It’s time to join together and stop the decline.
We all come to Fairfax County for different reasons. Whether it’s the public school system, a government job, or owning property in one of the nation’s most historically affluent counties — Fairfax County used to be a sure bet.
Unfortunately for all of us, that’s no longer the case. Public schools are in decline — and as the schools go, so goes the engine of our local economy.
Steve Knotts | Fairfax GOP
It’s time to join together and stop the decline.
We all come to Fairfax County for different reasons. Whether it’s the public school system, a government job, or owning property in one of the nation’s most historically affluent counties — Fairfax County used to be a sure bet.
Unfortunately for all of us, that’s no longer the case. Public schools are in decline — and as the schools go, so goes the engine of our local economy.
It’s no coincidence that Zillow’s top neighborhood metric is the local school rating. It’s a truth among real estate agents: home values are directly tied to the quality of public schools.
Now, SAT scores in Fairfax County are down by 27 points.
Arresting that decline will require all of us, regardless of political stripe, to demand real reform.
It’s no longer about Republicans, Democrats, and Independents. When radical ideology in schools threatens our ability to earn, save, and prosper, the historical differences between Right and Left disappear.
At this moment, it’s about commonsense, American values that raise us all up.
It’s about equality of opportunity. It’s about competition. It’s about academic achievement and securing personal wealth for you and your family — goals we all can agree on.
Ask yourself this: if your performance at work dropped by nearly 30%, would you get a raise? Would you even still have a job?
Yet members of the all-Democrat Fairfax County School Board voted a near 50% raise for themselves in June 2023.
The sad truth is they are proud of their performance. Scores have fallen off a cliff because the School Board kept the kids out of school for two years, and when they finally did come back, the focus was gender, bathrooms, and “equity” instead of achievement.
The repercussions go far beyond the school system. Whether or not you have school-aged kids, the swing away from equality and merit in the Fairfax public schools affects us all.
If the scores keep declining and parents continue to opt out of the public school system, property values are likely to follow the same trend.
After all, quality education is one of the primary reasons why parents buy homes in Fairfax. Without the school system to draw them in, we will all suffer when it’s time to sell our homes, townhouses, and apartments.
The simple fact is that the radical Democrat regime is not just bad for kids — it’s bad for everyone’s bottom line.
We in the Fairfax GOP have a plan to get our schools back on track.
We will refocus classrooms on merit-based academic achievement instead of race and gender-based ideology.
We will raise standards (academic and behavioral) to lay a foundation for students’ future success — whether that’s in college, a career, or life in general.
By so doing, we will protect your property value associated with the quality of your local schools.
To realize our vision of quality education for all, we need your support today. Please take a moment to volunteer or donate — and most of all, remember to vote for school board candidates who are truly committed to putting student achievement first.
To find all of your local reform-minded candidates, click here.
Steve Knotts is chairman of the Fairfax County Republican Committee, the Republican Party of Virginia’s largest political unit. Follow Chairman Knotts on X (Twitter): @StevenMKnotts.
