Author: Jazbia Chaudhry

Virginia fourth and eighth graders’ math and reading scores have not significantly changed since 2022, per the National Assessment of Educational Progress, also known as the Nation’s Report Card, reports 06 News Richmond.

Gov. Glenn Youngkin said at a Wednesday press conference that the scores on this assessment, which was taken last January, were “not surprising” and “expected.”

“We have a long way to go and we have a lot of work to do,” he said.

(The Center Square) — Despite budget increases in the hundreds of millions and multiple statewide education initiatives, Virginia students still aren’t showing a definitive recovery from pandemic learning lows.

Their test scores from January 2024 declined from their 2022 scores – the scores that caused Gov. Glenn Youngkin to call for major education reforms – in several areas.

The National Assessment of Educational Progress, also known as the “nation’s report card,” measures several subjects but is most known for its 4th and 8th grade math and reading tests.

(The Center Square) – The White House took steps to make good on its promise to cut the federal government down to size by giving federal workers a choice: return to the office full-time or leave with eight months of pay.

The Office of Personnel Management told federal workers Tuesday night that they have until Feb. 6 to decide to stay or go. If they step down, they will continue getting all pay and benefits and be exempt from in-person work requirements until Sept. 30.

However, the Trump administration said that even government employees who stay on could still eventually lose their jobs as the president reshapes the federal government and its workforce.

Two amendments to the Virginia Constitution were killed in committee Tuesday, leaving just five alive in the 2025 legislative session.

House Joint Resolutions 452 and 492, patroned by Republican Dels. Nick Freitas, R-Culpepper, and Del. Israel O’Quinn, R-Washington, aimed to enshrine food choice and residents’ ‘right to work’ in the Virginia Constitution. The Democratic-majority subcommittee tabled both bills in a 5-3 vote.

“This is a very simple piece of legislation, and it’s only like one sentence, so I’m sure there’ll be no controversy whatsoever,” Freitas quipped when presenting his bill to the committee.