Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin re-emphasizes parental engagement with school curriculum
Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin is calling on parents to stay engaged with their local school board as he rallied with supporters in Annandale on Wednesday.
A year ago, the Youngkin campaign took off in Northern Virginia as the governor seized upon parental unrest over what schools in the state were teaching. At his "Back to School Rally" on Wednesday, surrounded by school children and parents, he said he's only getting started.
Before he took the stage, Gov. Youngkin said he's going to continue to pressure schools to include parental voices. He has recently endorsed school resource officers in Alexandria and encouraged better reporting after a fired Fairfax school staffer was found to have been previously arrested for soliciting a minor.
READ MORE: Ex-Fairfax County school counselor charged with lying on sex offender list
His message to parents – stay engaged.
"At the heart of that is a parent and their child so we are going to continue to reinforce parents' primary role," Gov. Youngkin said. "In the Virginia code, parents have a fundamental right to make decisions with regards to their child's education and care and we’re going to continue to stand up for that code."
On Tuesday, a Virginia judge dismissed a lawsuit that sought to classify two books, "Gender Queer" and "A Court of Mist and Fury," as obscene for children and to restrict booksellers and libraries from distributing them to minors.
The lawsuit was brought back in April by a Virginia Beach tattoo shop owner and former Republican Congressional candidate named Tommy Altman.
READ MORE: Virginia judge dismisses lawsuit that attempted to deem books obscene for children
Republican Delegate Time Anderson tells FOX 5 it's an issue of parental rights, but others have differing opinions.
"That message resonates with suburban mothers regardless of political affiliation, with parents, almost everybody. People believe parents do have a seat at the table and education and educators should be in more partnership with them," said one parent.
"The government should not be involved at all [with] what parent’s rights are to their children," said another.
Gov. Youngkin also said he's not giving up on his quest to relocate the Washington Commanders to Virginia. He said he is looking to rework a funding plan that would gain support in the general assembly, but could not say how soon he would present it.