Virginia Republicans hope that lab schools will replicate the success of charters, which face an unusual barrier in the state. The Virginia constitution requires each new charter to gain sign-off from the local school board, most of which are politically aligned with the unions. The fast-growing state had a mere seven charter schools in 2021, serving about 1,300 students out of more than 1.2 million.
Laying the foundation for non-union schools is in keeping with Mr. Youngkin’s campaign promise to grant more options and control to parents. Debates over Covid restrictions and critical-race theory helped push education to the forefront of last year’s gubernatorial election, with dissatisfied parents driving an unexpected GOP vote surge.
Public pressure has enabled a breakthrough. Former Gov. Bob McDonnell, who led the state from 2010 to 2013, tried to work around the edges of charter-school restrictions but failed to get lab-school funding through a Democratic Senate. The Governor before Mr. Youngkin, Democrat Ralph Northam, opposed the idea, with his education secretary calling lab schools “an underhanded way of getting to charter schools.” But this year, after his election victory in November, Gov. Youngkin was able to win support from 32 of 40 state Senators.
Proposals for lab schools are already open. “We’ve already had universities and school boards come to me,” Gov. Youngkin said at the signing ceremony. The $100 million in the budget will provide “start-up capital” for at least five new schools, along with grants for entities planning to open them. George Mason University has discussed with neighboring public-school and community-college systems opening one of the first lab schools, according to Virginia radio station VPM.