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Standing Up For Racial Equity In Schools

Carley Welch | July 21, 2020

Topics: black lives matter, de facto segregation, Henrico County public schools, Henrico Justice, Natalie Christensen, school redistricting, Tami Washington

Henrico Justice, a group formed by current students and recent graduates of Henrico County Public Schools, is working to end systemic racism in their schools, one march at a time.

Henrico Justice, a local organization created by 18-year-old Godwin High School graduate Natalie Christensen, has held two rallies in support of the Black Lives Matter movement — one in June and the other on Saturday, July 11. Henrico Justice was created to inform the public about economic and racial inequity and disparities in the Henrico County Public School system, and hopefully create some positive changes. 

Christensen, who started the organization at the end of May, said Henrico Justice all began with a graphic she made about segregation in the county’s public schools. After it got a hefty amount of traction on social media, Christensen figured she would make a poster for a protest. This also drew a fair amount of attention online, and ultimately led to a group of about 20 former and current Henrico Public School students coming together. Now they are organizing their own protests to get the word out about inequity in the county. 

“I really wanted to mobilize students, because one of the main things that I noticed was how the school system isn’t equitable in HCPS,” Christensen said. 

Photo by Natalie Christensen

The first protest in June started at Matthew Robertson Park. The group marched to a location where the school board regularly meets on the east end of Henrico County. According to Henrico Justice member Tani Washington, the protest was held in this location because the group wanted to “cater to those who were being most affected by the inequities.”

According to Christensen and Washington, the inequities they are referring to stem from the differences in the ways the West End and East End are dealt with by the Henrico County school board. As of now, Washington said, the HCPS school board reports that more money is spent per student on schools on the East End; however, the West End has more resources. 

“Schools on the West End have more facilities, more resources and more opportunities for students,” Washington said. “Those students on the West End are predominantly white.”

This issue with the lack of diversity on the West End is one of many additional obstacles Henrico Justice is trying to tackle. According to Christensen, one of their goals as an organization is to help make the demographics of each HCPS school match the overall student profile within Henrico County. Right now, the student profile of HCPS appears as if though it’s diverse; it reports 37.1 percent of students are white, 35.3 percent are Black, and smaller percentages make up other races. 

However, Christensen said, if you look at the makeup of individual schools within the county, the majority of high schools are over 50 percent one race, either Black or white — a situation that amounts to de facto segregation. Christensen said she plans to introduce the idea of redistricting the middle part of Henrico County, so there would be more diversity throughout the county without having to make students travel from one side of the county to the other. 

Photo by Natalie Christensen

“We just know that students do better in diverse environments,” Christensen said. “Because of the disparities and in wealth between East and West Ends, it just makes schools really inequitable.”

The students of Henrico Justice are not in this fight alone. Teachers, faculty members, staff members, and other organizations such as the NAACP of Henrico have joined the students in protest or served as liaisons to help get the ball rolling. 

“Of course, rallies and marches are great, but those are sort of demonstrative in terms of getting the movement started,” Washington said. “The movement really is going to continue into the school year.”

The protest on July 11 consisted of masked individuals marching from Short Pump Park to Short Pump Town Center and back again. Performers and speakers joined the protesters. According to Christensen, over 100 people came to show their support. For the students of Henrico Justice, keeping groups this large united and organized has been a complicated endeavor.

“It’s definitely been a challenge,” Christensen said. “We are trying to disrupt, but also keep it safe.”

Photo by Natalie Christensen

As far as their goals for the future, Taylor White, who recently took over leading the group as Christensen prepared to go to college in California in the fall, said they’re planning more protests for the future. They intend to continue protesting until they get a response from the Henrico School Board. White also said she wants to begin to transition Henrico Justice into an organization that engages in community service initiatives. They welcome anyone who wants to help fight the good fight. 

“I think Henrico Justice could be a great way for students outside of school, completely detached from HCPS, to have a space to voice their thoughts with each other and connect with other schools across the county,” Washington said.

Top Photo by Natalie Christensen

Working To Keep Kids Fed During Coronavirus

Taiya Jarrett | March 23, 2020

Topics: Backpacks Of Love, Chesterfield County Public Schools, Chesterfield Food Bank, food insecurity, Hanover County schools, Henrico County public schools, India K Raja, Ralph Northam, richmond public schools, school closings, State of Emergency

From public school systems to charitable organizations, a variety of groups are working together to make sure that children facing food insecurity still get healthy meals while schools around the state remain closed.

On March 13, while declaring a state of emergency amid concerns over the COVID-19 pandemic, Governor Ralph Northam announced the closure of all public schools from March 16 through March 27. Several Central Virginia school districts, including Richmond, Chesterfield, Henrico, Hanover, and Goochland, have since extended the closure into mid-April.

Public schools may be closed, but food insecurity in school-aged children remains a concern, especially within the city of Richmond. Educational institutions play a vital role in providing meals for food-insecure students, and within Richmond Public Schools, over 20 percent of students experience food insecurity at some point during the 2017 school year (the most recent year for which data is available), according to BeHealthyRVA.org. 

In order to ensure that a significant portion of the area’s schoolchildren do not go hungry, the central Virginia community has come together during the coronavirus pandemic to provide for the youth. Here’s what’s happening in various school districts in the area to get meals to kids.

Richmond

Beginning Monday, March 16, Richmond Public Schools began distributing meals to RPS students and their families at 20 different school sites around the city. Food is distributed at these sites Monday through Friday, from 9:30am – 12:30pm. The full list of schools providing food distribution centers can be found below:

  • Armstrong High School, 2300 Cool Ln, Richmond, VA 23223
  • Binford Middle School, 1701 Floyd Ave, Richmond, VA 23220
  • Blackwell Elementary School, 300 East 15th Street, Richmond, VA 23224
  • Boushall Middle School, 3400 Hopkins Rd, Richmond, VA 23234
  • Broad Rock Elementary School, 4615 Ferguson Ln, Richmond, VA 23234
  • Chimborazo Elementary School, 3000 E Marshall St, Richmond, VA 23223
  • Fisher Elementary School, 3701 Garden Rd, Richmond, VA 23235
  • Francis Elementary School, 5146 Snead Rd, Richmond, VA 23224
  • George Mason Elementary School, 813 N 28th St, Richmond, VA 23223
  • Ginter Park Elementary School, 3817 Chamberlayne Ave, Richmond, VA 23227
  • Greene Elementary School, 1745 Catalina Dr, Richmond, VA 23224
  • Henderson Middle School, 4319 Old Brook Rd, Richmond, VA 23227
  • Huguenot High School, 7945 Forest Hill Ave, Richmond, VA 23225
  • Lucille Brown Middle School, 6300 Jahnke Rd, Richmond, VA 23225
  • Miles Jones Elementary School, 200 Beaufont Hills Dr, Richmond, VA 23225
  • MLK Middle School, 1000 Mosby St, Richmond, VA 23223
  • Oak Grove-Bellemeade Elementary School, 2409 Webber Ave, Richmond, VA 23224
  • Reid Elementary School, 1301 Whitehead Rd, Richmond, VA 23225
  • Summer Hill Preschool, 2717 Alexander Ave, Richmond, VA 23234
  • Wythe High School, 4314 Crutchfield St, Richmond, VA 23225

Henrico County

Henrico County Public Schools have followed the same path. Starting Tuesday, March 17, they created a “grab and go” meal distribution plan, allowing students and others under the age of 18 (accompanied by a parent) to pick up free breakfasts and lunches from 11 a.m.-noon on weekdays at eight different sites around the county. These have since grown to 14 different sites, beginning last Thursday. Here is a full list of the sites:

  • Fairfield Middle School, 5121 Nine Mile Road, Henrico, Va. 23223
  • Glen Lea Elementary School, 3909 Austin Ave., Henrico, Va. 23222
  • Hermitage High School, 8301 Hungary Spring Road, Henrico, Va. 23228
  • Highland Springs Elementary School, 600 Pleasant St., Highland Springs, Va. 23075
  • Quioccasin Middle School, 9400 Quioccasin Road, Henrico, Va. 23238
  • Henrico Volunteer Rescue Squad 31, 5301 Huntsman Road, Sandston, Va. 23150
  • Campus of Virginia Randolph, 2204 Mountain Road, Glen Allen, Va. 23060
  • Henrico High School, 302 Azalea Ave., Henrico, Va. 23227
  • Longan Elementary School, 9200 Mapleview Ave., Henrico, Va. 23294
  • Montrose Elementary School, 2820 Williamsburg Road, Henrico, Va. 23231
  • Ratcliffe Elementary School, 2901 Thalen St., Henrico, Va. 23223
  • Ridge Elementary School, 8910 Three Chopt Road, Henrico, Va. 23229
  • Sandston Elementary School, 7 Naglee Ave., Sandston, Va. 23150

Chesterfield County

Chesterfield County Public Schools has also established a free meal distribution program for students. A lunch and the next morning’s breakfast are provided on a first-come, first-served basis. Student and a parent or guardian must both be present to pick up meals. Meals are available between 11am-12pm at 33 different locations; for the full list, click here.

Hanover County

Hanover County Public Schools began distributing pre-packaged lunch kits to children aged 18 or younger on Monday, March 16. Lunch kits are served on a first-come first-served basis between 11am and 1pm Monday through Friday while supplies last at John M. Gandy Elementary School, located at 201 Archie Cannon Drive in Ashland, and Mechanicsville Elementary School, located at 7425 Mechanicsville Elementary Drive in Mechanicsville.

School systems aren’t the only ones pitching in, though. Indian restaurant India K’ Raja, which is located in the West End, offered to provide free lunch buffet to students during the initial closure period. Of course, since then, due to limits on public gatherings, India K’Raja has, like many restaurants, moved to takeout and delivery orders only. Give them a call at (804)965-6345 to find out if the program is still in place.

The Chesterfield Food Bank will also provide free meals to students through a drive-thru service operating on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 4pm-6:30pm at their Chesterfield location, located at 12211 Iron Bridge Road.

During the coronavirus outbreak, Powhatan-based nonprofit Backpacks of Love have held true to their mission of ensuring access to food for kids in Powhatan, Buckingham, Cumberland, Goochland, Amelia, Henrico, and Chesterfield counties, working with the Powhatan County School Board to get students a week’s worth of food as school closings began, and coordinating deliveries of two weeks of additional food to Powhatan students. They’re working to do more, and are in need of donations — to find out how you can help, go to their website.

Ledbury has also established a fund called Together Forward, which donates a meal to Building a Better RPS and Henrico County Public Schools for every $100 spent. Ledbury CEO Paul Trible noted that since shopping for new clothes isn’t a priority right now, this is a way to do so while also contributing positively to the current efforts.

If you’re in a position to volunteer to help with any of these efforts, please consider doing so — all of these organizations need help to achieve their goals of keeping kids fed while school remains closed indefinitely.

Top Photo by U.S. Department of Agriculture – Rachael Ray Windy City Harvest Lunch, Public Domain, via Wikimedia

Op-Ed: For the Love of All of Our Children

Stephanie M. Rizzi | April 3, 2019

Topics: albert hill, albert hill middle school, caroline county, childrens rights, dept of education, Henrico County public schools, police brutality, Richmond police, richmond public schools, RPD, RPS, school to prison pipeline, Students

This past weekend, I attended a conference on the campus of Princeton University in New Jersey, and had to field numerous questions regarding whether Richmond is as racially oppressive as it is portrayed in the national media. I stood up for our city, and assured the conference attendees that both of my sons grew up in Richmond, attended RPS, and are doing just fine. I explained that I do not step outside of my door and get greeted with blatant racism on a daily basis. I got the feeling that they were listening, but remained mostly incredulous.

I had not yet heard about what happened at Albert Hill Middle School this past Thursday, and I am sure that the exchange between those young students and the RPD police officer who told them that when they turned 18 “their asses” would be his made my defense of this city much more difficult to believe.

Growing up African American in deeply rural Caroline County, Virginia, I honestly cannot remember having one encounter with the police; in fact, I was barely aware of their existence. We had no security or resource officers in our schools; conflicts were largely (and quite effectively) handled by our school administrators. The mention of entering their offices literally struck fear in each of our hearts.

I’m not perfect, and admittedly, I visited the principal’s office in elementary school several times. Once, while pursuing the entrepreneurial aspiration of making enough money to buy myself a bicycle, I got caught selling popping caps (a mild explosive) to kids in my fourth-grade class before school one morning. I was selling strips of five for a nickel, nickel bags of caps, and the kids were buying. Chaos ensued. My classmates went wild. Seemingly disembodied desk-chair legs and textbooks slammed and danced, in an effort to elicit the reward of the seductive single pop and puff of smoke that each tiny circle on the strips promised.

I’m not sure who it was –my memory is blurred; I’m not even sure I knew then — but an adult entered the room and demanded to know who brought the caps. In a flash, every index finger in the room pointed at me. The speed with which those kids ratted me out was dizzying. The adult then told me to return the money, and those traitors hovered like vultures. From the plastic bag I held tightly, they took not only the money I felt I’d rightfully earned, but my lunch money, too. Then came the perp walk to the office.

I sat on a wooden bench outside my principal’s office for what seemed like hours: nervous, but also self-righteously determined to defend my case. My nine-year-old mind had not processed the seriousness, disruptiveness, and potential danger of my actions. I had a product my classmates were willing to pay for, and they bought it. Supply and demand. I did not see the problem. Besides, they had taken the caps and all of my money; I was left high and dry. It didn’t seem fair.

PHOTO: Caroline County, VA, Historically Yours

My principal, a gentle but firm, flame-haired white woman (whom we knew was kind, but also meant business), called me into her office. I slowly walked in, tears streaming, anger brewing. She explained to me why what I had done was wrong — told me that selling things, especially explosives, in school was against the rules. She emphasized just how much valuable time the disturbance I’d caused had cost the teacher and the other students that morning. She then called my mom to come to pick me up for the day which, honestly, was punishment enough. No referrals. No suspensions. No permanent records. No police. Kind redirection. It worked.

I never sold another thing at school again. I understood that the principal cared enough to take time to explain why I was in trouble, and I begrudgingly agreed that calling my mother was an appropriate penalty. There was no permanent record of the encounter, but I remembered the lesson forever.

As a child, I had the good fortune of having authority figures who cared more about nurturing our spirits as young people than about criminalizing our behavior. Men and women, white and black, who taught us how to self-regulate, to use reason as a means of determining appropriate actions, and who modeled the moral behavior that helped us to later determine the difference between right and wrong. We were disciplined with love; we thrived.

It appears as I’ve grown up, and now have sons of my own, that my experiences in Caroline County were as much an aberration as they were idyllic. Though I have worked hard as a teacher myself to carry on the tradition of loving discipline, and to fiercely protect my students from the harsh, punitive society we live in (especially for black, brown, and disabled children), it appears that many public school systems do not subscribe to this philosophy.

An op-ed piece from The Washington Post published in October 2017 asserted that in Virginia, “staggering numbers of students, who are often preteens in elementary and middle schools, are referred to police and the courts — a wildly disproportionate response that can stigmatize children at school and, in some cases, be a stain on their records for years.”

In fact, while researching and writing this piece, I encountered case after case of young children in Virginia, particularly of African American descent, being referred to the criminal justice system for issues that could have been effectively handled within the school, even within the classroom, without involving law enforcement. In one case, an 11-year-old autistic African American boy in Lynchburg received two misdemeanor disorderly conduct charges: the first for throwing a tantrum, the second for reacting in fear when a police officer grabbed him around the chest.

U.S. Department of Education data shows that in most states black, Latino and special-needs (disabled) students get referred to police and courts disproportionately, and a report released by the Legal Aid Justice Center found huge disparities in many school districts between the percentage of black students who received short-term suspensions, and the percentage of white students, as well as the percentage of students with disabilities suspended, compared to those without. It also determined that the vast majority of suspended students are punished for behavioral offenses, like having a cell phone, minor insubordination, and disrespect.

I personally spent four years teaching for Henrico County Public Schools, one of the school systems where disparities were found, and witnessed many instances where black children were disciplined for minor infractions more often than their white counterparts. I witnessed black children being called to the office much more frequently for dress code violations — short skirts and sagging pants somehow seemed to be more offensive on black bodies than on any others.

PHOTO: Albert Hill Middle School, NBC12

I once witnessed a white female student of mine walk out during an assembly, right past a teacher monitor, and a black male promptly get stopped when attempting the same thing. When I confronted the teacher about it, she stared right through me as though she couldn’t hear my inquiry. In fact, the only student who became violent with me while I was teaching there was a white male, who threw a 10-pound literature book at me in front of the entire class because I insisted he stop sleeping. I cried. To my knowledge, that student was never asked to take responsibility for his actions.

I recognize that I am tying together the problem of school suspensions with issues of encounters with police and the criminal justice system, but as researchers Kerrin Wolf and Aaron Kupchik report in their 2016 study, School Suspensions and Adverse Experiences in Adulthood, “being suspended increases the likelihood that a student will experience criminal victimization, criminal involvement, and incarceration, years later, as adults.” It appears that the two are inextricably connected.

It is because of this that, as a now-30-plus-year full-time Richmond resident, I find what happened with the Richmond City Police officer and the young students of Albert Hill Middle School so extremely dangerous. The officer told the children to wait until they turned 18, at which point, he suggested, their “asses” would be his — as though one day, he could own their bodies. This communicates that their bodies are not, and never will be, their own — and that they will never be protected by those like him. That idea itself can cause long-term psychic trauma.

The officer did not attempt to de-escalate the situation, to communicate that his role was to protect and serve them — to, as my elementary school principal did, explain why they should make better decisions. If the students were engaging in disrespect, there are many ways the officer could have redirected their behavior without the use of threats. But perhaps it ultimately does not matter what they were doing. A police officer is a public servant, who should be expected to adhere to a certain code of ethics, whether written or implied. Richmond City Third District School Board Representative Kenya Gibson said it best: “I can’t think of any circumstance in which talking to a minor in that way is an acceptable thing to do.”

There are many dedicated people out there working to love our kids, and they are making inroads toward disrupting the school-to-prison pipeline — their work should be commended. But not until our country is ready to recognize that bias against black, brown, and disabled bodies is virulent and real will we see all children as worthy of protection and love. Until then, even changed policies will fail.

My hope for my children, for all of our children, is that we get close to what I remember of those days at Ladysmith Elementary school, where we ALL knew we were valuable, and that the adults in our lives could be trusted to guide and protect us, even during our worst moments.

Shame on that Richmond police officer. There is no doubt that what he said to those children was, as Gibson states, “unacceptable and disappointing.” But let’s also recognize that he represents a larger, more insidious culture of devaluing that which we should all so deeply love.

Note: Op-Eds are contributions from guest writers and do not reflect RVA Magazine editorial policy.

Top photo via Richmond Police Department/Facebook

Environmental Education in Central VA Shows Signs Of Hope But Has Long Way To Go

Nidhi Sharma | October 5, 2017

Topics: Citizens Climate Lobby, Henrico County public schools, James River Association, Paris Climate Accord, Stephen Nash, US National Climate Assessment

In this era of worldwide climate change, environmental education has become more important than ever. Over the past 50 years, scientists have observed increasing occurrences of summer heat waves, winter freezes, tornadoes and tropical cyclones that have devastated our earth. Experts have recorded warmer and more acidic ocean waters, a pattern of global warming and grave disturbances in the habitats and ecosystems of our planet.

Still, there is hope where there is knowledge. We can mend the global issues plaguing our planet — but we must first understand the damage we have done. We did some investigating to see how related programs here in Central Virginia address this need.

“We’re going in the right direction, but the future holds a lot of different pressures — one of which is not being aware of your own environment,” Nat Draper, Education Director of the James River Association, said. “That’s one of the reasons environmental education is important. If you’re not aware of how humans have had an impact on the environment, you can’t take steps to fix it.”

So how does Richmond’s public education system measure up? Rising ocean temperatures, global warming, flooding, pollution — how do Richmond schools inform students about these issues?

Photo by Landon Shroder

With Richmond’s proximity to the James River, and the pressing global consequences of climate change, it has become increasingly important to ask these questions. The answers, though, are often disappointing.

“For K-12 education, some states like Maryland require that students take a course in environmental studies before they graduate,” Draper said. “Virginia requires finance classes and so many other courses, but we don’t require environmental education. That’s something we should consider in the future.”

Climate change, according to new and stronger evidence presented in the third U.S. National Climate Assessment, is a product of human activities — particularly the burning of fossil fuels and the subsequent release of greenhouse gases, which trap heat in the atmosphere and in excess have led to a gradual global warming.

Chris Weigard of the Citizens Climate Lobby, a non-profit group focused on national climate change policies, is also a strong advocate for environmental education. He emphasized, in particular, the importance of awareness among younger generations.

“People my age, in their 60s, are not going to have to deal with the most extreme consequences of climate change in their lifetimes,” he said. “Young people will see more, and their grandchildren will see more. Global warming is a cumulative issue.”

According to the third climate assessment, climate change will continue until our kindergarteners become college students, and will only escalate with the continuation of human activity that burns fossil fuels and releases heat-trapping gases.

For many, this is a difficult burden to bear. Climate-change denial continues to exist in the U.S., and with the impending withdrawal from the Paris Climate Accord by the federal government, it has begun to gain traction once again.

This ignorance is not singular among politicians — the JRA, Richmond’s most prominent environmental group, gears most of its programs toward children and teachers, but has found that many students lack any environmental knowledge at all.

“When students come out to our ecology school, or to other programs, it’s all new to them,” Draper said. “Everything that we talk to them about, from food chains to water quality testing and pollution, it’s all new to them.”

In places like the Florida Keys, fishermen, locals and park rangers face the eventual flooding of islands sitting just one foot above the water — day by day, they watch as the tree-filled hammocks of Big Pine Key are infected with saltwater, bleaching tree limbs white and destroying wildlife. And yet, only 57 percent of Floridians are somewhat worried about global warming.

Photo by Colombia University

Amy Moore, an environmental science teacher at Deep Run High School, has taught in classrooms from inner city Richmond to rural Virginia. For Moore, this pattern of ignorance is something she has observed for years.

“There are enough people who don’t know anything about the environment,” she said. “They’ve never been educated — because so many people have never even taken a course on any sort of environmental topic. They’re completely in the dark.”

Moore also underlined the vicious cycle of miseducation in Virginia, which circles endlessly from parent to child, generation after generation.

“There’s so much data out there to support climate change — carbon dioxide is the largest contributor to global warming and there are so many people who just aren’t educated about where carbon dioxide comes from,” she said. “So many of my students, to this day, will say that humans emit carbon dioxide, enough to make this climate change. And where do they get this information from? Their parents, who also aren’t educated.”

Stephen Nash, a renowned science journalist and visiting senior research scholar at University of Richmond, believes that by moving toward alternative forms of energy and actively educating and engaging citizens, our planet has a chance to become healthy and whole again.

Right now, we are undergoing global changes that threaten human health with low air quality, low water quality and extreme weather. These changes have impacted agriculture, economy and the naked infrastructure of our society, menaced by rising sea levels that continue to swallow our land. It is essential to understand this. “We must inform the public so it can make decisions that will help us move towards sustainability,” Nash said.

Societal sustainability — whole countries acting through an environmental consciousness — can only be achieved through widespread education about global changes, according to Nash.

The sad reality for Richmond public schools is that money and level of experience, unfortunately, separate schools that are able to provide a comprehensive environmental education from those that are not.

“You have to have resources for many of these things, unfortunately,” Moore said. “The east end of Richmond versus the west end of Richmond is very different. Many teachers at other schools simply don’t know the [science] material that well.”

Deep Run High School offers seven environmental classes and eight biology classes. It has the highest number of students taking AP Science courses in Henrico County, and is one of wealthiest student bodies in Richmond and Henrico’s school districts, with a reduced price lunch rate of just 5 percent.

Highland Springs High School, on the other hand, has a free/reduced price lunch rate of 64 percent, and test scores, year after year, fall far below the state average.

“I taught in Highland Springs  for four years… they were some of my favorite kids,” Moore said. “They were very, very difficult to reach. I never saw a single parent for parent-teacher conferences when I was there. The students–you really had to get their attention. They had so many other things in their lives going on, school was their last thought. A lot of them had children themselves. But when you could get their attention, they would work really hard for you.”

Indeed, Richmond educators have not given up, despite outside limiting factors. Although public schools in Virginia have a long way to go, teachers with passion and drive continue to do their best at inspiring and informing their students about environmental issues.

According to Moore, a colleague at Highland Springs has started a GoFundMe for her environmental science class of just eight or nine very excited students, who signed up to learn all about the environment.

The James River Association has also received half a million dollars from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration as part of a 3-year grant, to provide professional development for all sixth and seventh grade science teachers in Richmond middle schools.

The group, formed in the 1960s, gained a passionate following after the governor at the time declared the James so unsanitary and unhealthy that he shut down the entire river.

For years, the JRA carried on the grueling process of cleaning up the river, making the James safe to swim and fish in again and, most importantly, educating the public about pollution and the environment.

The grant will fund a program called “Experience the Park,” coordinated with Richmond schools and the JRA — it will include in-class visits to all 1700 sixth grade science students.

A field experience will bring all students to study watersheds at the beloved James River, the center of recreation, tourism and beauty in this blossoming metropolis. Ask any Richmond resident, and they’ll tell you how much they love the natural beauty of their river city. The JRA hopes to create a Richmond where every citizen, beginning with these sixth graders, works hard to ensure that future generations can say that for a long, long time.

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