:quality(70)/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/tronc/Y7AZR4JUMZK3COIP35ILR74WLE.jpg)
Hampton — Hampton’s school division joined six others in a lawsuit against Gov. Glenn Youngkin, seeking to overturn his controversial executive order against school mask mandates.
In a motion filed Monday, the boards asked the court to issue a temporary injunction to restore the “status quo” for the remaining school year. The lawsuit maintains that Youngkin’s order violates school boards’ authority as stated in the Virginia Constitution.
“Without today’s action, school boards are placed in a legally untenable position — faced with an executive order that is in conflict with the constitution and state law,” the school boards said in a joint statement, adding that the decision was not politically driven.
Those in opposition to Youngkin’s order have repeatedly cited current state law requiring schools to remain open five days a week should they follow mitigations strategies “to the maximum extent practicable.” The policy is set to expire in August.
Alexandria City Public Schools, Arlington County Public School, Richmond Public Schools, Fairfax County Public Schools, Falls Church City Public Schools and Prince William County Public Schools are the initial school boards to take legal action. The seven districts filed the lawsuit Monday in Arlington Circuit Court.
“The question for this Court is whether, by executive order, a governor can override both the Constitution of Virginia and a law enacted by the General Assembly,” the lawsuit said. “The School Boards respectfully submit that the answer to this question is no.”
“We are disappointed that these school boards are ignoring parents’ rights. The governor and attorney general are in coordination and are committed to aggressively defending parents’ fundamental right to make decisions with regard to their child’s upbringing, education and care, as the legal process plays out,” Youngkin’s spokesperson, Macaulay Porter, told The Washington Post.
The suit is the second against Youngkin’s order — a group of Chesapeake parents filed a petition last week in the state supreme court. On Monday, the district’s union, Chesapeake Education Association, encouraged teachers to wear black and only work during contract hours. Multiple teacher unions in the region have said teachers are often asked to fill in for other classes during their planning period because of staffing issues and they often spend time after hours catching up on work.
Because Youngkin’s order says parents can still opt out of a district’s mandate, some parents in Newport News organized to send their children to school without a mask and the order in hand as permission.
The lawsuit, led by Fairfax County, the largest school division in the commonwealth, says Youngkin’s order would negate decisions each district made based on the virus’ impact on its community and recommendations from public health officials. The school divisions that filed the complaint represent over 350,000 of the approximately 1.3 million children in Virginia public schools.
Hampton was one of six Hampton Roads school divisions to keep its mask mandate after multiple boards scrambled to finalize their decision before the order took effect Monday.
During a regular meeting Wednesday, Hampton board members unanimously passed a vote to go forward with an “action briefed by the school board attorney in closed session” and continue to ratify the districts health mitigation plan. But the board did not have any discussion around the vote and it is unclear what legal action was advised.
Today's Top Stories
“When the governor issued Executive Order 2 on January 15, 2022, our Board had concerns as to local control and who has the authority to make policy and decisions for local school divisions,” Hampton Board Chair Richard Mason said in a statement released by the school division. “Due to this, and the importance of creating and maintaining healthy learning environments, our Board has joined six other school divisions to file a Complaint for Declaratory and Injunctive Relief. This legal action will determine whether locally-elected school boards will maintain the authority and responsibility conferred upon them by the Constitution of Virginia over supervision of the public schools in their respective communities.”
Hampton board members declined to speak with a reporter, citing “pending litigation.”
Despite taking legal action, the seven boards said in the statement each would be willing to work with Youngkin “to ensure the safety and welfare of all students.”
Sierra Jenkins, 229-462-8896, sierra.jenkins@virginiamedia.com