(Danville, VA) – Superintendents from both the Danville Public Schools and the Pittsylvania County Schools took center stage Wednesday morning at the Institute for Advanced Learning and Research.

Both Dr. Stanley Jones (DPS) and Dr. Mark Jones (PCPS) spoke with regional business owners at the Danville Pittsylvania County Chamber of Commerce meeting about the state of the school systems.  Technology and career-based education were on the forefront of topics when discussing both successes and challenges that they faced.

The Danville Public schools have implemented as much as a 12% raise for teachers and while they compare with the state in starting salary quickly fall behind as teachers continue to build their experience.  The city has also continued to improve attendance which has become a contributing factor when it comes to the state’s budget allotting.

The County in a similar boat is behind as much as 15% when it comes to teacher salaries, and has created several programs to help with the continued development of students with Autism.  The County schools have also reached an agreement with the town of Chatham to use the former Armory building for additional learning space as opposed to sending students with behavioral issues to a residential facility.

The school division leaders also keyed in on how the state of Virginia’s approach to funding education is skewed in favor of higher earning parts of the state, and praised the continued support of localities to bridge that gap in funding.