Although Delegate John McGuire (R-Henrico) has his new part-time profession of a member of the General Assembly highlighted on the license plate of his big, blue Ford Raptor pickup truck, the freshman legislator has noticed that while there are over 200 personalized plates available from the Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV), one design, possibly among many, has been missing. Known as someone who has provided simple solutions to large problems in the past – saving a Goochland drive-in theater and averting a $100 million loss from the federal government – he tasked himself with helping Virginians honor their educators more.
The former Navy SEAL reminds people constantly that there are “many ways to serve,” which includes the thousands of teachers across the Commonwealth who will be highlighted through a specialized license plate to memorialize educators and what they do for Virginia students.
“I think about our teachers and they do a lot to prepare our young people for life,” Delegate McGuire said in a report from WAVY. “I think that teachers deserve a shout out and it’s a step in the right direction of better supporting our teachers.”
The freshman Republican has teamed up with some of his constituents at Louisa County Public Schools to design a “school bus yellow” license plate, with an apple, a ruler, and the words “Virginia Loves Teachers” on it.
Proposed plate design
Earlier this year, the General Assembly approved a three percent raise in teacher pay that will go into effect in July 2019, but McGuire said that “teachers don’t exactly do it for the money.”
“I mean, we’ve given them several pay raises in the General Assembly over the last 5 years, but they do it because they love our students,” he said.
McGuire, who said he is witnessing “100 percent excitement” about the license plate project, said it’s a small way to say “thank you” to all of Virginia’s educators.
“There’s even parents, parents who have a favorite teacher who’s taken care of their children, they say they want to get one of those license plates,” he added.
The project needs at least 450 people to commit to buying the plates before it is authorized by the DMV. At $10 per license plate, McGuire says about 100 people have pre-registered for the plates as the January 8 deadline to sign up is less than two weeks away.