"It's important that we identify with similar localities," Petersburg School Board member Atiba Muse said. Muse believes the state's Constitution clearly states that the legislation that passed was illegal and would serve as the "wind in our sails" of the lawsuit.

Board Chairman Kenneth Pritchett said that he applauds both the VSBA and Norfolk City School Board for suing the state.

Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli, the GOP's gubernatorial candidate, has declined to defend the legislation, saying he agrees it is unconstitutional.

"I write to certify to you that, given an analysis of the constitutional issues involved, my Office cannot defend this lawsuit," Cuccinelli wrote in a brief letter to McDonnell last week.

In addition to approving the resolution in support of the lawsuit against the OEI, the city's School Board approved a resolution calling on the General Assembly to re-examine public school assessments, including high stakes testing in the form of the Standards Of Learning tests.

Pritchett believes that the General Assembly and school systems should be held accountable, but says, as indicated in the resolution, the testing system is unfair and out of balance.

He said that the local school system "almost gets to the point of being accredited and then they change the standards."
The Petersburg City Public Schools have not yet had all of its schools fully accredited. The school system is currently under a memorandum of understanding with the Virginia Department of Education which requires the local school system to have lead turnaround partners to assist in four of the city's under-performing schools.

- F.M. Wiggins may be reached at 732-3456, ext. 3254 or fwiggins@progress-index.com.


There is no doubt that the onset of SOL testing sent under-performing schools systems, like Petesburg and Norfolk, into a head-spin...but how can it be unconstitutional for the State to take over schools that are continuously failing?

Are we left to utilize the same resources and people who put us in this position in the first place?

Are our children to not have ANY safety net in regards to the quality of their education?

What good is the state overseeing our schools if they can not come in and take-over when they fail?

I am just trying to wrap my mind around where our school board is coming from.  Honestly, I know many of them and know they are sincere in wanting to lead our schools back on track...but, do they or our City even have the resources and skills to correct the problems allowed to grow in our public schools?  This lawsuit may be a way out of SOL's, or at least a change in the format or content of the tests, but at what cost?

As a kid in Petersburg Schools, I always hoped the State would step in....as an adult, I realize that does not always equate in a better school system, but at least it is some insurance that people will do their job.

One school in the center of this issue is Peabody Middle School, a school that has not performed well in almost 30 years.  The heinous state of Peabody has yet to attract an intervention by the State.  Many argue that the State coming in would make things worse, but in Peabody MS's case, there seems to be far more to gain than to lose.