Gov. Robert F. McDonnell (R)
Date of Speech: Jan. 8
In his last speech to lawmakers as chief executive, Gov. McDonnell looked back on his four-year tenure as one of “bold action” in education.
The state’s new A-F school grading system gave parents an “honest” view of their schools’ performance, he said during his State of the Commonwealth Address. A new law gave teachers a raise, but also made it easier to fire them for poor performance.
Virginia responded to lackluster reading performance by funneling money into remedial reading programs and stepping up efforts to identify and help struggling 3rd grade readers. The state also expanded the number of charter and virtual schools, and created a new office tasked with managing low-performing schools.
