Governor Glenn Youngkin and Education Leaders Announce Across the Board Improvement in Virginia’s Statewide Testing Scores

RICHMOND, VA – Governor Glenn Youngkin and Secretary of Education Aimee Rogstad Guidera today joined State Superintendent of Public Instruction Emily Anne Gullickson and leaders from the Virginia Board of Education and Virginia Department of Education to announce notable improvements in the Standards of Learning test results in Math and Reading in the 2024-2025 school year. The improvements are particularly noteworthy considering this year’s tests required students to demonstrate their ability to retain and apply knowledge of 30 to 40 percent more content in order to pass compared to last year’s test.

“For the last three and a half years, we have undertaken an effort to transform education in the Commonwealth of Virginia, and to end the era of lowered expectations. This year, we significantly increased the rigor of our tests and expanded the content that students are expected to master. We challenged our students, and they answered the call. Scores in reading and math improved, particularly in the grades we have been targeting as part of our ALL In Virginia campaign,” said Governor Glenn Youngkin.

Youngkin continued: “Virginia’s students are excellent, and they deserve an education system that meets their excellence and helps them succeed. Today’s results are encouraging. While there remains much work ahead to fully close our ‘honesty gap,’ we see that as we continue on our great path of raising expectations and strengthening standards, Virginia’s amazing kids will continue to grow.”

This data showcases the positive impact of the Youngkin Administration’s efforts to restore excellence in education and the ALL In VA initiative to improve attendance, accelerate literacy, and prioritize learning in Virginia classrooms grades 3-8.

“Today’s test results, along with the best-in-nation reduction in chronic absenteeism, are a testament to the power of high expectations,” said Secretary of Education Aimee Rogstad Guidera. “Virginia now has more rigorous standards, a stronger assessment system that provides more useful information, and a more effective system to support student improvement based on what the data tells us. When we use data as a flashlight to guide improvement, we can help every Virginia student navigate the path towards success.”

“The encouraging results we are releasing today are brought to you by Virginia’s dedicated teachers, instructional coaches, school leaders, engaged parents and family members, and, most of all, her outstanding students,” said State Superintendent of Public Instruction Emily Anne Gullickson. “From Virginia’s comprehensive policy levers enabling innovation and seat time flexibility, to expanding use of high-quality instructional materials and rethinking use of space and time to work for students, Virginia is moving forward together to get the job done on behalf of these kids.”

Click here to access the full set of data from the Virginia Department of Education’s website.

Click here to view the slide deck presented at today’s press event.

During their monthly meeting, the Virginia Board of Education received a deeper dive presentation, as well as taking next steps to close the ‘honesty gap’ defined as the spread between student scores on the Nation’s Report card produced by the National Center for Education Statistics and the Commonwealth’s own assessment.

The Board will also discuss the Department’s efforts to provide proven approaches, tools and resources that are available for schools that need to improve their academic outcomes and further advanced their highest performing students.

Background

Since Day One, the Youngkin Administration has worked closely with the Virginia Board of Education and Virginia Department of Education and to rectify the catastrophic learning loss Virginia students experienced after the COVID-19 school closures, and transform Virginia’s K-12 education system into one which:

Sets high expectations and supports schools and students to meet those goals;
Empowers parents to lead in their children’s education;
Focuses on transparency of school performance and accountability to student outcomes;
Goes ALL IN to accelerate learning recovery and improve attendance;
Leads the nation in innovation and opening new pathways for students;
Supports the needs of all students, with Bell-to-Bell Cell Phone-Free Education, stronger supports for students with disabilities, and investment in School Resource Officers and student safety.

All In VA invested more than $418 million dollars in school divisions to reduce chronic absenteeism, accelerate the implementation of the Virginia Literacy Act, and institute intensive tutoring to address learning loss that resulted from Covid-related school closures. In addition, the Youngkin Administration has conducted a comprehensive overhaul of Virginia’s accreditation and accountability system to ensure that parents, teachers, policymakers, and citizens across the Commonwealth know how well every school is serving every student. This new School Performance and Support Framework will provide more detailed information on school performance and clearer understanding of the areas in need of improvement than ever before available in Virginia.

Governor Glenn Youngkin announces improvement of Virginia’s statewide testing scores on August 27, 2025. Official Photo by Kaitlyn DeHarde, Office of Governor Glenn Youngkin.

Secretary Aimee Guidera delivers remarks celebrating successes of ALL In Virginia campaign on August 27, 2025. Official Photo by Kaitlyn DeHarde, Office of Governor Glenn Youngkin.

State Superintendent of Public Instruction Emily Anne Gullickson delivers remarks on improvement of Virginia’s statewide testing scores on August 27, 2025. Official Photo by Kaitlyn DeHarde, Office of Governor Glenn Youngkin.

Governor Glenn Youngkin celebrates improvements in the Standards of Learning test results in Math and Reading in the 2024-2025 school year on August 27, 2025. Official Photo by Kaitlyn DeHarde, Office of Governor Glenn Youngkin