School board reviews compliance steps after April 8 DEI resolution; staff cite federal deadlines and $74 million at risk

Cheryl Woodhouse, the school system's chief of staff, presented a compliance update to the Virginia Beach City School Board on May 20 describing actions taken after an April 8 board resolution that directed the superintendent to work with counsel and staff to comply with federal guidance on nondiscrimination.

Woodhouse told the board the division was responding to a series of federal and state communications: a Jan. 29 executive order referenced in the presentation, a Feb. 14 "Dear Colleague" letter from the U.S. Department of Education's Office for Civil Rights, a Feb. 28 U.S. Department of Education FAQ document, and an April 3 letter from the Virginia Department of Education. She said the first required certification (Title VI and Students for Fair Admissions v. Harvard materials) was due to the state April 24 and the second (FERPA/PPRA-related certification) was due April 29. "The VDOE amended the due date for certification under Title 6 and SFA FFFA versus Harvard to April 24," she said, and "Doctor Robertson will be…