Bill Text: VA HJR500 | 2023 | Regular Session | Prefiled
Bill Title: Student Appreciation Week; designating as week of March 20, 2023, & each succeeding year thereafter.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 2-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2023-02-07 - Left in Rules [HJR500 Detail]
Download: Virginia-2023-HJR500-Prefiled.html
WHEREAS, as of the 2022–2023 academic year, there are 1,300,000 students in kindergarten through 12th grade in more than 2,000 public schools in 132 school districts and 145,000 students in 944 private schools across the Commonwealth; and
WHEREAS, public school students exemplify the diversity of the Commonwealth and come from a broad range of backgrounds, faiths, and ethnicities, including students of immigrant families representing dozens of countries of origin; and
WHEREAS, more than 12 percent of students in Virginia public schools are placed in special education programs and nearly 10 percent of students are English language learners; and
WHEREAS, in addition, during the 2021–2022 academic year, there were 549,767 students enrolled in colleges and universities at both the undergraduate and graduate levels in Virginia, with students traveling from across the United States and around the globe to study at the Commonwealth's world-class institutions of higher education; and
WHEREAS, students throughout the Commonwealth go above and beyond to achieve their fullest potential both in and out of the classroom, investing their time and talents wisely in their studies, athletics, extracurricular activities, and community service; and
WHEREAS, students in the Commonwealth, like all young people, deserve the finest quality education, complete with the tools to find success in their chosen career paths, the resources to help them meet the unique challenges of a global society, the confidence to pursue their dreams, and the mindfulness to support their communities and enhance the world around them for the better; and
WHEREAS, students in the Commonwealth and around the world responded admirably to the unprecedented stressors and challenges to academic and social development that resulted from the COVID-19 pandemic, adapting to electronic and hybrid learning models to remain committed to their education; and
WHEREAS, Student Appreciation Week provides an opportunity for all Virginians to celebrate and honor the Commonwealth's students, wish them the best of luck with their studies, and recommit themselves to investing in their future; now, therefore, be it
RESOLVED by the House of Delegates, the Senate concurring, That the General Assembly designate the week of March 20, in 2023 and in each succeeding year, as Student Appreciation Week in Virginia; and, be it
RESOLVED FURTHER, That the Clerk of the House of Delegates transmit a copy of this resolution to representatives of student communities in Virginia so that they may be apprised of the sense of the General Assembly of Virginia in this matter; and, be it
RESOLVED FINALLY, That the Clerk of the House of Delegates post the designation of this week on the General Assembly's website.
