Bluefield Daily Telegraph
— RICHMOND, Va. (AP) — Hundreds of educators, schoolchildren and supporters gathered at the state Capitol to protest proposed budget cuts for public schools. Speakers at Saturday’s rally said the cuts will lead to bigger classes, teacher layoffs and an inability to replace aging equipment and school buses. Protesters carried signs with messages like “Cuts hurt kids” and “You can’t spell ‘governor’ without a teacher.” Gov. Bob McDonnell proposed cutting $731 million from public elementary and secondary schools, but legislators have recommended somewhat smaller cuts. McDonnell says public safety and colleges already have been cut so much that the only places left for additional reductions were health care and schools.
