Jim Dyke Joins Former Virginia Gov. Doug Wilder on Radio Show Discussing Education, Segregation

On April 12, 2023, McGuireWoods Consulting Senior Advisor James Dyke appeared on The Jeff Katz Show, with guest host former Virginia Gov. Doug Wilder discussing the importance of education in Virginia. Jim, the former Secretary of Education from 1990 to 1994 in the Wilder Administration, noted the role he played in establishing new educational policy that evolved into the state’s Standards of Learning.

Dyke noted that when they came into office, the administration decided “We need to measure whether the students are able to do what they went to school to learn about – read, write and think and make critical decisions.

“We need to continue to assess students on a periodic basis to make sure that they have the skills necessary to be fully functional in the global economy,” he added. “We need to continue to maintain high standards.”

Wilder and Dyke also discussed the need for Virginia to confront its racial history to continue its strong economic performance. “We need to tell the whole history of Virginia -- from the Constitution of 1901 to the Constitution of 1970, segregation was the law of the land in Virginia,” Dyke said. “When it was challenged in the Supreme Court, Virginia adopted massive resistance.

“We were finally able to end massive resistance, but the vestiges of segregation are still with us today. Systemic racism has significant consequences,” Dyke said. “You have to stand up and fight for what is right. If the thing is right, the time is right.”