Virginia's Fairfax, Loudoun County School Districts Spend Millions, but the Kids Still Can't Read

The school districts of Fairfax County and Loudoun County, two of Virginia's most affluent and populated districts, have a serious problem. The tony school districts spend millions of dollars on administrators, DEI programming, and lawsuits, but their student bodies are failing in the basics of reading, writing, and arithmetic.

This news was not revealed by these school districts, but by a parent. For the past four years, Stephanie Lundquist-Arora studied the district budgets, filed FOIA requests to gain the answers needed, and then published these depressing results.

Last week, the Virginia Department of Education released the results of the state’s Standards of Learning assessments. The results from two of Virginia’s most affluent counties are troubling. Students in Fairfax County Public Schools and Loudoun County Public Schools failed their SOL assessments at rates that should concern parents, taxpayers, and district leaders.

This published chart from the Virginia Department of Education School Quality Profiles tells the tale.

2025-2026 SOL Failure Rates in Fairfax and Loudoun Counties

Note: In  Fairfax County Public Schools (FCPS), 41.1 percent of students are classified as economically disadvantaged; in Loudoun County Public Schools (LCPS), 24.7 percent are classified as economically disadvantaged.

The contrast between overall student performance and the performance of economically disadvantaged students is particularly disconcerting. In both school divisions, economically disadvantaged students were roughly twice as likely to fail their reading, math, and science SOL assessments as the overall student population.

These results should prompt a serious examination of whether Fairfax and Loudoun are getting sufficient academic returns on their substantial education spending.

That question is particularly important because both school divisions have faced budget pressures even as their enrollments have declined and their budgets have continued to grow. When student enrollment falls but expenditures continue to rise, district leaders should be able to clearly demonstrate where the additional money is going—and, more importantly, whether it is improving student outcomes.

Both Fairfax and Loudoun appear to have dropped the ball on the very reason one chooses to pay property taxes in a certain district: for its children to receive a quality education. 

However, instead of focusing on educational quality AND results - i.e., students matriculate with the ability to read, spell, and do calculations equivalent to their grade level - FCPS and LCPS are hyper-focused on creating activism, controversy, and focusing on divisive, and ultimately costly endeavors, such as the minimization of the historic impact of 9/11, warning teachers with instructions on what and what not to do, and avoiding the creation of an emotionally stressful learning environment.

Former Virginia Attorney General Jason Miyares (R) had thoughts:

Fairfax County Public Schools ordered teachers to “leverage a critical lens” when discussing 9/11.  

If they want to provide the proper “critical lens” on 9/11, explain to students the horror of watching 3,000 fellow Americans being executed on live television for the sole crime of being American—including the loved ones of many of your students.  Never Forget. 

Fairfax County Public Schools ordered teachers to “leverage a critical lens” when discussing 9/11.

If they want to provide the proper “critical lens” on 9/11, explain to students the horror of watching 3,000 fellow Americans being executed on live television for the sole crime… pic.twitter.com/Cxwauji6Da

— Jason Miyares (@JasonMiyaresVA) September 11, 2026

...or the FCPS cover-up of a 19-year-old illegal alien placed at Fairfax High School as a student, who ended up being tried and convicted for groping nine girls at the school. And then there are the Loudoun County High School boys who spoke out against the transgender bathroom policy and were targeted and punished because of it.

Here's the most egregious part. FCPS Superintendent Michelle Reid makes $445,353 annually, and can only be removed by the school board. Of course, this school board is overwhelmingly Democrat and Left. No surprise there.

Since 2020, FCPS alone has paid $56 million in legal fees defending the above controversies and more in court. That translates to $12 million a year defending lawsuits, and nothing else. 

LCPS litigation numbers are mounting as well, with a former teacher waging a $2.3 million lawsuit against the district for wrongful termination, and a judge has ruled that LCPS should be on the hook for the $659,000 legal bill of its former superintendent, Scott A. Ziegler, who oversaw much of the controversies which have afflicted this district. 

Parents and taxpayers should demand more than annual budget increases and promises of additional resources. They should demand measurable academic results. If district leaders want to ask taxpayers for more money, they should first be prepared to explain why existing resources, including hundreds of millions of dollars devoted to central administration, are not producing better outcomes for the students who need help most.

Both school boards elect their members, and the next set of elections are in 2027. It might behoove concerned citizens in Fairfax and Loudoun counties to find sound, conservative, and fiscally conscious candidates to run, in order to demand fiscal responsibility and to overhaul the current boards.

Editor's Note: President Trump is fighting to ensure America's kids get the education they deserve.

Help us fight back against Big Government waste and restore power to the states. Join RedState VIP and use promo code FIGHT to receive 60% off your membership.