Virginia students saw some of the steepest drops in the country on reading and math scores during the pandemic — and a new national education report shows they're basically unchanged two years later.

Why it matters: Reading scores are continuing to slip nationwide and in Virginia despite efforts to reverse the decline, and the gap between high- and low-achieving students is also widening.

By the numbers: In Virginia, 42% of fourth graders scored "below Basic" in reading on a decades-old exam the National Assessment of Educational Progress, known as the Nation's Report Card.

• 40% of fourth graders were proficient or advanced in reading.
• Among Virginia's eighth graders, 34% scored "below Basic" in reading, but just 33% were proficient or advanced.
• In math, 34% of fourth graders and 37% of eighth graders in Virginia scored "below Basic."

In NAEP scorecard terms, Virginia fourth graders' reading scores were unchanged from 2022 and their math scores up by two points on the 500-point scale.

• Eighth graders dropped four points in both math and reading.

Yes, but: Across the board, Virginia's students' scores are "not significantly different" from the national average.

Last week, Gov. Youngkin noted that the NAEP tests were administered early last year, before school districts had a chance to access the $418 million he set aside for high-intensity tutoring and combatting chronic absenteeism, the Times-Dispatch reported.

The big picture: Declines in student performance date back about a decade, but student performance worsened during the nearly two years of remote learning and other COVID disruptions.

Threat level: The results show widening gaps since 2022 between higher- and lower-performing eighth graders.

• "Higher performers regained ground lost and their lower-performing peers continued to decline or show no notable progress," the National Center for Education Statistics said in a news release.

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Black Iris Social Club in the Arts District is now accepting Bitcoin and other digital asset payments.

Why it matters: The move makes it among the first Richmond venues to accept digital currency as payments, according to a spokesperson.

The big picture: Black Iris is a Broad Street art gallery and music venue turned private social club, coworking space and cigar lounge.

• The space has been a fixture in the Arts District for more than a decade and continues to host open-to-the-public music and art shows, in addition to its members-only offerings.
• To execute the cryptocurrency initiative, the social club is partnering with the Virginia Blockchain Council, which will also host regular educational workshops at the space.

Fun fact: The Virginia Blockchain Council was inspired by Pubkey in Manhattan, which describes itself as a dive bar for Bitcoiners (it also accepts cash and credit cards).

Zoom in: For now at Black Iris, digital assets can only be used to purchase Black Iris memberships, which start at a $275 initiation fee and $37 a month thereafter, per their website.

• They're hoping to expand the usage to include drinks, tickets and other items once it's integrated with their point-of-sale system.

What's next: The next crypto-learning event at Black Iris is Tuesday, Feb. 18 at 6pm.

• The event is free, so no need to bring your Bitcoins to this one.

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⏸️ Richmond paused applications for its water crisis recovery fund at around 11:30am yesterday saying it "expects" that 100% of the money is fully committed. (Axios)

• More than 2,200 applications were submitted between when the process opened on Friday around 10am and the pause, per the city.

🚗 A program created in 2022 that offers Richmonders free rides to work is expanding by June to allow 60 people to use it. Currently, 50 do. (The Richmonder)

• Most participants are public housing residents and mothers.

📪 A new audit of Richmond's main postal facility in Sandston, which last year had the slowest on-time delivery rate in the county, found around 19% of scheduled employees don't show up for work. (Times-Dispatch)

🏫 VCU bought the acre of land that the Rite Aid at Broad and Belvidere sits on for $4.6 million, giving them all four corners of that intersection. (BizSense)

The Krispy Kreme in Chesterfield is one of a handful of locations in the country testing out the doughnut chain's new flavors.

Why it matters: The shop at 7130 Tim Price Way has all nine of the new or seasonal doughnut flavors being tested.

The big picture: The Charlotte-based doughnut chain rolled out its menu expansion test in late January in select cities in the South, including Richmond, Charlottesville and Norfolk.

• The flavors are ones fans have asked for, or were previously available for a limited time.

The new doughnuts are:

• New York Cheesecake OREO Cookies and Kreme
• Cinnamon SwirlBiscoff Cookie Butter Kreme
• Original Glazed Cake
• Cinnamon Apple Filled
• Maple Iced
• Black & White Chocolate Chip
• Chocolate Caramel Kreme

The bottom line: If you're out and about near Chippenham and Midlothian, you should pop in and try one to make doughnut lovers in other cities jealous.

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We're onto Round 2 of the Richmond coffee shop showdown, where readers pick the best coffee spot in the city.

Catch up quick: In Round 1, we said goodbye to Black Hand, Urban Hang Suite, Reviresco, Riverbend, Ironclad, Cafe Zata, Sefton and Grit.

• Paix and Reviresco were our closest neck-and-neck matchup.

The intrigue: We're terrified for the Blanchard's-Crossroads fight.

The verdict: Vote here by 3pm today and keep a look out for the winners in tomorrow's newsletter.