia Tech, I brought what some on campus jokingly (and not-so-subtly) called “big school energy.” I had a lot to learn about leading a small private college. ... Over the past two decades, many public land-grant universities in the U.S., including our own Virginia Tech, have boomed in popularity, prestige, resources and selectivity. At the same time, Virginia’s independent, nonprofit colleges and universities, like Roanoke College, have stepped up to become the front line for college access — a striking role reversal in the higher education ecosystem.
Norfolk firefighter who lost his job over medical marijuana use challenges firing after change in Virginia law
For as long as he can remember, Brandon Beltaine wanted to be a firefighter. He grew up watching the 1991 film “Backdraft” and took pride in people who worked hard. ... Beltaine attained that dream, completing the fire academy and started working as a Norfolk firefighter in 2018. But Beltaine’s career is now in jeopardy. He was fired in 2023 for medical marijuana use off the job — a dismissal that would now be illegal under changes made to Virginia law last year.
After Jamestown lost federal funding, Virginia grants millions to protect against rising waters
Despite losing some federal funding, Jamestown will potentially receive even larger support from the state. President Trump’s administration recently rescinded a $300,000 grant awarded to Preservation Virginia last summer for its efforts to protect Historic Jamestowne from the effects of climate change. But now, the group stands to get $8 million from the state toward flooding mitigation at the site of the first permanent English settlement in North America. All it should take now is a little bit of housekeeping among the state, James City County and Preservation Virginia.
Earle-Sears’ silence on Medicaid cuts ‘speaks volumes,’ Charlottesville Dems say
The Trump-endorsed One Big Beautiful Bill approved by House lawmakers late last month would slash $600 billion from Medicaid and threatens to strip health insurance from hundreds of thousands of Virginia’s poorest residents — and Winsome Earle-Sears isn’t talking. The Republican lieutenant governor running for governor has kept mum about the GOP budget bill which has moved to the Senate for consideration. Her Democratic opponent, Abigail Spanberger, has denounced the bill as a threat to rural hospitals, small businesses and working families. But Earle-Sears’ campaign has declined multiple interview requests on the subject from multiple news outlets, and the campaign did not immediately respond to a Daily Progress inquiry.