Two very important guests recently visited WHRO: Paula Kerger, President of PBS, and Anne Holton, Virginia’s Secretary of Education.

While at the station, the two met with our HRETA Superintendents Advisory Council (SAC) and Educational Advisory Committee (EAC) to present their education initiatives and discuss important education-related issues. The Hampton Roads Educational Telecommunications Association SAC and EAC include superintendents and school board representatives from each of WHRO’s 19 owner member school divisions.

To start the meeting, Secretary Holton praised the group’s collaborative efforts and the great gains that have been made for public education through their partnership. “You’re not only innovators in educational technology, but you are innovators in collaboration. This group represents large and small jurisdictions, urban and rural jurisdictions … it’s really where we all need to be in education so that we can all learn and work and collaborate better,” she said.

After introductory remarks from Ms. Kerger and Secretary Holton, the group discussed relevant education issues such as finding ways to close the achievement gap, the effective integration of technology in classrooms, the need for public and private sectors to collaborate for the benefit of public education, and how to increase parent engagement.

“We are determined to be good partners to you and you keep telling us how,” said Holton, referring to the Virginia Department of Education. The group made many suggestions and recommendations to the Secretary including ways to best use available funding and revise SOL testing policies.

Regarding the state education budget, the Secretary explained that while there continues to be funding cuts, the partnership with WHRO helps stretch dollars further. In fact, every year, WHRO prepares Annual Impact Statements for all of its owner member school divisions, detailing the educational services provided by WHRO to that division and the savings the division received as a HRETA member. We estimate that during the 2013-2014 school year, WHRO saved public schools in Hampton Roads nearly $15 million.

After the meeting, the superintendents, school board representatives, and Secretary Holton resolved to convene again within the next year and a half to continue the conversation, agreeing that gathering together to discuss and solve issues benefits everyone involved. “We can do big things in this room that we probably cannot do one to one to one to one, whether we’re big or small [school divisions]… we’re smarter when we’re all together,” said Ashby Kilgore, superintendent of Newport News Public Schools. “WHRO has been a wonderful asset to Newport News and I think to this whole community.”