Newsroom Archive for 6/27, 2007

College Leaders Program Class of 2007
Blog Update: Day 25, Tuesday June 26
Reported by: Emily V. Webb, Virginia Tech

    Today started out bright and early with a short bus ride down 64 to Richmond with a day packed full of speakers. Attorney General Bob McDonnell, or the states “super traffic cop” as he jokingly referred to himself, was our first. His main duties to the state include writing legal opinions, overseeing 200 lawyers and 400 staff, making recommendations to the General Assembly and getting more Republicans elected to office. He spoke on some of his biggest cases like Medicaid fraud, Capital murder trails and a recent Oxycontin case. His best advice for the CLP was to spend time in public service because there is nothing more rewarding than serving the citizens of Virginia.
          Next we walked over to the General Assembly Building to hear from Rob Jones of the Virginia Education Association. In his job as Director of Government Relations he is the associations’ main lobbyist and runs the VEA PAC. He informed us that for the 2008-2010 budget, the department of education estimates an additional $1.4 billion be spent on K-12 education, which is rather alarming. While Virginia is the 7th wealthiest state in the nation, it ranks 38th in state contribution to our schools, and teacher’s salaries are behind the national average by more than $5,000. In our discussion with Mr. Jones, he spoke on the need for a balance between the SOL’s and other testing methods while continuing to have high expectations for all our schools.
          Our next speaker was the Honorable Linwood Holton, former Governor of Virginia from 1970-1974. Governor Holton spoke of his children’s accomplishment in public service, and just like the Attorney General, highly recommended working in public service. Governor Holton was the leader in integration of Virginia schools during the civil rights movement and helped to create a two-party system, subsequently destroying the Byrd machine. He reminded me so much of my own grandfather, with a mind as sharp as a tack, even remembering his first grade teachers name and how she influenced him immensely.
          Governor Holton was followed by lunch on the 6th floor with a stunning view of the city. After lunch, we walked to the capital for a lesson in Senate chambers. The Deputy Clerk for the Senate gave us an overview of their work and an insider’s look into the Virginia Senate. An interesting fact that I learned was that the Senators get to pick their seating based on seniority, with three Republicans sitting on the Democratic side due to the 23-17 spit.
          At 2:30, Lieutenant Governor Bill Bolling gave an enlightening talk on his life and how he ascended to his position. Growing up in West Virginia where his father was a coal miner, he became interested in politics at the age of 15 during Arch Moore’s gubernatorial campaign. Since then he worked on several campaigns before running for Board of Supervisors in Hanover County in 1991, State Senate in 1995 and Lieutenant Governor in 2005. Bolling’s responsibilities as Lt. Governor include presiding over the Senate, succeeding the governor, sitting on boards and commission across the state and setting his own legislative agenda because he is the highest elected Republican in the state. In addition, he works hard to get members of his own party elected by attending many fundraisers. Currently, Lt. Governor Bolling is working on a program called 100 Ideas for the Future of Virginia. In this program he is traveling the state to town hall meeting asking Virginians what are the most pressing issues facing the Commonwealth. Over the next year he will visit more than 100 locations talking with citizens.
          Following the Lieutenant Governor, the CLP walked back to the General Assembly Building. We were joined by Sorensen graduates Felix Sarfo-Kantanka and Steven Gould, both of whom work in the Governor’s Policy Office. Felix Sarfo-Kantanka works in public safety and commonwealth preparedness, while Steven Gould works in commerce and trade, technology and agriculture and forestry. They lay to rest many misconceptions about their jobs. While many people believe that the busiest time of year in Virginia politics is during session, for the Governor’s Policy Office it is the 30 days after session that is most stressful. They also observed that policy and politics work hand-in-hand in most cases, but they must think politically, not act politically. We furthered our discussion into many different topics such as the Chip alert, Virginia Tech shooting and one verses two-term governors.
          After an exhausting but exciting day in the Capital, we had a delicious dinner at Capital Ale House before checking into our hotels for the night. Tomorrow it’s off to Norfolk!

—Emily V. Webb, Virginia Tech

THIS JUST IN: Graduates of the Sorensen Institute's High School Leaders Program were out in front at the American Legion's Boys State this year.

Of the 800 boys who attended this year's conference at Liberty University in Lynchburg, an exemplary 16 were chosen as finalists to represent Virginia at Boys Nation. Of those final 16, three were graduates of the High School Leaders Program Class of 2006: Paul Blair, Nicolas O'Boyle, and Grant Johnson.

And Paul Blair made the final cut and was selected as one of only two Virginians to attend Boys Nation. Way to go guys!

Preston Bryant, the Secretary of Natural Resources for Virginia, joined Coy Barefoot on "Charlottesville—Right Now!" on Tuesday to discuss the future of historic Fort Monroe in Hampton (left, photo courtesy Wikipedia), which reverts to Virginia in 2011. Secretary Bryant is Chair of the Fort Monroe Authority that is charged with overseeing the clean-up of the over-500-acre site and any future development. The Authority, under Governor Kaine's direction, made news recently when it announced that the future of Fort Monroe should respect the magnificent history of the site, preserve public access, yet find a way to make it financially self-sustaining, which will likely involve a great investment by private-sector developers.