Richmond Advocacy Day!

On Monday, January 29th representatives from the PCACAC Government Relations Committee including Past PCACAC President Anthony Ambrogi, NACAC Board Member Jayne Fonash, Suzanne Carter Co-Director of College Counseling at Visitation, and PCACAC Government Relations Chair Ginger Miller held eight meetings with legislators and their assistants for our Richmond Advocacy Day. 

We focused on these points:

• Access to quality counseling by pushing for the lowering the student to counselor ratio in high schools

• Need-based financial aid including in-state tuition for DACA students and maintaining or increasing funding for the Virginia TAG program as well as aid to public institutions

• Rigorous Curriculum options for all students

• Counselor relicensure in Virginia to include some required hours in the required professional development 180 hours be allocated to college and career counseling.  

• We also entered a discussion about possible SAT testing in high schools to give access to all students addressing the possible tradeoffs of such an event.

The most important take away is that we had a voice, advocating on behalf of NACAC as well as PCACAC at a time when federal funding is clearly affecting state funding for very important programs involving access to higher education and quality counseling.

Delegate Lopez is extremely supportive of access in education, and among other bills, is currently is sponsoring HB19 to cover DACA students with in state tuition in Virginia regardless of whether or not the federal government arrives at an immigration solution for Dreamers.

Photo Caption:

Delegate Alfonzo Lopez, Jayne Fonash, NACAC Board Member and Government Relations Committee Member, and Ginger Miller, Chair PCACAC Government Relations