Good morning, RVA! It's 70 °F, but today's highs top out in the upper 80s and NBC12's Andrew Freiden says the humidity should drop in a pleasant way later this morning. Hot but not an armpit! I'm looking forward to it!
Water cooler
The ACLU of Virginia puts it well, "DISAPPOINTING: The Hanover County School Board voted 5-2 to adopt its bathroom/locker room policy that would make trans and non-binary students jump through hoops simply to exist in schools. To trans and nonbinary students in Hanover: You are LOVED. We are here for you." State Senator Hashmi points out that the Virginia Department of Education already has model policies on the books for this sort of thing and "call[s] upon Youngkin's VODE team to follow through on protecting trans children." To quote a bit from that VDOE model policy document Hashmi referenced: "All students are entitled to have access to restrooms, locker rooms, and changing facilities that are sanitary, safe, and adequate, so that they can comfortably and fully engage in their school programs and activities...Any accommodations offered should be non-stigmatizing and minimize lost instructional time...It can be emotionally harmful for a transgender student to be questioned regarding the use of restrooms and facilities." I'm sure the Hanover County School Board feels like their new policy—which requires families to submit special requests so their students can go pee in a bathroom—adheres to the letter of this policy, but it certainly violates the spirit of it. I don't hold a lot of hope that the Governor or his VDOE will do anything about this and expect to read a quote soon along the lines of how localities know best for their citizens (but that only applies when the localities agree with the current administration, of course).
Wyatt Gordon at Greater Greater Washington reports on a potential new scooter ordinance in Richmond. Remember when all we talked about was the City's extended stumble towards legalizing scooters? Simpler times! Gordon says City staff will ask Council to extend scooter hours from 9:00 PM to 1:00 AM (bringing it in line with bus service) and to "require scooter companies to maintain at least 20% of their fleet south of the James River." You can find a presentation the City's Office of Equitable Transit and Mobility gave to Council's Land Use, Housing and Transportation committee about the current scooter program here. All of this sounds great to me. When Bolt left Richmond's scooter market a couple weeks ago, it turned the entire Southside into a micromobility desert, with just two bike share stations to cover a ton of square miles and neighborhoods. We'll have to wait until Council returns from summer recess to see what the actual ordinance looks like, how Council feels about it, and how Scooter companies will respond. Regardless, I'm excited to write about scooters again!
The Richmond Times-Dispatch's Jessica Nocera reports that RPS teacher of the year, Kiara Thompson (who teaches at Boushall Middle School) has advanced to Region 1 Teacher of the Year. That means Thompson is now one of just eight educators left in the running for 2023 Virginia Teacher of the Year. Rodney Robinson (2019 National Teacher of the Year) posted this great picture from the announcement and points out that two National Teachers of the Year (Superintendent Kamras won the title back in 2005), two Virginia Teachers of the Year, and four Region 1 Teachers of the Year all work for Richmond Public Schools. Congratulations, Kiara, and good work, RPS team!
The Washington Post has a nice article profiling Sesha Joi Moon and Enjoli Moon, the two sisters behind the JXN Project. Did you know Nancy Pelosi recently named Sesha Joi Moon as the Director of the House of Representatives Office of Diversity and Inclusion?? Anyway, give the WaPo piece a read for some good background on the JXN Project, Jackson Ward itself, and the work the two sisters are doing to celebrate and honor the neighborhood.
This morning's patron longread
Off the East Coast, a Massive Network of Wind Turbines Is Coming—Along With New Risks for Migrating Birds
Submitted by Patron Beth. Two things about this article from Audubon! First, its fun to read something not strictly bird-related but stuffed full of bird facts whenever possible. It's like how I constantly jam transportation into whatever I happen to be talking about. Second, this has to be one of the most even-keeled things I've read about a potentially controversial topic.
And so the Northern Gannet, and other bird species, are in an unfortunate bind: They are seriously threatened by climate change, but offshore wind—one of the most aggressively sought correctives—may prove deadly to them, too. Scientists understand the potential impacts of offshore wind on Northern Gannets better than they do for many other marine animals thanks to research on the species’ interactions with existing wind farms in Europe. They know the technology comes at a cost. But it’s a trade-off many are willing to make. “Global warming is coming at us so fast we don’t have a choice but to adopt offshore wind,” says wildlife biologist Shilo Felton, field manager for Audubon’s Clean Energy Initiative. “This isn’t even as simple as ‘damned if you do, damned if you don’t.’ Gannets are certainly damned if we don’t.”
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