K-12 experiencing serious learning loss in recent years. Virginia introduced a plan to combat this trend

NORFOLK, Virginia — Brianna and Brittany Charity, who are twin sisters, are seniors at Norfolk State University.

Brianna said, “Everything about college has been great.”

I think we’ve made good use of many of our resources at Norfolk State.”

Both Brianna and Brittany have been busy in and out of school.

Brianna said, “We’ve worked full-time at Children’s Harbor of Ghent.” “We’ve also helped our classmates pass their teaching certification tests as VCLA tutors.”

Brittany said, “We also help out with the [Classic] Upward Bound program at Norfolk State.”

The Charity sisters said that it was part of their plan to learn as much as possible. Now, they help other people do the same thing.

Brittany and Brianna are helping Virginia middle and high school students who have fallen behind with a new program.

“We hope that they do well. We want them to go to college or university. Brittany said, “We want them to apply for those scholarships.” “We want them to join those groups and be as well-rounded as we are.”

In November, Governor Glenn Youngkin announced the program, which is part of his plan to deal with what he called “catastrophic learning loss” caused by the pandemic.

Aimee Guidera, the Secretary of Education for the state of Virginia, said that the plan was made after the latest National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), which is also called the “Nation’s Report Card.” The report came out in October 2022 and has information about Virginia students from 2019.

“Our fourth graders’ math and reading scores dropped more than any other group in the country. It was three times worse than the national average. “And the average for the whole country was just terrible,” Guidera said.

“And the governor said that if we don’t say “we must all work together to do something,” we’re about to lose a whole generation of children.”

As part of his plan, the governor told the Virginia Board of Education to raise the standards for students by the time they take their Standards of Learning tests in the spring. He also asked for a change in the way the state certifies schools.

The plan includes spending $30 million on grants for tutoring, money for efforts to hire and keep teachers, and spending $2 billion on learning recovery from pandemic relief funds that were not used.

Part of the plan is to work with the free educational sites Khan Academy and Schoolhouse.world to help students with their math homework and tutoring.

Just a few days after the governor’s plan came out, he announced that a few Virginia universities and the Urban Leagues of Hampton Roads and Greater Richmond would work together.

Middle and high school students in Hampton, Newport News, Portsmouth, and Petersburg will get help from college students from Norfolk State, Hampton, Christopher Newport, Virginia State, and Virginia Union.

The dean of the School of Education at Norfolk State University, Dr. Denelle Wallace-Alexander, said, “This project just adds to what NSU has been doing for years.”

“We help others. We don’t just want the students to come to us. It’s also about what our students can do for our community.”

Wallace-Alexander said that the program helps Virginia students get back on track.

Wallace-Alexander said, “They might not have had the best online instruction, or they might not have had the access that everyone assumed everyone had.”

“Students learn best from people who are like them and understand them. So, our students are able to help them in this way.”

Gilbert Bland is the President and CEO of the Urban League of Hampton Roads. He said that his team will help run the program’s connections to tutors and mentors.

Bland said, “The school systems will choose the students and the schools.”

“Then, we’ll make sure that students can meet each other and help them do so.”

Bland said that the program’s first goal is to help about 500 middle and high school students. In the near future, that number will grow to about 2,500.

“The program could serve as a model for the rest of the commonwealth and the rest of the country,” Bland said.

“Education is the key that unlocks all doors. It gives people a chance to explore and, hopefully, reach their fullest potential.

The goal of the program is to help children in Virginia do well in school and in life. College students like Brianna and Brittany lead the way.

Brittany said, “Some students don’t even think they can finish high school.” “So, just seeing that, ‘Oh, yes, I did it, and I know I can do it,’ was enough. I finally reached that goal, and that’s the most important thing.”

“If all they get is growth, I’m happy,” Brianna said. “Starting from the bottom and actually taking baby steps to move forward.”

Get in touch with the Urban League of Hampton Roads or Greater Richmond if your middle school or high school student goes to one of the participating school districts and you want them to take part in the program.

In the coming months, the Urban League of Hampton Roads plans to add the Norfolk school district to the program.