Virginia is one of the few states that has held the line on charter schools. Governor Terry McAuliffe vetoed efforts to loosen restrictions on new charters. The state has only 9 charters, and new ones can’t open without the endorsement of the local school board.
Two Democrats will be in a run-off on June 13: Lt-Governor Ralph Northam and former Congressman Tom Periello.
Northam, a physician, has been endorsed by most of the state and local Democrats.
Periello is running as a progressive, with the endorsement of Bernie Sanders, Elizabeth Warren, and about 30 Obama Democrats. He is portraying himself as a man of the left.
But: Petriello worked for the Podesta Center for American Progress and he was selected as one of DFER’s favorite reformers in 2010. As a one-term Congressman, he voted to remove federal funding for abortion from the Obama healthcare bill. And he got an A from the NRA.
DFER, the lobbying group for hedge funders and charter schools, raised money for Periello in 2010, when he was running for re-election. It said, “Rep. Tom Perriello ‐ He represents a new generation of progressives in the U.S. Congress, the ones who understand education in the context of civil rights. He’s a critical supporter of President Obama’s education agenda but is facing a tough re‐election bid against a Republican state senator.” Worse, DFER chose Periello as its Reformer of the Month in June 2010.
In announcing that honor, DFER’s Whitney Tilson wrote: “Perriello was a strong supporter of Rep. Jared Polis’ All-STAR Act, which helps to replicate high-performing charter schools that serve at-risk students. The bill establishes new thresholds for data-driven accountability and transparency, helping to ensure that new charter schools maintain the high level of performance that today’s most trusted ones achieve.”
Periello has said his votes against gun control and against abortion funding were mistakes. But what about charters and high-stakes testing? Is he really changed? I’m not sure.
Northam, on the other hand, voted twice for George W. Bush.
Neither of these candidates is perfect.
But one of them, Ralph Northam, has made support for public schools a central pillar in his campaign. I have not found anything on the web about Periello’s views on privatization and school choice and charters.
Here is Ralph Northam’s commentary on the importance of public schools.
He writes here:
“I grew up on the Eastern Shore during desegregation. A lot of white parents chose to send their kids to private schools rather than integrate — but not mine. My brother and I both attended and graduated from public schools. It’s one of the best things that happened to me.
“After high school, I attended the Virginia Military Institute and then Eastern Virginia Medical School — both great public schools that prepared me well for my career as a physician and didn’t saddle me with a load of debt.
“My wife Pam taught elementary science, and both my kids are Virginia public school graduates, too. My son Wes graduated from the College of William & Mary, and my daughter Aubrey graduated from the University of Virginia. With all the bumper stickers we’ve collected over the years, you should see the back of my Prius!
“Public schools have given so much to our family — I’ve been proud to fight for them as a state senator and lieutenant governor. Some of the highlights of my political career include working with Governor McAuliffe to invest a record $1 billion in our K-12 public schools and leading the effort to win a federal grant that opened up 13,000 new spaces for our youngest Virginians to attend quality early childhood education programs.”
Given a choice between the two, I support Dr. Ralph Northam. In this crucial time for public schools, when the Trump administration is committed to privatization, the nation and Virginia need a governor who is able to stand up for public schools, with no ambivalence. I hope Northam wins the primary and goes on to become governor of Virginia. That should gladden the hearts of public school parents and teachers across the country.
And Senators Warren and Sanders should check into public education issues when deciding who gets their endorsement.
Diane Ravitch's blog 
I am a resident of Virginia. There is very little excitement or enthusiasm about this election. Turnout will probably be very low. Sad.
“The opposite of civilization is indifference” – Elie Wiesel, nobel prize winner, holocaust survivor.
My wife will not vote in this election. She studied so hard to become a citizen, and now she will not even exercise her franchise. Sad.
Virginians should vote for Northam.
Tim Kaine and his wife, one time commissioner of education, tried to protect Virginia from exploitative charter expansion. I saw an interview in which he said that they only gave the green light to initiatives that were requested by the community, which was supposed to be the original intent of charters. They wanted charters to be innovative and supplement, not destroy public education. Charters were never supposed to be about top down mass privatization; they were supposed to address specific community needs. Without Kaine and his wife, we will have to wait and see.
And Senators Warren and Sanders should check into public education issues when deciding who gets their endorsement.
I agree, and that includes higher education issues. The party loyalty approach to endorsing candidates is not a great way to discern who is really advocating for public schools and teachers while getting charter schools out of conversations and endorsement as if charters are public schools.
I don’t think your post is fair to Perriello. His rejection of charter schools has been more definite than Northam’s, and I don’t see any reason to doubt him. His vote for Obamacare was a profile in courage, and he lost his seat in Congress over it.
Both have a record of past compromises with right wingers, but I am confident that Perriello is completely against charters. I did have links to speeches he gave, that I linked here (I can’t find the thread right now, but will look more).
Here is a video from a debate last month. As you will see, Northam sees a place for charter schools “on a regional basis,” whatever that means. Periello rejects them as ineffective, and emphasizes investing more in public education. There are other videos that are even more clear on Periello’s rejection of charters.
William,
You may be right. There’s some risk with both of them. I am uneasy with DFER favorites.
Tragically, Obama was pro-charter and the CAP followed in being so. And Perriello went with the Dem. mainstream when he was head of CAP, which I think is when DFER praised him. Periello also has shifted radically on guns, after Sandy Hook.
To me the fact that he refers to evidence that charters don’t work—which is not something Northam has ever done, I don’t think—means he’s going to stick to his opposition.
This is Virginia, and the politicians usually make compromises that I wouldn’t like, but then I probably couldn’t get elected. Northam’s voting for W. Bush the second time is what kind of blows my mind.
I’m going to work for whoever wins, but as I now I’m voting Periello as the more progressive candidate. I may get fooled, but I don’t think so. The biggest argument for Northam is that he knows the Virginia legislators, which is a big advantage. Periello’s contacts are more in national politics. And those who have known him endorse him, as is the case for Northam.
News from NM!
https://www.abqjournal.com/1014652
It is good news for New Mexico, which I posted this morning at 10:30 am EST
Periello speaks great things but still is getting significant campaign donations from DFERs and charter school advocates.
the ones for Florida and Virginia, written last fall, use the word “pernicious”. I wonder if these other papers had an automatic profanity blocker—pernicious sounds like something dirty. Individualized humor for every state in this charter commercial for editorial pages. By Brandon Wright and Michael J. Petrilli.
http://www.stltoday.com/opinion/columnists/missouri-s-plan-to-fix-its-failing-schools-falls-flat/article_33d5e28b-0204-5a5b-8ad2-f763839cb070.html
New Jersey’s plan to fix its lowest performing schools is about as creative and inspiring as a rest stop on the Turnpike. We don’t mean that as a compliment.
The flawed strategy was recently submitted to Washington as part of the Garden State’s obligations under the new federal education statute, the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA).
Wisconsin’s proposed plan to fix its lowest performing schools is as likely to work as a weight-loss diet based on brats and cheese curds.
The flawed strategy was recently outlined in the first draft of a plan that Wisconsin is required to complete as part of its obligations under the new federal education law, the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA).
Missouri’s proposed plan to fix its lowest performing schools is as empty and vapid as an October without the Cards in the World Series.
The state’s flawed strategy was recently outlined in a presentation given to the state Board of Education, as policymakers prepare to fulfill their obligations under the new federal education law, the Every Student Succeeds Act
It’s bad enough Michigan recently dropped its plan
The proposal, released in February as part of the state’s obligations under the new federal education law, the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA)
Delaware’s proposed plan to hold schools accountable, especially those growing up in poverty.
The proposal, which is part of the state’s obligations under the new federal education law, the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA),
I’ll cast my vote for Northam. He’s more likely to beat Gillespie, and if Gillespie wins, charter and voucher bills will pass in the General Assembly and he will surely sign them into law. It bothers me greatly that Perriello was the President and CEO of CAP. In addition, I’ve met Northam and believe him to be extremely smart, caring, and earnest.
I’ll never forget the time I was in the gallery during a Virginia General Assembly session a couple of years ago and a harmful conceal-carry bill was being voted upon. Northam cast the deciding vote against the bill and there was an audible sigh of relief from the gallery.
I’ve been pushing back against charter schools here in Virginia for the last couple of years and we need to elect a Governor who will do the right things by our children and their public neighborhood schools; in my view, that person is Ralph Northam.
Laura, I acknowledge that electability is the strongest arguments for Northam. My eagerness to see someone fight the economically progressive fight is why I’m voting Perriello. My point is just that the charter school issue is not a reason to go for Northam.
Don’t buy in to the argument that Northam is more likely to win — polls actually show that Perriello would perform better against the R in November. The original post is extremely unfair and strongly biased toward Northam. Thank you for posting the links to Tom’s responses regarding charter schools. He is the real deal and would happily answer any of your questions and admit to any mistakes in his past (unlike Ralph who says he has “no regrets”). Clearly I’m all in for Perriello — he’s clearly the best candidate. Northam has been bought and paid for by Dominion — Tom will move our state forward.