Special Education, Virginia Department of Education: Click here for resources and information about special education services within the Commonwealth of Virginia.
Virginia Alternate Assessment Program: The Virginia Alternate Assessment Program (VAAP) is designed to evaluate the performance of students with significant cognitive disabilities in grades 3-8 and high school. Click here for information about VAAP from the Virginia Department of Education.
Special Education Ombudsman: The Virginia Department of Education has a Parent Ombudsman for Special Education, who serves as a resource to parents in non-legal special education matters. An Ombudsman is a person who serves as a designated neutral party who advocates for a fair process and provides confidential, informal assistance and support to parents, guardians, advocates, educators, and students with disabilities. Click here to contact the Parent Ombudsman.
Understanding the Differences between Individualized Education Programs (IEPs) and 504 Plans Click here.
Understanding the Applied Studies Diploma Information Click Here
Annual Resources Update for Serving Students with Sensory Disabilities: The Virginia Department of Education (VDOE) is required by the Code of Virginia, § 22.1-217.01, to annually prepare and distribute to local school boards information describing educational and other services that are available to students who are deaf, hard of hearing, or visually impaired. School boards are required to post this information on school division websites annually and to inform the parents of students who are identified as deaf, hard of hearing, or visually impaired of the availability of such services. Specifically, the law states:
“The Department of Education shall annually prepare and distribute to local school boards packets of information describing the educational and other services available through the Virginia School for the Deaf and the Blind, the Virginia Department for the Deaf and Hard-of-Hearing, and the Virginia Department for the Blind and Vision Impaired to students who are identified as deaf or hard of hearing or visually impaired. Local school boards shall annually post this information on the school division’s website and inform the parents of those students who are identified as deaf or hard of hearing or visually impaired of its availability. School boards shall ensure that packets of such information are available in an accessible format for review by parents who do not have Internet access.”
The VDOE’s Annual Resources Update for Serving Students with Sensory Disabilities is a compilation of the required guidance documents and additional resources available through the VDOE’s Sensory Disabilities webpage. Administrators and teachers may reprint VDOE’s guidance and resources to share with parents. School divisions may also provide printed copies and alternate formats in Virginia public schools and public libraries.
For questions regarding these annual resources, contact Wanda Council, Specialist for Sensory Disabilities, at (804) 750-8614 or Wanda.Council@doe.virginia.gov.
