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But what about if you get the opportunity to speak out on something that can positively affect your school? Sometimes rocking the boat can lead to a needed course correction.

I began to speak up about things I felt were important about five years ago, when earnest debate began between Staunton’s City Council and School Board about what should be done to improve our aging high school, then called Robert E. Lee. The ideas ranged from modest renovations to an entirely new school on a new site. The potential for a new building, in addition to a shorter commute, was one of the main reasons I took a position with Staunton City Schools. But, as I started attending City Council meetings, I worried that the need for a new school was being lost in the conversation.

I heard comments at those meetings like “I went there and I turned out fine” and “The building’s not that bad.” My daily experience, however, was poor ventilation, spotty air conditioning and heat, and tiny hallways. I thought the need for a new building was self-evident to anyone who had stepped into Robert E. Lee, but it became clear that a lot of speakers during these meetings never went beyond the auditorium or gym which, in their defense, were in decent shape. I rarely got members of the general public in my classroom, with its lack of hot water and leaking ceilings.

Someone needed to tell that story, so I decided to speak.

Getting up to the podium to speak during a public meeting is a nerve-wracking experience. It still gives me butterflies. The irony that my day job is to get up and speak to groups of people isn’t lost on me. But there’s power in finding out you have something to say, and once you start, people will probably listen.

The time limit for comments was five minutes, so I had to pare down my usual rambling, tangent-filled speaking style. I didn’t just want to read something word for word though, so I developed an outline and practiced getting through my message in the allotted time while also attempting to use my normal speech patterns. I found planning to be key. Some people can get up at meetings and speak off the cuff when they feel moved to, but that’s a little too “seat of your pants” for my taste. So, I spoke at one meeting, then I showed a PowerPoint at the next. Yes, most people only speak during public comments but check ahead of time with your local government, they can probably accommodate you if you’d like to present some form of media. After that I shared the presentation with anyone I could. I went to work sessions to hear debate and emailed my thoughts directly to Council members when I had something to say I thought wouldn’t fit in the limited time frame available during Matters from the Public. Did it move the needle? Honestly, I’ll never know, but in the fall of 2020 we opened the new Staunton High School, where I continue to teach and one day my children will attend. We didn’t get a new building on a new site. The aforementioned gym and auditorium, because they were in decent enough shape, were saved and the new school was built where the old one was. Today, the new school is something the whole town can truly be proud of.

One thing, though, that never seems to change is the lack of adequate school funding. In my 15 years working in the Virginia public school system, I’ve never seen a budget that I wouldn’t consider bare bones or the absolute minimum. This past January, it became clear that in addition to the uncertainty of the state budget, which remained unfinished as I wrote this, the funding Staunton City Schools would be requesting from the city would probably not match the level of funding the city was willing to give. With state level funding not yet determined, the best option to secure the funding students and educators needed in Staunton was to petition the city for the additional requested money. But this time, the voices calling for change wouldn’t just be educators, but families, students, and other community members, as well. Yard signs went up around town, City Council meetings were flooded with parents, educators, and students, and there was even a “bake sale” held one Saturday to raise awareness of the need for increased government funding, rather than forcing schools to fundraise for themselves.

It was the best show of community engagement I’ve seen since I’ve lived in Staunton, and it worked. The City Council and the School Board were able to come to a compromise that fully funded the district for fiscal year 2022-23. In addition, I was inspired by the number of community members that realized this wasn’t a “one-and-done” issue. This was clearing a hurdle, but there are several more (getting rid of the state level support cap comes to mind) to go. While that might seem discouraging, I look at it as an opportunity to take the lessons we learned this year and carry them into the future.

So, while it might seem daunting, I encourage all VEA members to speak out on the issues that matter to you, be it through an email to an elected official, in person at a government meeting, or in another format that plays to your strengths. It might be just you at first, but you’ll probably pick up some supporters along the way. I know I did.

Some tips I’ve picked up over the years:

• If you wait until you’re 100 percent comfortable using your voice you never will.
• Have faith in yourself. Students listen to you all day; others will too.
• Use email and social media in a personal capacity. We all have so many accounts these days. Be conscious of which account you’re logged into when you make that post or send that email. With that said, pretty much any medium these days can be used for effective communication and change.
• Advocacy is a marathon, not a sprint. Getting your issue over the finish line will probably take more than one email or attendance at one meeting.
• Don’t reinvent the wheel. If no one in your community outside your local association is doing the work, blaze a trail, but chances are there’s an infrastructure you can already tap into. Team efforts always go further.

Lawrence, Vice President of the Staunton Education Association, is an ecology and astronomy teacher at Staunton High School.