Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: THURSDAY, June 8, 1995 TAG: 9506080068
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: C-3 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: JOEL TURNER STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Long
Jordahl is a college professor who believes there should be fewer tests in schools. He said Virginia's schools are using Japanese stress methods of education that put so much pressure on students that they can't learn.
Too many tests are hurting the mental health of students and teachers and causing some students to attempt suicide, Jordahl said.
The teaching methodology in Virginia schools will be one of his first targets if he wins his campaign for the Cave Spring District seat on the School Board.
Jordahl said Wednesday that he will oppose Carol White, a school volunteer who earlier entered the race to succeed Maurice "Buck" Mitchell, who will not run.
Jordahl, a professor of medical and biomedical ethics at the College of Health Sciences, blames the state Department of Education and what he describes as a small group of educational elitists in Richmond for the misguided teaching methodology.
"My quarrel is not with the local schools," he said. "My quarrel is with a small machine that controls education in the state."
Jordahl, 61, said he also is running because he wants to open up the school board process and make it more responsive to the community and parents.
"It has always been a closed shop in Virginia. It has been an outrage," he said. "Parents have not been allowed to ask questions in some cases."
Jordahl is a former chairman of the department of philosophy and religion at Roanoke College. He also was the first provost and chief administrative officer of Virginia College, a Roanoke Valley school that specializes in data processing and computer science.
In their zeal for high standards and desire to send everyone to college, he said, educational elitists have fallen into a trap and assume every student is going to Harvard.
Teachers don't have time to teach because they must administer so many standardized tests and comply with so many regulations, he said.
Jordahl favors higher salaries for county teachers, saying the county has not been spending enough on education. The schools don't have enough computers, he said.
He has found that sentiment is about evenly divided on a proposal for a new Cave Spring High School. Some parents favor a large, new school, he said, but others would like to see two smaller high schools, with Hidden Valley Junior High being converted to a high school.
Jordahl said he is willing to support the community's decision. But he will oppose any effort by the state Department of Education to dictate the choice. He said he also opposes the use of consultants and contractors from Richmond in the school-building process.
Jordahl, who also is a part-time minister for a small Lutheran congregation, said he agrees with the Christian Coalition on some issues, but he is not affiliated with the organization.
He has written a book on family-life education based on research in Virginia schools. He found that teen pregnancies and sexually transmitted diseases increased after some family-life programs began.
But he said this is not a major issue in his campaign. The sex-education programs at some schools are excellent, but others make the problem worse, he said.
Jordahl said he does not support vouchers and the use of public funds to help pay students' private-school tuition. Charter schools might have merit, he said, but he does not believe they are right for Virginia.
VERN TRUMAN JORDAHL
Cave Spring District
Age: 61.
Home state: Ohio.
Education: Bachelor of arts degree from Luther College, Decorah, Iowa.; master of arts from Oxford University in England; doctorate from Durham University in England. Additional graduate work at several other universities, including the University of Basel in Switzerland.
Professional: Professor of medical and biomedical ethics at the College of Health Sciences; first provost and chief administrative officer of Virginia College; former chairman of the Department of Philosophy and Religion at Roanoke College; former teacher at McGill University in Canada, Millikin University in Illinois and Mackinac College in Michigan.
Community: Former president of the American Parent Association of Virginia.
Family: His wife, Patricia, is chairman of the Foreign Languages Department at Roanoke College; his daughter, Sarah Joy, is a student at Cave Spring High School.
Quote: "Virginia has a government-controlled education system. We no longer have a public education system with input from parents and the public. We have a tight education machine that is run by a small group of people in Richmond."
by CNB