Following the graduation ceremony at Piedmont Virginia Community College {PVCC) on May 14, the Charlottesville Libertarian Examiner spoke with Delegate Rob Bell (R-58) about prospects for expanding school choice in Virginia. (This came minutes after a similar interview with Virginia Secretary of Education Gerard Robinson.)
The question posed to Bell was whether Virginia will be offering more ways for families to choose their schools, through vouchers or tax credits or other means.
Obstacles in Senate
Bell, who represents Greene County as well as parts of Albemarle, Fluvanna, and Orange counties in the General Assembly, said that under the Democratic majority in the state Senate, “even modest proposals like transferable tax credits have not been successful, which makes me think that the more dramatic choice options are not likely to pass,” that is, “unless there’s a change in the makeup of the Senate.”
Bell noted that “Governor McDonnell has brought in some support for charter schools which we have not had before.” Virginia’s original charter school bill, he said, “while early and well-intended, has not proven to be very successful in actually getting charter schools here.”
Innovations
In addition, the governor has offered new emphasis on distance learning and lab schools – elementary or secondary schools created and run by universities or colleges.
Delegate Bell explained that McDonnell is “going to encourage virtual schools which will give a measure of school choice, and then laboratory schools, which will be another way to give a university a chance to try something new which might become best practices for other institutions across the state.”
Added to that, Bell said, “we still have private [schools], we still have home schooling, but, I think, in terms of if you’re just predicting where it’s going to be, that’s where it will be.”
Home Schoolers
A large number of home schoolers were present at the PVCC graduation, and Bell took notice of them.
“This is a good fit for home schoolers,” he said, “because, if you want to jump from true home schooling… to a full, four-year, dorm-based college, you’re changing family, social [life], and academics. This is not uncommon for them to come [to PVCC]. It gives the college some comfort level that the kids are going to be able keep up with their classroom peers.”
As a regular attendee at PVCC commencement exercises, Bell observed that since he began to come, “this appeared to me to be the highest percentage yet. It has been steadily growing ever since I’ve been coming.”
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