On Tuesday, June 2, I had the pleasure of attending a bill signing ceremony for HB 1873, SB 1320, HB1490 and SB 874. These bills developed out of the SOL Innovation Committee and passed with bipartisan support.
HB 1873 and SB 1320 charges the Virginia Board of Education with establishing a multiple level accreditation system. The current system, schools either pass or fail and there are no rewards for schools that are making significant progress. As a co-patron of HB 1873 it is important to give schools credit where credit is due. HB 1490 and SB 874 allows all students the ability to take an expedited retake of failed SOL tests. Previously, only high school students were given expedited retakes.
These reforms build on the legislation passed last year that reduced the total number of SOL tests elementary students are required to sit for from 22 to 17. The members of the SOL Innovation Committee are continuously making strides to reform the Virginia Standards of Learning to make our public education system the best in the nation.
If you would like to read any of these bills in their entirety or see a bill history please visit http://lis.virginia.gov/