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Sen. Yvonne Miller, D-Norfolk, has never been much of a speechmaker during her 25 years in the General Assembly. But she gave a stem-winder on the floor Tuesday, calling efforts to expand charter schools a “kick in the gut” to public education.
A little background: Miller, 75, was a professor and head of the Department of Early Childhood/Elementary Education at Norfolk State University until she retired in 1999. In 1984, she became the first African-American woman elected to the General Assembly.
Miller was among several members of the Black Caucus to speak out against sb737, a bill aimed at expanding charter schools in Virginia. She lamented that the bill would drain funds from public education – poor school districts, especially—at a time when schools are already facing deep budget cuts. Despite her emotional speech, the measure passed, 27-12. Here’s what she said:

“My heart is extremely heavy about these bills and I’ll explain to you why that’s the case.
“I’ve been in Virginia since the age of seven. I’m the oldest of 13 children. I have nine brothers and three sisters. We grew up in a neighborhood that was extremely poor. The fact that I’m on this floor as a senator is a distinct miracle.  The fact that I’m on this floor with an earned Ph.D. is an even greater miracle. I was told that it was impossible for someone to go from no degree to an earned Ph.D. in one generation. I am an example of whatever people say cannot necessarily be the truth.
“One of the things you must understand is I’m the product of public schools in Norfolk, I’m a product of Norfolk State University, I’m a product of Virginia State University, a product of Teachers College, Columbia, New York, and a product of the University of Pittsburgh.
“I am here to tell you that this bill at this time is like a kick in the gut and the reason it’s like a kick in the gut is because we are underfunding public education, we are cutting public education, we are in a global competition for intellectual power, and we are saying in Virginia it’s OK to skim from the population that needs a high quality education and to relegate the largest part of that population to an inferior, underfunded education.

“In a state as rich as Virginia, in a state with huge defense contracts, in a state with a marvelous port that serves the world, we are saying we are not willing to educate our children. Our children are our replacements. The education of children should be a top priority for all Virginians, not just the ones who are the recipients of the luck of the draw in a lottery. All of our children should have a high-quality, first-rate education. We have the resources to do that.
“We are now running a scam of some of our families, saying this is a way to solve some very serious problems. Education is the great equalizer. We can do with a wonderful education many wonderful things. But before considering charter schools we should first fund the public schools.
“The public schools in Virginia are very interesting to observe. Just the accident of birth in Virginia often determines the quality of schools that children will attend. If you are born in a rich locality, your public schools are very, very good. If you are born in a poor locality in Virginia, your education may be substandard. As citizens of the Commonwealth, we have an obligation to educate all the children of all the people. These bills are saying let’s not educate all the children of all the people, let’s select a few children and educate them very well.
“This is a very bad bill based on a history. We should be ashamed of ourselves even to introduce such legislation.”

 

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