WaPo issues ‘clarification’ after suggesting ‘all 133 Virginia school superintendents’ denounce Youngkin plan

The Washington Publish was pressured to problem a “clarification” after it was confronted on a latest report suggesting “all” of Virginia’s 133 college superintendents had denounced an initiative from Republican Gov. Glenn Youngkin. 

On Friday, the Publish ran the headline “All 133 Virginia college superintendents urge Youngkin to scrap tip line and content material coverage,” specializing in a letter the Virginia Affiliation of Faculty Superintendents (VASS) despatched to Virginia Superintendent of Public Instruction Jillian Balow. It was in response to her February memo saying efforts to roll again schooling insurance policies enacted within the prior administration, notably these associated to the teachings of the vital race idea ideology, in addition to a so-called “tip line” proposed in January on the topic. 

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VASS govt director Howard Kiser started the letter claiming it was written “on behalf of 133 public college division superintendents” and slammed the “gross assumptions” from Balow’s 30-day report about schooling within the commonwealth and referred to as for its superintendents to determine what’s of their college curriculums as an alternative of the governor. 

“All 133 Virginia public college division superintendents have urged Gov. Glenn Youngkin (R) to scrap the ‘tip line’ set as much as let mother and father complain about academics and principals and have requested him to cease his marketing campaign towards the educating of ‘divisive’ content material in faculties,” Washington Publish reporter Gregory S. Schneider wrote final week. 

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A separate report printed Friday from Publish reporter Valerie Strauss equally hyped the letter, writing “Virginia’s 133 college superintendents are taking a powerful stand towards Gov. Glenn Youngkin’s transfer to finish most schooling fairness initiatives, saying that ‘gross assumptions’ have been made by his administration about what occurs in school rooms and that he might set again public schooling ‘a few years.’”

Nonetheless, it turned out the Publish oversold the assist the defiant letter to the Youngkin administration had amongst Virginia’s superintendents. 

Richmond’s WIRC reported Kiser “clarified that the letter was crafted and adopted by the 12 member board and doesn’t essentially replicate a consensus amongst all of its members.” Northern Virginia’s WJLA reported the commonwealth’s “133 superintendents weren’t suggested of the letter earlier than it was despatched to the Governor’s administration.”

“It was a shock to learn a letter that presumed my settlement within the Washington Publish as reported via varied information sources,” one superintendent advised the station Monday. “I feel a number of of the superintendents within the state have been a bit of shocked that we have been attributed to one thing that we had not seen. It’s a bit of little bit of pot calling the kettle black when the letter that was written to the State Superintendent was very vital of the method when in truth there was no course of by the State’s superintendent affiliation to loop in its membership.”

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“I used to be not made conscious of the letter previous to it being despatched, and I’d say I’d actually recognize it being consulted with previous to the letter going out indicating a illustration of my – and together with my colleagues throughout the commonwealth’s – views,” one other superintendent mentioned. “If there’s a letter going out on my behalf I will surely recognize and count on to know precisely what that letter says earlier than it is being distributed.”

Youngkin slammed the letter as a “gross misrepresentation of what superintendents imagine” and accused the letter of mischaracterizing the assist the affiliation had. 

“That is what these associations try to do: which is once more put forms, put politicians, in between mother and father and their youngsters,” Youngkin advised WJLA. “That is why Virginians elected me within the fall. That is why we went to work on day one and on day one we reaffirmed the rights of fogeys to make these choices.” 

Youngkin press secretary Macaulay Porter equally slammed the “incorrect” experiences as “reckless.”

Glenn Youngkin, governor of Virginia, speaks previous to signing govt actions within the Virginia State Capitol in Richmond, Virginia, U.S., on Saturday, Jan. 15, 2022. Photographer: Al Drago/Bloomberg by way of Getty Photographs
(Photographer: Al Drago/Bloomberg by way of Getty Photographs)

Fox Information Digital reached out to The Washington Publish on Monday night time to see if it stood by its experiences on the VASS letter or whether or not they warrant a correction. 

On Tuesday afternoon, a spokesperson for the Publish advised Fox Information Digital it up to date its preliminary report and added a “clarification” to the highest of the article. 

“This text was clarified to clarify that the letter to the state superintendent of faculties from the Virginia Affiliation of Faculty Superintendents was written on behalf of the state’s 133 college superintendents and was accredited by the board, however not signed by each member of the group,” the clarification learn. 

The headline, nonetheless, nonetheless reads, “All 133 Virginia college superintendents urge Youngkin to scrap tip line and content material coverage.” The Publish’s different article concerning the VASS letter stays unchanged. 

The Publish didn’t instantly reply to follow-up questions, together with why the headline in its preliminary report was not modified and an evidence as to why it issued a “clarification” reasonably than a correction.

Youngkin’s workplace responded to Fox Information’ request for remark by pointing to previous statements made on the topic.