Online publication Wallet Hub has announced their 2019 list of States With the Best and Worst School Systems, and Virginia is near the top. Virginia is ranked 4th overall in terms of best school system, and 2nd for school safety. The study also found that Virginia schools had the 4th highest scores on math tests, 4th lowest incidence of bullying.

“Virginians are proud of our schools, and rightly so,” said Speaker Kirk Cox. “Children in our schools get a high quality education in a safe environment, thanks in large part to the work we’ve done here in the General Assembly. There’s more to do, like raise our teacher’s pay to the national average, but these rankings are further proof of how hard work for education pays off.

“Republicans have been committed to improving our education system as long as we’ve been in the majority, and the results are there for everyone to see. Our school systems are among the best in the nation, and our schools are among the safest.”

Background:

• In 2019, the Republican-led General Assembly provided funding for a 5 percent teacher pay raise, the fourth teacher pay raise in six years.
  Speaker Cox announced last month his goal to raise teacher pay to the national average over the next four years — a major commitment to not only rewarding our teachers for their hard work, but also attracting new talent we need to remain among the top states for public education.
• The General Assembly has provided nearly $4 billion in new funding for public schools since the Great Recession.
  Speaker Cox formed the Select Committee on School Safety after the tragic shooting in Parkland Florida. The committee was designed to be a “do something” committee that put politics aside to protect our students and teachers.
• The committee presented a comprehensive final report with 24 priority recommendations to make our students and schools safer through threat prevention, counseling realignment and increased mental health services, and increased training for school personnel and school security.
• The final report also includes best practices for localities on mutual aid agreements, school design and security planning, and infrastructure improvements.