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1995 SESSION

LD6095749
SENATE JOINT RESOLUTION NO. 325
Offered January 23, 1995
Requesting the State Board of Education to apply, on behalf of the Commonwealth, for participation in Goals 2000 and urging the Governor to accept such federal funds as may be set aside for Virginia for education reform.
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Patrons--Waddell, Andrews, Gartlan, Houck, Howell, Lambert, Lucas, Marsh, Marye, Maxwell, Miller, Y.B., Saslaw and Schewel
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Referred to the Committee on Rules
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WHEREAS, citing alarming dropout rates and increasing numbers of unskilled graduates ill-prepared to enter the workforce, education leaders have urged "systemic change in the way teaching and learning are practiced in the nation's elementary and secondary schools;” and

WHEREAS, Goals 2000, the national education reform legislation based on the six education goals initially articulated by the President and the nation’s Governors at the 1989 Education Summit in Charlottesville, invites the 50 States to apply for participation in the education reform process; and

WHEREAS, signed into law by the President in March 1994, Goals 2000 provides funding for the States for systemic education reform; and

WHEREAS, the provision of a quality system of public education is a constitutional priority in the Commonwealth, as Article I, § 15 of the Virginia Constitution acknowledges the Jeffersonian ideal that “free government rests, as does all progress, upon the broadest possible diffusion of knowledge,” and vests ultimate responsibility for public education with the General Assembly, pursuant to Article VIII, § 1; and

WHEREAS, the Commonwealth’s unfailing commitment to continued improvement in the quality of its system of public schools is evidenced by recent and ongoing efforts within the executive and legislative branches, including the work of the Commission on Equity in Public Education and the Governor’s Commission on Champion Schools, as well as the State Board of Education, the entity charged with the responsibility of prescribing standards of quality for the public schools, subject to revision by the General Assembly; and

WHEREAS, the Commonwealth’s participation in Goals 2000 would provide much-needed financial assistance for continuing efforts to improve educational opportunities in our public schools; now, therefore, be it

RESOLVED by the Senate, the House of Delegates concurring, That the Board of Education apply, on behalf of the Commonwealth, for participation in Goals 2000; and

RESOLVED FURTHER, That the Governor accept such federal funds as may be set aside for Virginia for education reform; and be it

RESOLVED FINALLY, That the Clerk of the Senate transmit a copy of this resolution to the Board of Education and to the Governor that they may be apprised of the sense of the General Assembly in this matter.