COUGARS’ SWEET SWIM SUCCESS
February 6, 2019
Sports, Page 14
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Scandals rock Richmond
Governor, Lt. Governor navigate controversies By Jill Palermo
Times Staff Writer
Despite calls for his resignation from elected officials of both parties from across the commonwealth, Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam stubbornly clung to power this week, refusing
to resign over a racist photograph that appeared in his 1984 medical school yearbook and vowing instead to lead an effort toward racial reconciliation. “I cannot in good conscious choose the path that would be easier for me in an effort to duck my responsibility to reconcile,” Northam (D) said in a 40-minute news conference from the governor’s mansion Saturday. “I believe this moment can be the first small step to open a discussion
about these difficult issues and how they contribute to the greater racism and discrimination that defines so much of our history.” Northam sought to explain to the nation Feb. 2 why he first apologized Friday for appearing in the offensive picture in his Eastern Virginia Medical School yearbook, which depicted one person in blackface and another in a Ku Klux Klan hood, and then said he wasn’t in the picture after all. See NORTHAM, Page 4
Gov. Ralph Northam
‘We made it warm’
Rosenwald students remember Fauquier’s all-black schools By Robin Earl
Times Staff Writer
There was no central heating in Fauquier County’s all-black schools. Most were one-room schoolhouses without indoor plumbing. On Saturday, Linda Reed Jolley, of Crest Hill, shared these and other early childhood memories at a screening of the film “Rosenwald” at the Afro-American Historical Association in The Plains. The movie tells the story of Sears & Roebuck co-owner Julius Rosenwald, a philanthropist who helped build more than 5,300 schools for black children across the South. Fauquier County had eight Rosenwald schools. They comprised half of the allblack schools in the area during the first half of the 20th century. Jolley started off as a first grader at the Orlean School in 1959 and stayed until 1961. “Orlean was a one-room schoolhouse See ROSENWALD, Page 5
The 1948 class of Rosenwald High School in Warrenton. INSIDE Business.............................................11 Classified............................................34 Communities......................................28 Faith...................................................27
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Fauquier Times | www.fauquier.com | February 6, 2019
St. James’ School celebrates expansion By Anita L. Sherman Community Editor
It’s been seven years in the making, but 2019 marks the beginning of a new journey for the students, staff, administrators, board members and the community at St. James Episcopal School. On Sunday, Jan. 27, the ribbon was officially cut as a large crowd waited to tour the new education wing, which completed a renovation project started in 2012 with an anonymous gift to secure an architect. The years following brought in a new rector in 2013, the Right Rev. Ben Maas, and the formation of a master planning process. In the fall of 2017, the official groundbreaking ceremony was held. Construction continued through 2018, culminating in a huge Christmas gift as the
work completed in December. The new 5,000-square-foot expansion adds five new classrooms serving students in grades one through five. Two preschool classrooms were upgraded to include bathrooms and sinks. Second-floor renovations include expanded access and lighting to ramps and hallways, a permanent home for the hand-bell practice room and a new choir/music room. The air was cold with a chilly wind blowing that Sunday, but it didn’t dampen the spirits of those attending. Ben Maas and Head of School Stacey Irvin thanked all who were responsible for making the expansion happen from campaign committee members to donors to local businesses and consultants who provided in kind support.
A special shout-out was extended to Tom Moore, a member of the congregation from 1969 until his death in 2014. Moore, who is remembered for his generous and humble ministries, remembered Saint James’ in his estate plans. His bequest to Saint James’ provided the first contribution to the Connected Capital Campaign. The Right Rev. Edwin F. Gulick Jr. offered the blessing. Gulick is a retired assistant bishop of Virginia. He and his wife Barbara are members at St. James. “Bless every child that enters into this new space,” said a smiling Gulick as the ribbon was cut and the tour of the new space began. Saint James’ Episcopal School serves preschool through grade 5. Applications for the 2019-2020 school year are now being accepted.
TIMES STAFF PHOTO/ANITA SHERMAN
Two charged in grandparent fraud case, thanks to Delaplane woman Two New York men are facing charges in connection with the all-too-familiar grandparent fraud scheme, which a Delaplane woman recently reported to the Fauquier County Sheriff’s Office. Deputies took a report of “a scam in progress” on Thursday, Jan. 21, Sgt. James Hartman, Fauquier County Sheriff’s Office spokesman, said in a news release.
The Delaplane resident reported that she received a phone call from someone claiming to be her grandson, who said “he had been in a car crash and needed money” and was now in jail in Atlanta, Georgia, Hartman said. “The caller stated he suffered a broken nose and that is why his voice sounded different when questioned by the victim,” Hartman said in the
news release. The woman then received another phone call from someone who claimed to be from “the local public defender’s office and a ‘good faith deposit’ of $7,500.00 was arranged to help the grandson,” Hartman said in the news release. The victim agreed to an arrangement that involved an overnight delivery by UPS of cash to an address in Brooklyn, but then “received several more phone calls attempting to extort $15,000.00 more in cash,” Hartman said in the news release. The woman told deputies she believed at that point it might be a scam and called her grandson. She found out he was home, not in Georgia, had not been in a car crash and was fine, Hartman said. The victim then sent an email to Fauquier County Sheriff Bob Mosier asking for help, the news release said. Detective Strick Payne worked with the police in Stamford, Connecticut, to organize the delivery of a package to the address the woman was given, Hartman said in the news release. On Saturday, Stamford police reported to the Fauquier County Sher-
ISSN 1050-7655, USPS 188280 Published every Wednesday by Piedmont Media LLC How to reach us ADDRESS: 41 Culpeper Street Warrenton, Virginia 20186 PHONE: 540-347-4222 FAX: 540-349-8676 HOURS: 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. weekdays, 24-hour answering service Publisher Catherine M. Nelson, 540-347-4222 cnelson@fauquier.com NEWSROOM Managing Editor Jill Palermo, 540-351-0431 jpalermo@fauquier.com Web/Copy Editor Amanda Heincer, 540-878-2418 aheincer@fauquier.com
Eduardo Santos-Cruz
Hector Rivera
iff’s Office that two men in a van with New York tags met the UPS delivery driver and took possession of the package. Stamford police attempted to stop the men and a pursuit ensued before the men were eventually taken into custody, Hartman said. The two men, identified by Stamford police as Hector Rivera, 25, and Eduardo Santos-Cruz, 26, were arrested. Rivera was charged with conspiracy to commit larceny, attempted larceny, forgery, engaging in a police pursuit, reckless operation and interfering with police, according to Stamford police. Santos-Cruz was charged with conspiracy to commit larceny and attempted larceny. The investigation in Fauquier County continues, Hartman said.
Community Editor Anita Sherman, 540-351-1635 asherman@fauquier.com Associate Editor John Toler, 540-351-0487 jtoler@fauquier.com Staff Writers Karen Chaffraix, kchaffraix@fauquier.com James Ivancic, 540-878-2414 jivancic@fauquier.com Sports Editor Peter Brewington, 540-351-1169 pbrewington@fauquier.com Sports Staff Writer Jeff Malmgren, 540-874-2250 jmalmgren@fauquier.com ADVERTISING Ad Manager Kathy Mills Godfrey 540-351-1162 kgodfrey@fauquier.com Classified Sales Consulatant Jeanne Cobert, 540-878-2491 jcobert@fauquier.com Chairman Emeritus George R. Thompson
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Fauquier Times | www.fauquier.com | February 6, 2019
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Jeck to ask for $8 million to fix teacher salary scale By Karen Chaffraix Times Staff Writer
Fauquier teachers are underpaid compared to surrounding counties, a problem Superintendent David Jeck attributes to the decade-old decision to abandon the “step” pay scale for teachers. That move, initially made to help Fauquier County weather the Great Recession, has resulted in pay “compression” within the teaching ranks, meaning that salaries have essentially stalled for mid-career teachers. To address the problem, Jeck said he’ll likely include an extra $8 million toward teacher salaries in the budget he presents to the school board Feb. 11. “What people can expect from me is a very aggressive approach to dealing with the compression issue and being creative and pulling all the levers we can in order to address this problem,” Jeck said. “Our estimate to fix the compression problem, which means to be on par with teacher salaries in the region, is about $8 million.” Fauquier is losing teachers “to Loudoun, Prince William, Arlington, Fairfax…to counties 20 and 30 minutes away that can pay $10,000 more than we can,” Jeck added. The step teacher salary scale, similar to that used by the federal government, lists salary levels based on education and experience levels and offers automatic salary increas-
es as teachers add years of experience or additional schooling. Jeck said the school division’s salaries are low compared to the David Jeck county’s relative wealth, according to a study by the Virginia General Assembly’s Joint Legislative Audit and Review Commission. The study ranked Fauquier County’s teacher salaries at 127 out of 132 school divisions in the state on that measure, Jeck said. “[We scored so low] not necessarily because salaries are terrible but because compared to the counties we are losing our teachers to, our salaries are poor,” Jeck said.
Teacher turnover
Fauquier schools began with 12 fewer teachers than slots this year, far short of the 127 Prince William experienced. But it is large number for a 20-school division, Jeck said. “A handful” of those positions remain unfilled. But even more concerning was last year’s teacher-turnover rate. While a 7- or 8-percent teacher turnover rate is normal, last year the number hit 12 percent, “which is scary,” Jeck said. About 2 percent of the teachers were lost to retirement, 9.9-percent left for better salaries elsewhere, Jeck said. The school division’s com-
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pressed salaries contribute to the problem, Jeck said. “When you are losing people at the top of the pay scale who are retiring, and Fauquier County has a high percentage of experienced teachers nearing retirement age, you are replacing them with people at the bottom of the scale. And when you are not giving consistent raises [across the board], then all of a sudden you are compressed,” Jeck said. “We have to fix the problem with our pay scale, and we have to reimplement the step system, or we will be back here in 10 years talking about compression again.” The school board paid the Virginia Association of School Superintendents $18,000 to mine the numbers and make recommendations, which were included in a Jan. 18 report. The next lowest offer for such a study was $60,000. Gov. Ralph Northam’s proposed state budget, which offers a 5-percent teacher salary bump, would help Fauquier County fill its salary gap, but the money would only go so far. For one thing, the increase would apply only to the number of teachers the state deems necessary according to its “standards of quality.” Most school divisions, including Fauquier County, exceed the state’s minimum requirements for teachers. “This is what is frustrating about Virginia politics,” Jeck said. “When you get a figure from the state, you
have to peel the layers of the onion. First of all, the 5-percent raise is over two years. We just gave our teachers a 3-percent raise. So, for us to get any of that money [from the state] we need to give teachers at least a 2-percent raise next year,” Jeck said. Ultimately, the amount the state sends the school division is tied to the county’s “composite index,” a measure of the locality’s ability to pay. Fauquier County’s composite index is .61 of 100. The higher the index, the more money the locality must contribute, Jeck said. Jeck noted that “87 to 88 percent” of the school division budget goes to people in the way of salary and benefits. The rest, about 12 to 13 percent, pays for everything else: transportation, food service, infrastructure and maintenance, books, technology. “My budget this year is most definitely going to show that we love our people, Jeck said. “I think you are going to see many different levers pulled in order to address this compression issue, not all of them having to do with money. We’ve got to do more to attract and retain quality instructional staff. We can’t afford to lose any more good teachers.” Jeck will present his budget to the Fauquier County School Board on Monday, Feb. 11. The board will meet at 7 p.m. in the Falcon Room at Fauquier High School. Reach Karen Chaffraix at kchaffraix@fauquier.com