September 29, 2018
Message from the Superintendent 

Dear RPS Family,
 
I hope you're all enjoying the beautiful weather this morning! With the sun shining and the air crisp, I feel even more optimistic than usual about our future. I'm also buoyed by the wonderful things I experienced in our schools this week. For example, at Westover Hills, I caught the end of an awards ceremony that highlighted our students' positive choices and kind actions - things like helping another student who was struggling or improving one's listening skills. (See picture below.) Cultivating this kind of warm and affirming environment is exactly what we mean by "Safe and Loving School Cultures," one of the five priorities in Dreams4RPS, our new strategic plan.



At the same time, this week brought sobering news about where we stand as a division. As the Virginia Department of Education reported, only 19 of our 44 schools achieved full accreditation - the same number as last year. No, accreditation isn't the only measure of a school's value. But it's certainly an important one, which is why we have committed to achieving 100% accreditation by 2023. This is an equity issue: no child in Richmond should have to go to an unaccredited school. Period.
 
And there's more sobering news coming at Monday's Board Meeting. I'll be sharing the results of a Budget Audit conducted by the Council of Great City Schools and an Equity Audit conducted by the Education Trust. Both of these audits shed light on the years of mismanagement, low expectations, and immoral underfunding that have gripped RPS.
 
As I have tried to demonstrate thus far in my short tenure, I'm not shy about taking on mismanagement and low expectations. But my ability to increase funding is limited - as is the School Board's. This brings me to my main topic for today: getting fired up for en epic fight to increase education funding in the Commonwealth of Virginia.
 
Last night, a group of elected officials and community activists came together to begin to craft a lobbying strategy for this year's General Assembly session. We began with a presentation from the Commonwealth Institute for Fiscal Analysis that clearly articulated the dire state of Virginia's education funding. For example, in the City of Richmond, per student funding levels from the State are down 19% since the recession. And yet, over that same time, our student enrollment has increased by nearly 1,700 students.



Now here's the really outrageous fact: revenue is way up. We're now in the tenth year of one of the most robust economic expansions in our country's history, but state education funding hasn't budged. The only word that comes to mind to describe this is...immoral.



So what are we going to do about it? We're going to fight like hell. And not just here in Richmond - all around the state.
 
In collaboration with the Mayor and City Council, we're working to select a date this fall for a massive march on the Capitol to make our voices heard. Remember the March for Our Lives last year? We want to double or triple the size of that. We'll have details soon so get your marching shoes ready.
 
We're also working to develop a very intentional lobbying campaign to put pressure on key Assembly members, and we're encouraging grass roots organizations of all kinds to pitch in. One additional way to help is to wear red on Wednesdays in support of #Red4Ed, a statewide campaign to increase funding for our schools.
 
I think this is an appropriate moment to invoke the words of Dr. King, who famously said: 

"We are now faced with the fact that tomorrow is today. We are confronted with the fierce urgency of now. In this unfolding conundrum of life and history, there "is" such a thing as being too late. This is no time for apathy or complacency. This is a time for vigorous and positive action."

This is truly a time for vigorous and positive action. We need all of you - and your neighbors, friends, and colleagues - to join in.

This is about justice for our children. It's about dismantling decades of institutionalized racism. It's about creating a more equitable future for our city and our state.

And the time to act is now.

Ready to fight?
 
Jason Kamras
RPS Superintendent
301 North 9th St, Richmond, VA 23219
P: 804.780.7710 | www.rvaschools.net
View on Instagram