Virginia\u2019s governor has blasted educators for focusing so much on \u201cequity\u201d that top pupils don\u2019t get credit for their achievements
\nVirginia Governor Glenn Youngkin has rebuked educators for their\u00a0\u201cmaniacal\u201d\u00a0emphasis on equity ideology after seven high schools in the state declined to inform top students that they had won national merit awards.
\n\u201cThey have a maniacal focus on equal outcomes for all students at all costs,\u201d\u00a0Youngkin said in an interview with\u00a0WJLA-TV\u00a0in Washington, DC.\u00a0\u201cAnd at the heart of the American dream is excelling, is advancing, is stretching and recognizing that we have students that have different capabilities.\u201d
\nNational merit awards are given as part of a US scholarship competition designed to recognize and reward the nation\u2019s top high school students. About 1.6 million students enter the competition each year when they take the PSAT college-entrance exam. Only 0.5% of high school seniors qualify as national merit award semifinalists. About half of those receive merit scholarships, ranging as high as $2,500.
\nStudents who weren\u2019t informed of their merit awards weren\u2019t able to compete for college scholarships. A few of the schools that kept the awards secret reportedly informed their winners belatedly but, by then, deadlines for college scholarship entries had passed.
\n\u201cWe need to get to the bottom of what appears to be an egregious, deliberate attempt to disadvantage high-performing students . . .,\u201d\u00a0Youngkin said in a\u00a0statement\u00a0last week.\u00a0\u201cParents and students deserve answers.\u201d\u00a0He added that Attorney General Jason Miyares will investigate the matter because some families may have suffered material harm.
\nThe governor launched an investigation into Virginia schools last week and called for a probe into how public education dollars are being spent. Fairfax Public Schools, a district in suburban Washington, last month launched an initiative to provide\u00a0\u201cequal outcomes for every student, without exceptions.\u201d<\/p>\n