We need an advocate in Richmond

Opinion

On June 9^th, I urge my fellow voters to support Atif Qarni in the Democratic Primary. He is a person we can trust to fight for public education and will be a true advocate in Richmond for the reforms our students deserve.

As a teacher, I know that our classes are too large and they don’t get the resources they need to thrive. Northern Virginia is a proudly diverse region and we’re leaving too many kids behind by forcing this one-size fits all curriculum. The current pacing guides that teachers need to follow do not allow for students to gain a complete understanding of any of the subjects, and those who have questions fall behind early and cannot catch up. I know Atif personally and as a teacher, he knows the issues better than anyone. He knows the kind of improvements that need to be made to ensure our students, and students across Virginia, need to be competitive. Atif can be the passionate supporter that public education needs in the Senate.

The fact is that we need to improve public education for our students. Between benchmarks and SOLs, our students are tested constantly. The teachers have to follow the pacing guides set for us to make sure that the students have been exposed to the information, but they often don’t have time to learn and fully comprehend it. Many of these tests don’t emphasize skills many of the students will need for the future. Atif knows that we need to re-invest in our children, not in unnecessary, formulaic standards.

The June 9^th primary will send a signal to Richmond about our education priorities. We must go to the polls and elect a true advocate for public education. Atif will be the State Senator that promotes real education reform for Northern Virginia and fights for the policies that will make Virginia stronger. I urge my fellow citizens to join me in supporting Atif, the teacher who will fight for a quality public education in Virginia.