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Tag: fairfax county public schools

  • Fairfax Co. schools abortion allegations fuel new political firestorm in Virginia governor’s race – WTOP News

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    Gov. Glenn Youngkin has ordered state police to investigate explosive allegations from a conservative blog that Fairfax County Public Schools officials helped multiple underage girls obtain abortions in 2021.

    This article was reprinted with permission from Virginia Mercury. 

    Gov. Glenn Youngkin has ordered state police to investigate explosive allegations from a conservative blog that Fairfax County Public Schools officials helped multiple underage girls obtain abortions in 2021 — a probe whose findings may not surface before Election Day but could still sway voters in the court of public opinion.

    Virginia law requires minors to obtain either parental consent or a successful court petition to undergo the procedure. Such records are also exempt from disclosure under the Freedom of Information Act.

    The Mercury asked the Fairfax County Juvenile and Domestic Relations Court whether any petitions were filed at all in 2021 and how many have been filed in subsequent years, which they did not provide.

    Still, the possibility that a public school broke state law and bypassed parents’ consent rights is quickly becoming a political talking point for Republican candidates this year.

    ‘Gift that keeps on giving’

    Against the backdrop of an ongoing effort to enshrine reproductive rights into Virginia’s constitution, Republican gubernatorial nominee Winsome Earle-Sears has seized on the allegations.

    At a recent campaign event in Chesterfield County, she welcomed the story’s circulation in the news cycle.

    “I don’t know if you also saw what’s happening in Northern Virginia — it’s just a gift that keeps on giving,” Earle-Sears said as the crowd laughed.

    It cheered after she added: “Parents. Still. Matter.”

    Political analyst Bob Holsworth said the controversy echoes of Youngkin’s successful 2021 campaign, when allegations of a sexual assault in a Loudoun County school bathroom sparked national furor over transgender students’ use of restrooms.

    Investigations and legal proceedings extended well beyond the campaign, but by then “Parents for Youngkin” signs and “parents matter” chants had become staples of his rallies. Youngkin went on to win the governorship, and Republicans flipped the House of Delegates for a term.

    “Interestingly, the target audience is not voters in Fairfax and Loudoun,” Holsworth said of the Democratic strongholds, “but Republicans elsewhere in the commonwealth.”

    The allegations first surfaced in WC Dispatch, an Ohio-based conservative blog run by independent investigative journalist Walter Curt Jr. His father, Walter Curt Sr., is a Youngkin appointee to the Virginia State Council of Higher Education and has donated thousands of dollars to both Youngkin and Earle-Sears. Curt Jr. told Virginia Scope that his familiar ties don’t affect his reporting.

    Holsworth suggested that GOP campaigns are aiming to “get these issues aired on Fox News so they can deliver a message across Virginia in a way that Democrats can’t.”

    That’s because the claim itself  — whether ultimately proven or false — is already enough to stoke concerns among some voters about public schools encroaching on parental rights. Defending parental oversight in K-12 education been a consistent Republican theme in Virginia politics.

    If the allegation proves true, Earle-Sears has vowed accountability.

    “Your underage daughter can’t get an aspirin without your permission,” she wrote on X on Aug. 19. “Yet a Virginia school may have taken a young girl for an abortion, in secret, using your tax dollars. If true, it’s monstrous, and there will be consequences.”

    The legal wait-and-see

    Pending the outcome of the state police investigation, any responsibility to prosecute would fall to Fairfax County Commonwealth’s Attorney Steve Descano, who has declined to comment.

    Carl Tobias, a law professor at the University of Richmond, noted that the timeline for an investigation is uncertain. While the number of people involved doesn’t appear large he said, the allegation dates back four years —a factor that could complicate evidence gathering and examination.

    Tobias added that Republicans could “make a lot of political hay of it” heading into the elections, especially since Fairfax’s commonwealth’s attorney has been a frequent target of Virginia Attorney General Jason Miyares.

    Miyares, who is up for reelection this year, has long pushed for changes in state law that would allow the state to intervene in local prosecutions and has repeatedly attacked Descano as being too lenient.

    A potential prosecution arising from the Fairfax abortion allegation could even spill into the next gubernatorial term.

    Democratic gubernatorial nominee Abigail Spanberger is also watching closely. Her campaign said in an email to The Mercury that she “will be monitoring the status of the Virginia State Police’s investigation and will support appropriate action to uphold Virginia law.”

    The campaign also highlighted Spanberger’s perspective as a mother of three young girls who attend public school, adding: “She believes that decisions about a child’s health and safety should always be made between them and their parents.”

    Fairfax vs. everyone else

    Beyond the locality’s prosecutor, Fairfax County Public Schools has become a lightning rod for criticism from parents as well as state and federal leaders.

    Among the most polarizing decisions: overhauling admissions at Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology to promote greater diversity, and resisting statewide transgender policies that would have required schools to out transgender students or restrict pronoun use.

    The division is also arranging a security detail for Superintendent Michelle Reid.

    After the abortion allegations surfaced, Reid wrote to the school community that the conduct described “would be unacceptable” in the district.

    “I want to stress that at no time would the situation as described in these allegations be acceptable in Fairfax County Public Schools,” Reid said.

    The school district has also stated that it will “fully cooperate” with the investigation but cannot comment further while it is ongoing.

    Reproductive laws in campaigns

    Beyond Earle-Sears’ bid for governor and the lieutenant governor and attorney general races, all 100 House of Delegates seats are up for election this year.

    Looming over those contests is an ongoing effort to enshrine reproductive rights — including abortion — into the state’s constitution. The measure must pass the legislature again next year before appearing on a statewide ballot for voter approval or rejection.

    While every Republican in the General Assembly voted against the proposal this year, they first attempted to add language reflecting existing state law on minors’ access to abortion. Democrats rejected that effort, pointing out that a U.S. Supreme Court case also affirms parental consent under the 14th Amendment.

    Even so, the possibility that someone may have broken the law in Fairfax is “alarming,” said Sen. Jennifer Boysko, D-Fairfax, who is carrying  the Senate version of the reproductive rights amendment.

    “We should all be deeply concerned anytime anyone says they have been forced, misled or coerced into life-changing decisions about their reproductive health,” she said.

    While Boysko did not specifically address the amendment in her comments, she added that she is confident the investigation will “shed light on the facts of the case.”

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    Jessica Kronzer

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  • ‘Confused and a bit perplexed’: Fairfax Co. superintendent reacts to ‘high-risk status’ from Education Department – WTOP News

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    In an interview with WTOP, Superintendent Michelle Reid said the division is “a bit confused and a bit perplexed as to how best to address this, because there really is not a relevant exemplar in recent years that anyone can recall that called out anything of this nature.”

    Days after the Department of Education placed five Northern Virginia school systems that didn’t change their bathroom policies on high-risk status, Fairfax County’s superintendent said the state’s largest school district is reviewing the agency’s message and considering next steps.

    In an interview with WTOP, Superintendent Michelle Reid said the division is “a bit confused and a bit perplexed as to how best to address this, because there really is not a relevant exemplar in recent years that anyone can recall that called out anything of this nature.”

    In a four-page letter sent to Prince William County Superintendent LaTanya McDade on Monday, and obtained by WTOP, Secretary of Education Linda McMahon said the division has to submit a corrective action plan within 30 days. It also told the district to submit plans for compliance with all federal laws.

    The step marks a significant escalation in the back-and-forth between the federal agency and the five Northern Virginia districts.

    Arlington, Alexandria, Loudoun, Prince William and Fairfax counties’ schools all rejected a request to change their bathroom policies, which currently allow students to use intimate facilities based on their gender identity. While the school districts said their practices align with current law, the education department said they violate Title IX.

    “We were really disappointed that the Department of Education wouldn’t engage in any kind of thoughtful collaboration, and rather, sent this letter in response,” Reid said. “We were very disappointed with this.”

    In the letter to Prince William County schools, obtained through a Freedom of Information Act request, McMahon said despite an extension to the deadline to change bathroom policies, the district “stated it does not intend to make the necessary policy changes to come into compliance with Title IX.” The division is on high-risk status so the agency can “ensure taxpayer dollars are not being spent on illegal activity.”

    There hasn’t been funding withheld to date, and school districts routinely apply for reimbursement when the funding is tied to federal grants.

    In Fairfax, Reid said it’s unclear what the high-risk status means, “because we recently received a very clean federal audit on our Title II grant. And in fact, as we read the regulation around this high-risk language, we’re in compliance with all elements of operation in terms of these federal grants.”

    Despite the uncertainty, Reid said the district is confident that “appropriated Congressional funds will continue to be appropriated.” The school districts have 10 business days to ask for a reconsideration of the high-risk designation.

    In the case of Fairfax County, Reid said practices “are aligned with Virginia law and the rulings of the federal Court of Appeals in the Fourth Circuit.”

    The district is planning to reach out the federal agency for clarification, she said.

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    © 2025 WTOP. All Rights Reserved. This website is not intended for users located within the European Economic Area.

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    Scott Gelman

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  • 5 Northern Virginia school districts placed on high-risk status after not changing bathroom policies – WTOP News

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    Five Northern Virginia school divisions have been placed on high-risk status and will have federal reimbursement requests scrutinized, the Department of Education announced.

    Five Northern Virginia school divisions that refused to change their gender policies over the use of bathrooms and locker rooms have been placed on “high-risk status” by the U.S. Department of Education and will have their federal reimbursement requests scrutinized.

    In a news release, the federal agency said the school districts will be placed on “reimbursement status” for funding, including formula funding, discretionary grants and impact aid grants. Schools in Loudoun, Fairfax, Prince William and Arlington counties and the City of Alexandria will have to pay up front and then request reimbursement, the department said.

    The announcement comes days after the districts all announced they wouldn’t make changes to their policies for intimate facilities, such as restrooms and locker rooms. The Education Department requested they do so, saying policies that allow students to use bathrooms based on gender identity rather than biological sex violated Title IX.

    The divisions, however, said their current practices are in compliance with the law.

    “The Northern Virginia School Divisions that are choosing to abide by woke gender ideology in place of federal law must now prove they are using every single federal dollar for a legal purpose,” Education Secretary Linda McMahon said in the release.

    Prince William County School Board Chairman Babur Lateef said the federal agency already approves its reimbursement requests based on spending for special education and Title IX. However, he said, $50 million could be at risk for Virginia’s second-largest school system.

    “Now, they’re saying they will scrutinize all our reimbursements at a level to determine if we are compliant with federal laws, and we’re assuming that, since they don’t believe we’re compliant, they are likely to withhold money to our school divisions for our Title I monies and students for disabilities,” Lateef told WTOP. “We don’t believe they are allowed to do that, but it looks like that’s what they are going to try to do.”

    Prince William, Lateef said, is “willing to do whatever it takes to protect our federal funds and we’re looking at different options.”

    Meanwhile, Fairfax County Public Schools said it received the DOE’s letter just after 4 p.m. Tuesday. On Friday, the original deadline for divisions to change their policies, Fairfax responded with information about why its existing practices are consistent with state and federal law, the division said in a statement.

    In that message, Fairfax “also requested the Department of Education stop further action while this issue is clarified by the courts.”

    The school district said it’s reviewing the new letter in detail, and while the issue is pending, policies will stay aligned with state law and a ruling from the federal Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit.

    “Any student who has a need or desire for increased privacy, regardless of the underlying reason, shall continue to be provided with reasonable accommodations,” Fairfax County schools said.

    A spokesman for Loudoun County Public Schools, meanwhile, said the division doesn’t believe it’s in violation of Title IX: “LCPS disputes that we have engaged in activity that would warrant being characterized as a ‘high-risk’ grantee and will consider appropriate next steps.”

    The City of Alexandria school system told WTOP that it’s reviewing the correspondence from the Education Department.

    WTOP has contacted Arlington County Public Schools for comment.

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    © 2025 WTOP. All Rights Reserved. This website is not intended for users located within the European Economic Area.

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    Scott Gelman

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  • From medical training to weapons detectors: How Northern Virginia is changing up the new school year – WTOP News

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    Summer is officially over for tens of thousands of Northern Virginia students as many are returning to the classroom for the new school year.

    From saving on school supplies to the impact of federal cuts, the WTOP team is studying up on hot-button topics in education across the D.C. region. Follow on air and online in our series, “WTOP Goes Back to School” this August and September.

    Cheerleaders in front of Centreville High School commemorate the first day of the 2025-26 school year on Monday, Aug. 18, 2025, in Fairfax County, Virginia. (WTOP/Scott Gelman)

    Summer is officially over for tens of thousands of Northern Virginia students as many are returning to the classroom for the new school year.

    Monday marks the first day of school for both Fairfax and Prince William counties, the state’s two largest school districts.

    Middle and high school teachers in Fairfax will be using a new grading policy, as new cellphone rules will be put in place.

    Instead of early release Mondays for Fairfax elementary school students, those days will fall on Wednesday this year. There will be eight early release days throughout the school year, allowing teachers sufficient planning time.

    The district switched days this year in response to scheduling challenges that resulted from Monday holidays.

    Weapons scanners roll out in Fairfax Co.

    When middle and high school students arrive on campus each morning in Fairfax County, they’ll have to walk through weapons detectors. The division launched a pilot program last spring, putting the technology at different high school campuses on various days.

    Calls for stronger security measures became stronger after a stabbing at West Potomac High School in April. Fairfax County Public Schools Superintendent Michelle Reid recently told families the software will be in all middle and high schools by this fall.

    She said she’s hoping it becomes “another seamless part of our safety and security procedures.”

    The district studied different software and tools for weapons detection, Reid said, and found OpenGate to be the product that was most mobile and nimble.

    “We had always intended to phase those in over time, over all of our schools,” she told WTOP while at Centreville High School.

    Junior Aidan Kownacki said while it’s a measure that aims to keep students safe, “it is going to be a little bit annoying to have to take out binder, computer every morning. But it could definitely help me feel safer at school.”

    Senior Daniel Ahn, meanwhile, said “nobody wants to be scared of this type of stuff at school. I just hope that it doesn’t make it really hard to get into the school, like everyone funneling through some of the doors.”

    Separately, as part of safety initiatives, Reid said buses have turn-by-turn tablets and there’s going to be a way of carding on and off buses so drivers know who’s on the bus and “who maybe shouldn’t be on the bus.”

    Students react to new cellphone policy

    Fairfax County high school students aren’t allowed to use their cellphones in between classes this year, as part of a change to the division’s cellphone policy.

    Elementary and middle schoolers with phones will have to put them away for the entire school day.

    Senior Sienna Lucas said students will “learn more, hopefully, without having cellphones on themselves.”

    But Senior Madysan Rich said while phones should be restricted during the school day, “I think we can have phones out in the hallway.”

    Meanwhile, senior Brady Conway said while he understands why the new rules are in place, “I can’t agree with it.”

    Junior Devyn Greene said she’s “definitely a little upset about it, and I know most students are, but I can see why they did that.”

    Few staffing vacancies, superintendent says

    Fairfax County has less than 1% of positions to fill, Reid said.

    “We’re pretty much fully staffed, and we’re excited about that,” she said. “Everyone benefits when we’re fully staffed.”

    Reid cited the work of the district’s HR department and word of mouth as contributing factors to having few vacancies.

    “Recruitment and retention is a year-round task anymore,” Reid said. “We start early, and honestly, we’ll continue recruiting throughout the year.”

    New career-based programs for Prince William Co. students

    As for Prince William County Public Schools, it’s opening the 2025-2026 school year with new technology for middle school students, a new cellphone policy, two medical-based career certification programs, and a focus on providing a positive learning environment for students.

    With 100 schools and programs, PWCPS is expecting almost 90,000 students this year, 13,000 full-time employees, and no bus driver vacancies.

    Starting this year, all middle schools have new iPads for students. Occoquan Elementary School is on track to become the county’s first net-zero school, opening this winter.

    The school system said it’s continuing to prioritize a positive climate and culture in schools. Each middle and high school will have a dean of students to support school leaders in maintaining consistency across all schools.

    A division-wide, cellphone-free policy is in place: In elementary school, devices must be off and stored away all day. Dual-purpose watches can be worn, but cellular features must be turned off.

    For middle and high schools, devices must be off and away during the bell-to-bell day but can be used before and after school. Exceptions can be made for students with IEPs, 50 plans, or safety plans.

    New Pharmacy Technician and EMT programs in Prince William Co.

    Starting Monday, as part of its Career and Technical Education curriculum, the school system is offering a pharmacy technician program at Freedom High School and new emergency medical technician programs at Unity Reed and Brentsville District High School.

    “Pharmacy techs are in high demand,” said Jessica Doiron, administrative coordinator for specialty programs at Freedom High School. “It’s a medical-based industry, and we have a lot of students who are very interested in medical fields.”

    The four-year program of study includes Introduction of Health and Medical Sciences, Medical Terminology, Pharmacy Technician 1 and Pharmacy Technician 2.

    “By their senior year, they will have to spend some clinical hours in a pharmacy,” said Doiron. “We have community partners, like CVS, where our students will actually gain hands-on experience.”

    Doiron said students who finish the program can earn a certificate that would allow them to work in a pharmacy. If a student wanted to further their education, they could continue into college and ultimately become a Doctor of Pharmacy.

    Also new this year, 11th and 12th grade students at Unity Reed and Brentsville District High School can get a hands-on introduction to a career as an EMT.

    According to PWCPS, “Students explore and apply the fundamentals of emergency medical services (EMS), anatomy, physiology, and medical terminology while demonstrating skills in assessing and managing patient care, including the understanding of medical emergencies, trauma, shock, and resuscitation.”

    “There are opportunities, careers that exist out there that you can actually start, right out of high school,” said Doiron. “And that’s extremely important to a lot of our students.”

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    © 2025 WTOP. All Rights Reserved. This website is not intended for users located within the European Economic Area.

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    Neal Augenstein

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  • Fairfax Co. reports slight rise in students who say they’ve been bullied – WTOP News

    Fairfax Co. reports slight rise in students who say they’ve been bullied – WTOP News

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    More Fairfax County students reported they were bullied at school last year than in the year prior, a figure that’s continued to rise since 2021.

    More Fairfax County students reported they were bullied at school last year than in the year prior, a figure that’s continued to rise since 2021.

    About 10.2% of eighth, 10th and 12th graders reported they had been bullied on school grounds within the past year, according to the 2023-24 Fairfax County, Virginia, Youth Survey results.

    That’s up from 9.9% in 2022 and 8.9% in 2021. The figure hasn’t surpassed 10% since before the pandemic, in 2019. The survey wasn’t conducted in 2020.

    The county uses the annual survey results to create programs to support students who need it most, according to Daryl Washington, executive director at the Fairfax-Falls Church Community Services Board.

    Despite the small increase in bullying, the data suggests students’ mental health is improving, Washington said.

    “It’s showing improvement in mental health, almost across the board, with our young folks,” Washington said. “It’s also showing low uses of substance use amongst our school-age population of students.”

    About 28,000 eighth, 10th and 12th graders took the survey, which is anonymous and optional. Another 11,000 sixth graders took a shortened version of it, the county said.

    In 2023, the percentages of students reporting they’ve been bullied was highest among eighth graders, at 16.7%, and lowest among high school seniors, at 5.7%.

    The survey defines bullying as what happens when “one or more students repeatedly tease, threaten, spread rumors about, hit, shove, or hurt another student.”

    “We’ve been really pushing the importance of speaking up if you feel bullied, also speaking up if you see a fellow student being bullied as well,” Washington said. “So with these numbers, some of it could be we’re bringing attention to the issue.”

    Social media could also play a role, Washington said, particularly as it relates to bullying and a student’s self-esteem, “and really the impact that is having on this next generation of folks that really was not an issue that previous generations had to deal with as a stressor.”

    The county, he said, uses the data to determine where its resources will have the most significant impact.

    Last year, the county focused on the high percentage of suicidal ideation and suicide attempts reported by LGBTQ+ students, hosting a community day to offer support, Washington said.

    Meanwhile, one-fourth of eighth, 10th and 12th graders reported feeling so hopeless or sad that they stopped regular activities for two weeks or more. This year’s rate was the lowest to be reported in the last decade, the county said.

    “We’ve tried to really make the bar for any youth’s family that needs access to mental health services, being able to get access to them,” Washington said.

    Rates of substance use, including alcohol, marijuana, cigarettes and vaping, were also the lowest in the last decade for most substances, the county said.

    The full survey results are available online.

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    © 2024 WTOP. All Rights Reserved. This website is not intended for users located within the European Economic Area.

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    Scott Gelman

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  • Former Fairfax Co. schools contractor accused of taking video of students facing 2 dozen charges – WTOP News

    Former Fairfax Co. schools contractor accused of taking video of students facing 2 dozen charges – WTOP News

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    The victims are girls between 6 and 8 years old, Police Chief Kevin Davis said, and most of the crimes happened at elementary schools in McLean and Herndon.

    Police spokeswoman Katherine Hayek, Chief Kevin David and Superintendent Michelle Reid announce charges against a former Fairfax County contractor who’s accused of filming young students inappropriately.(WTOP/Scott Gelman)

    A former Fairfax County Public Schools independent contractor accused of taking video of several students is facing two dozen charges tied to separate incidents.

    During a news conference Wednesday, Police Chief Kevin Davis said Arturo Elmore-Adon, 25, of Reston, has been charged with 24 felony crimes, which range from sexual assault to unlawful filming.

    The victims are girls between 6 and 8 years old, Davis said, and most of the crimes happened at elementary schools in McLean and Herndon.

    Many of the charges stemmed from the police department’s collaboration with Virginia’s largest school district, which Davis said was essential.

    “Without it, we wouldn’t be where we are today, holding a really disturbing and sick man accountable for his actions that targeted little children,” Davis said.

    The investigation started in early August, when Maj. Daniel Spital said a 7-year-old girl was shopping at a Safeway in Reston with her mom one night.

    The girl noticed a man was following them, and Spital said a few minutes later, the girl told her mom that the man following them touched her inappropriately.

    Police arrived, but the man, later identified as Elmore-Adon, left the store.

    “Detectives reviewed surveillance footage from the grocery store, and they determined that the man had been following this family from aisle to aisle,” Spital said. “At one point, the suspect placed his cellphone under the young girl’s shorts and took a picture.”

    Two days later, Spital said, Elmore-Adon was arrested and charged with aggravated sexual battery and unlawful creation of an image of another under 18.

    When investigators started reviewing material on Elmore-Adon’s phone, they found over 400 photos and videos considered to be child sexual abuse material downloaded from different international websites, Spital said.

    He was charged with multiple counts of possession of child sexual abuse material after investigators reviewed his devices.

    Police said they also found seven videos of Fairfax County students, specifically at Churchill Road and Fox Mill elementary schools. They included four victims, between ages 6 and 8.

    None of the four were physically injured, police said. They’re getting support from the police department’s victim services division and the school district.

    “These seven videos were surreptitiously filmed by either hiding his phone in a bathroom or by placing his phone underneath the dresses, skirts and shorts of the young children,” Spital said.

    As a result of those videos, police said Elmore-Adon was charged with seven counts of unlawful filming.

    Elmore-Adon completed a background check in 2022, and was an independent contractor working with the school district’s elementary after-school programs from September 2022 to May 2023, police said.

    Elmore-Aron had been working for a vendor of Baroody Camps, which Superintendent Michelle Reid said provides after-school activities or camps for students.

    WTOP has contacted Baroody Camps for comment.

    “As educators, we expect everyone who works with our children to have their safety and health be a top priority, and when that trust is broken … it really affects all of us,” Reid said.

    All hourly and full-time employees are required to undergo background checks, Reid said.

    Elmore-Adon’s recent arrest tied to the incident at the Reston grocery store was “the first notice that there was something seriously amiss,” Reid said.

    The school system is following its protocols for background checks and supervision that it would for either contractors or full-time employees, Reid said.

    “I want to reassure our Fairfax families and our staff that we’re doing everything within our power to maintain a healthy and safe learning space for all of our students and staff, and will continue to do so,” Reid said. “It’s a top priority.”

    There’s no evidence there were crimes committed at other schools Elmore-Adon worked with, Spital said, and detectives are still reviewing over a half-terabyte of digital material.

    In less than a month, 24 felony charges have been filed against Elmore-Adon.

    Davis, the police chief, said based on evidence, “We have charged him with every crime that we can possibly realize.”

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    © 2024 WTOP. All Rights Reserved. This website is not intended for users located within the European Economic Area.

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    Scott Gelman

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  • Investigation into Hayfield Secondary football program clears coaches of wrongdoing – WTOP News

    Investigation into Hayfield Secondary football program clears coaches of wrongdoing – WTOP News

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    A monthslong investigation into allegations that Hayfield Secondary School’s football coaches improperly recruited players didn’t verify any of the accusations.

    Fairfax County Superintendent Michelle Reid speaks during a town hall meeting in the auditorium of Hayfield Secondary School.(WTOP/Scott Gelman)

    A monthslong investigation into allegations that Hayfield Secondary School’s football coaches improperly recruited players didn’t verify any of the accusations, Fairfax County Superintendent Michelle Reid said Tuesday night.

    During a contentious town hall meeting in the school’s auditorium, Reid told parents and community members the review took over 400 hours and involved the Northern Virginia school district’s human resources department and auditor.

    The meeting came months after first-year football coach Darryl Overton was accused of improperly recruiting at least a dozen players from his former school, Freedom High School in Prince William County. It was alleged those students who transferred lied about living in the Hayfield High School pyramid region, and that there was a school employee who was involuntarily transferred to a different county school because they expressed opposition to the transfer and recruiting practices.

    Overton and his staff faced accusations of bullying students, using school system property for personal gain, misusing funds and exceeding the number of training days and restrictions for offseason workouts.

    But the investigation, Reid said, didn’t substantiate any of those claims.

    “It’s clear that we build community around schools and school activities,” Reid told WTOP. “The allegations that have been made over the last several months have been investigated. They’ve been thoroughly looked at, and they’ve been found to be unsubstantiated.”

    As part of the school system’s investigation, 19 people — including principals, parents, directors of student servicers and directors of student activities — were interviewed. Last weekend, Reid said the school system made seven home visits to verify students lived where they said they do. The district stopped by with about 15 minutes of notice, Reid said, and confirmed the students actually lived at those addresses.

    The school division hired attorney Cynthia Hudson to go over evidence and do her own legal review, which concluded the allegations were based on rumors, Reid said.

    “As a former deputy attorney general for the Commonwealth, she has that skill set to be able to review data and information and make sure that there isn’t something we’ve missed, and also to just really make sure that we’re talking about personnel issues and student-athlete privacy concern issues as well,” Reid said. “It’s important that we make personnel and program decisions not on suspicions and speculation, but on facts as a result of a comprehensive investigation.”

    During Tuesday’s meeting, Reid said there are both residency concerns and eligibility concerns in athletics. Virginia’s High School League handles the eligibility process, and Reid said a student’s eligibility status can fluctuate.

    In a statement, a spokesman for the Virginia High School League said the agency doesn’t have investigative powers, and that, “Fairfax County Public Schools have declared these students eligible in the Hayfield situation. A school must self-report any violations. If we receive information regarding residency, we notify the school, just as we did with Hayfield.”

    Dawn Love, whose son transferred to Hayfield from Freedom High School and is now on the team, said disgruntled players and parents are at the core of the allegations.

    “They, (in) my opinion, did not want to compete,” Love said. “You have to compete to play. This isn’t ‘you’re automatically given a trophy.’ You’ve got to compete to play.”

    Another Hayfield parent who attended the meeting but asked not to be named told WTOP there’s “an influx of students coming here. I’m not sure if it’s just for the sports or what, but there are a lot of students here, more students than last year.”

    Meanwhile, Fairfax County School Board member Mateo Dunne is calling for an independent investigation into the allegations, suggesting there were “more allegations than you can shake a stick at.”

    “FCPS does not have the capacity, the experience, the expertise to conduct a complex, multifaceted investigation of this type,” Dunne said. “We really need to ask an outside law firm or organization to come in (and) conduct an independent, comprehensive investigation.”

    When asked about the demand for a private probe, Reid said it’s the reason the school district involved Hudson in its review.

    “If there are new allegations or new information about the former allegations that are brought forward, of course, we’re going to investigate those and ask for an independent review again to look at those,” Reid said. “But at this moment, the allegations are unsubstantiated, and the program has my full confidence, barring any new information to the contrary.”

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    © 2024 WTOP. All Rights Reserved. This website is not intended for users located within the European Economic Area.

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    Scott Gelman

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  • New school year begins for hundreds of thousands of students in Northern Virginia – WTOP News

    New school year begins for hundreds of thousands of students in Northern Virginia – WTOP News

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    The first bells of the 2024-2025 school year rung for hundreds of thousands of students across Northern Virginia Monday morning.  

    From vaping, the cost of school supplies to cellphone policies, the WTOP team is studying up on hot-button topics in education across the D.C. region. Follow on air and online in our series “WTOP Goes Back to School” this August and September.

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    As students return to school, teachers, parents discuss new phone policy in Prince William County

    The first bells of the 2024-2025 school year rung for hundreds of thousands of students across Northern Virginia on Monday morning.

    Public schools in Alexandria, Fairfax City, Fairfax County, Falls Church City, Manassas Park City and Prince William County welcomed students back, some attending for the first time.

    Fairfax County

    “I am thrilled to welcome our students, our staff and our families back to another fantastic year of learning,” Fairfax County Public Schools Superintendent Michelle Reid told WTOP, standing outside James Madison High School in Vienna.

    Fairfax County Public Schools is Virginia’s largest school district, with 180,970 students enrolled last year.

    Reid said the new school year is an “opportunity to really focus on teaching and learning,” with a “distraction-free” classroom pilot program at seven middle schools and eight high schools across the county.

    Students at those schools will place their cellphones in either a hanging pouch or storage locker during class time. They will still be allowed to use them during lunch and between classes.

    “It’s really important that during class time we really stay focused on the teaching and learning task at hand,” Reid said. “We need to think about how we can use cellphones and technology in general as a tool to support, rather than distract.”

    The school system has seven early-release Mondays scheduled for this school year. Reid said that allows an opportunity for teachers and other staffers to ensure they have the early-literacy training required by the Virginia Department of Education, plus “enabling them to have planning time to support quality instruction.”

    More Back-to-School stories

    Prince William County

    In neighboring Prince William County, students at Gainesville High School were greeted by excited teachers and other school employees.

    “The energy that you have on the first day of school is hard to match,” principal Neil Beech told WTOP.

    He said this is the first year all four grade levels at Gainesville High School will be filled.

    “I’m excited to see all of the things that we can do as a result of having a full staff and a full student body. The graduating class this year, the class of 2025, is the first class to have gone through all four years at Gainesville High School. That’s a big deal for our school and our community,” Beech said.

    Gainesville senior Maddy Lis could feel the excitement of the first day and filed in to the school before 6 a.m. for back-to-school festivities.

    “This is a once in a lifetime opportunity. It’s our senior year. We thought we might as well continue to get involved and just make a good memory out of this,” she said.

    Prince William County Public Schools expanded its restrictions on cellphone usage to all middle and high schools this year. But Beech said he doesn’t believe it will become a huge issue.

    “Last year, we asked our students to put their cellphones away during each of our class periods … the students were responsive to that,” Beech said. “And again, I think the students understand why it’s a good idea. It’s just to reduce distractions in our classrooms.”

    Babur Lateef, chairman at-large of the Prince William County School Board, told WTOP the first day of school is “the most optimistic day of the year.”

    Lateef said the school system hit a graduation rate of 94.3% back in June, and he’s hopeful that rate will reach 95% this school year.

    WTOP’s Neal Augenstein and Luke Lukert contributed to this report.

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    © 2024 WTOP. All Rights Reserved. This website is not intended for users located within the European Economic Area.

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    Matt Small

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  • Some Fairfax Co. community members call for overhaul to sex education lessons – WTOP News

    Some Fairfax Co. community members call for overhaul to sex education lessons – WTOP News

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    Some parents and community members are calling for an overhaul of Fairfax County Public Schools’ sex education curriculum, about a month after the committee that works on it presented its latest recommendations to the school board.

    Some parents and community members are calling for an overhaul of Fairfax County Public Schools’ sex education curriculum, about a month after the committee that works on it presented its latest recommendations to the school board.

    During the public comment portion of Thursday’s school board meeting, several speakers called for the Family Life Education lessons to be more inclusive, and, in some cases, urged school leaders to consider making them coed.

    The comments come weeks after the FLE Curriculum Advisory Committee presented its latest recommendations to school staff. While they don’t mention coed instruction in the latest iteration, it was included in the committee’s recommendations in previous years.

    “The Family Life Education Curriculum in Fairfax County Public Schools is not yet comprehensive sexuality education,” community member Robert Rigby said. “We need to begin at first principles and develop a program that meets the needs of children. That is, we need to start over.”

    Christina McCormick, who said she’s a Fairfax County parent, told the board that sex education concepts should be inclusive of all gender and sexual identities.

    “Our LGBTQ youth are already experiencing bullying and stigma,” McCormick said. “Separating them by gender for sex-ed furthers this and completely ignores the existence of students who identify outside of the binary, and further perpetuates heteronormativity.”

    In its latest series of recommendations, the committee, which is made up of teachers, students, health department members and school board appointees, recommended a series of objectives and descriptive statements tied to setting personal boundaries for high schoolers, and revised objectives tied to puberty and reproductive systems in fourth through seventh grades.

    Curriculum development is ongoing through the next school year, according to school board documents, and full implementation of the changes could come in the 2025-26 school year. The community review period ended June 10, and the topic is listed as a school board action item at the upcoming June 27 meeting.

    For elementary schoolers, the committee is recommending exploring teaching gender identity and a more inclusive overall curriculum. At Thursday’s meeting, Vanessa Hall, with the group FCPS Pride, said the district’s family life education curriculum is “about three decades old.”

    “Interim changes have been beneficial but cannot address deficiencies at the core of the curriculum developed in a previous century when gay marriage was illegal, and meant nearly all our students and staff were in the closet,” Hall said.

    After the committee initially unveiled recommendations for certain coed sex education lessons, the school system launched a survey to gather public opinion. About 85% of people who responded to the survey opposed the proposal to put girls and boys in the same classroom for certain sex education lessons. Over 2,600 responses were collected.

    Critics of coed lessons argue they’d make kids uncomfortable, and, as a result, they wouldn’t ask important questions. Advocates say they can create an inclusive environment and normalize conversations about reproduction and puberty.

    At the meeting, one speaker said the proposal was “overwhelmingly opposed by parents, students and employees.”

    Parents can opt their student out of certain family life education lessons.

    More information about the school district’s Family Life Education curriculum is available online.

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    © 2024 WTOP. All Rights Reserved. This website is not intended for users located within the European Economic Area.

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    Scott Gelman

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  • Fairfax Co. School Board approves pay hike for public school employees – WTOP News

    Fairfax Co. School Board approves pay hike for public school employees – WTOP News

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    Fairfax County Public Schools employees will get a 4% pay raise, not the 6% initially proposed by Superintendent Michelle Reid. This means a teacher’s beginning salary goes from $61,612 to $64,076 in Fairfax County, Virginia.

    EDITOR’S NOTE: This report previously stated that the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors approved the pay hike. The correct agency was the Fairfax County School Board. This article has been updated to reflect the accurate information. 

    Fairfax County Public Schools employees will get a 4% pay raise — not the 6% initially proposed by the school system superintendent. This means a teacher’s beginning salary goes from $61,612 to $64,076 in Fairfax County, Virginia.

    Thursday night, the school board voted to approve the budget for fiscal year 2025, which will go into effect on July 1.

    “I trust our teachers associations, I trust the folks who have made this budget, I trust our superintendent,” said board member Kyle McDaniel.

    “Is this budget everything I want? No,” he added. But it’s also not everything that everybody else wants.”

    Mount Vernon District Rep. Mateo Dunne proposed several amendments to eliminate the 4% across-the-board salary increases for all FCPS employees. Instead, he advocated to decrease that amount to 3%, and increase the salaries for specific school-based employees.

    He said he wanted “to put every dollar toward the people who are underpaid the most, the people who need it the most — and those are our teachers and support staff in our public schools.”

    In Virginia, school boards are not allowed to raise their own revenue. Several board members expressed frustration over what they described as underfunding by the state every year.

    “If you remember any number … it’s $568.7 million. That is half a billion dollars,” said Vice Chair and Hunter Mill District Rep. Melanie Meren. “Think of what FCPS does with what we have now. What could we do if we had half a billion dollars more? I am ready to go and get the money. That has become my mantra. Get the money.”

    Sully District Rep. Seema Dixit, who is a new board member, also pointed to the issue of state funding.

    “When the funds are not in your hands, there’s not much you can do,” she said. “You’re depending on the state government and the local government. Fairfax County, one of the wealthiest, sends the most amount of taxes to the state. And we get a fraction of that. That is unacceptable.”

    Mason District Representative Dr. Ricardy Anderson said, in addition to competitive compensation, the board also examined school safety, expanded preschool options and access to enrichment. She expressed disappointment their requests were not fully met.

    “I’m very grateful for the work that has gone into this budget,” she said. “Unfortunately, for me, this budget is too far apart from where I was hoping we could land, so I would not be in support.”

    Fairfax County Public Schools Superintendent Michelle Reid originally proposed a 6% raise for school employees. However, earlier this month, she pared that proposal down to 3% because of a state budget shortfall.

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    © 2024 WTOP. All Rights Reserved. This website is not intended for users located within the European Economic Area.

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    Linh Bui

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