× Thanks for reading! Log in to continue. Enjoy more articles by logging in or creating a free account. No credit card required. Log in Sign up {{featured_button_text}}

Richmond Public Schools administrators and School Board members say they are disappointed that Mayor Dwight C. Jones used altered images of district advocates to underscore his points about school funding during his annual State of the City speech Thursday.

The original photo taken at a City Council meeting last month shows a group of mostly district teachers holding aloft signs that say, “SUPPORT OUR SCHOOLS.” In two modified pictures shown Thursday, the signs have been altered to say, “CUT OUR SERVICES” and “RAISE OUR TAXES.”

“We need to honor the fact that our citizens are exercising their rights,” said 7th District School Board member Donald Coleman. “I don’t see how this should have happened. I mean, wow. I just don’t get it.”

The images played on a screen behind Jones as he rolled out plans to seek a public vote in November on raising real estate tax rates for school funding.

“We’ve all seen this image,” Jones said of the original photo, which was taken by his press secretary, Tammy D. Hawley.

Switching to the others, which are labeled as altered, Jones continued: “But we probably won’t see an image like this ... or this. ... And that’s what we need to talk about.”