In the fall of 2009, Chris Shumway paid a visit to his old grade school in Vienna, Wolftrap Elementary.

He had been a student there in the 1970s, and then had grown up and gone off to New York to work on Wall Street. By 2009, he was managing his own multibillion-dollar hedge fund, Shumway Capital.

The exams, which are being given across Northern Virginia this month, are designed to require critical thinking, not just memorization and arithmetic. Pass rates are expected to drop, perhaps steeply.

Some spoke in favor of benefits for parent liaisons, who translate language and culture for immigrant students and their families; expanded foreign language opportunities in elementary schools; and more money for adult education programs.

It was the second annual such event organized by the Northern Virginia chapter of Our Community Salutes, a group that puts together independent graduation ceremonies to recognize enlistees and their parents.

Urbanksi suggested that the two sides might consider removing the four commandments that refer directly to God, according to the Lynchburg News & Advance.

If Virginia wants permission to opt out of the most vexing parts of the federal No Child Left Behind law, it must produce a more rigorous accountability plan of its own.

Original story:

A verdict is expected Thursday in a Loudoun County court case that has raised questions about whether parents should be criminally prosecuted for frequently failing to get their kids to school on time.

That was the message the Department of Education delivered in an April 17 letter in response to Virginia’s request for relief from the federal education law, which requires that all students demonstrate proficiency in math and reading by 2014.

Now the proposal will be considered by the Fairfax School Board, which under state law has ultimate authority to approve or deny charter applications.