Read Our Letter to the Fairfax County School District Reminding them of Virginia’s Parental Rights Statute

Today, the Parental Rights Foundation mailed a letter to the Fairfax County School District, requesting information on whether they are following Virginia law. Due to reporting on July 5 that raised questions about whether the school district is hiding information from parents, we asked Fairfax County School District whether they were in compliance with Va. Code Ann. § 1-240.1, Virginia’s codification of parental rights as a fundamental right.

Our parent organization, ParentalRights.org, was instrumental in the drafting, introduction, and passage of this critical law in 2013. In addition, the Parental Rights Foundation has worked with allied organizations to adopt language similar to Virginia’s fundamental parental rights statute as model legislation that can be introduced across the nation. Virginia is one of 15 states with statutes similar in effect to our model legislation to protect parental rights as a fundamental right.

We are concerned that Fairfax County School District may not be following Virginia’s parental rights statute. We will let you know how they respond to our letter. In addition, we have provided copies of our letter to Virginia Governor Glenn Youngkin and his administration so that they can also investigate whether Fairfax County Public Schools is following Virginia law.

“School districts are a governmental body in the Commonwealth of Virginia,” said Jim Mason, Chairman of the Board of the Parental Rights Foundation. “As such, they are required to follow all Virginia law, including Va. Code Ann. § 1-240.1.”

“We live in a diverse, pluralistic nation,” said Will Estrada, president of the Parental Rights Foundation. “Thus, parents will have different views about raising their children. But one thing is clear: parents, not public-school bureaucrats, must make decisions for their own children. If the recent news reports are true, it raises serious questions about whether Fairfax County Public Schools is respecting parents, or if Fairfax County Public Schools is hiding information from parents to the detriment of their own precious children.”

While we are excited to see our model policies adopted as state law around the country, that does little good if states, localities, or school boards can simply ignore those statutes. To protect our children, we are happy to address concerns, like this one in Fairfax, wherever they may arise throughout the nation.

Sincerely,

Michael Ramey
Executive Director