RICHMOND, Va. — Teachers, parents and staff pleaded with school board members and Superintendent Jason Kamras to maintain full funding for the Richmond Virtual Academy (RVA) in the district’s 2022-23 school budget, wearing yellow sweatshirts and holding signs of support in during Monday night's meeting.
Kamras is proposing eliminating several virtual teaching positions in anticipation of fewer students requesting virtual instruction in the future. However, several supporters of RVA spoke about the benefits of remaining virtual as the pandemic continues to threaten vulnerable students.
“Virtual Academy has literally been a lifesaver for our family and has allowed us to keep London safe from any potential exposure,” said one concerned parent, Freddie Siler. “He suffers from chronic lung disease, and simple colds have put us in intensive care. Any exposure to COVID-19 would be devastating to us as a family.”
While Kamras said the program will continue to serve special needs students, the superintendent is proposing reducing the virtual program to just 10 teachers. RVA currently serves 1,500 K-12 students and has 80 teachers and staff members.
Dr. Cindy Robinson, principal of RVA, said continued funding will allow the program to serve hundreds of other students who are unable to receive in-person instruction.
“This means we’ll get to serve the learners who are facing interrupted learning due to medical reasons, such as our Homebound program, as well as disciplinary reasons and perhaps even those students with medically frail caregivers,” Robinson said.
Some supporters of RVA also said it has afforded students the opportunity to learn in a 21st-century setting.
Kamras said the school district has experienced significant depreciation since the beginning of the school year, and several families have made the choice to resume in-person education.
Another RPS budget meeting will be held on Feb. 16 before the school board votes on Feb. 21.
