Tim Kaine To Hold Education Roundtable In Stafford

STAFFORD, VA—A week after introducing the Rural Educator Support and Training (REST) Act along with Sen. Jon Tester (D-Montana) to address teacher shortages in rural areas, Virginia Sen. Tim Kaine will hold a roundtable discussion 10-11:30 a.m. Friday at Stafford Middle School, 101 Spartan Drive.

Kaine, who was Hillary Clinton's running mate in the 2016 presidential race, says the act "provides scholarships to undergraduate and graduate students pursuing degrees in education or school administration, loan forgiveness for up to $17,500, and professional development opportunities to educators who commit to work in rural areas."

According to the Virginia Education Association, per the Virginia Mercury, Virginia ranks 42nd in the country in per-pupil state funding and 34th in the country for average teacher pay. In (2018-19), the school year started with 1,000 fewer teachers than needed across the state, said Jim Livingston, president of the Virginia Education Association.

Here are the state's top 10 areas of teacher shortages by subject, in order, according to the Virginia Department of Education: special education, elementary education (preK-6), career and technical education, match (grades 6-12), counselor (preK-12), English (secondary), science (secondary), foreign language (preK-12) and health/physical education (preK-12).