Fairfax County Public Schools (FCPS) is offering in-person, in-school instruction for four days a week.
The Problem: Parents of students who need such an option have not had it offered to them—and many don’t even know the option exists.
Contact Your State Education Agency; It Is Required To Request Input On Its Waiver Requests
Contact your state education agency (SEA).
If it is seeking a waiver from the United Stated Department of Education (USDOE), it is required to give the public notice and a reasonable time for it to comment.
February 22, 2021, USDOE issued a letter inviting states to request waivers for the 2020-21 school year “of the accountability and school identification requirements in the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (ESEA).”
From “Just Words” to Lexia, FCPS Continued Its One-Size-Fits-All Approach to Addressing Dyslexia
Fairfax County Public Schools (FCPS) did it again.
It used a one-size-fits-all approach to addressing the needs of students who struggle with reading.
In 2020, Lexia gave FCPS 999,999 licenses for its programs.
FCPS’ response?
The FCPS Office of Special Education Instruction (OSEI) recommended Lexia for all students who were using “Just Words” prior to Governor Ralph Northam’s March 23, 2020 executive order calling for the cessation of in-person instruction.
FOIA Release: Fairfax County Public Schools’ 9.21.20 Special Education Chair Meetings
The documents and videos in this article relate to the morning and afternoon sessions of Fairfax County Public Schools’ (FCPS) 9.21.20 Special Education Chair Meeting.
Both meetings cover the following topics:
FCPS Online Campus
Data Collection
Sharing Successes
Career and Transition Services
Recovery Services
Due Process & Eligibility and SEA-STARS
OSEI Updates
Related Services
Today: $81 Billion of $122 Billion Available; Contact Your School Division, Ask How It Will Use The Funds
Today, $81 billion of the $122 billion in funding from the American Rescue Plan (ARP) Act of 2021 and the Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief (ESSER) fund will be available to all states, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico. President Biden will make this announcement later today, at the National Safe School Reopening Summit that is being hosted by the U.S. Department of Education.
Contact Your School Division
Within 30 days of receiving ARP ESSER funds, the local education agency (LEA) is required to seek input from the community in advance of making its plan publicly available.
FERPA Violation: Longfellow Middle School Students’ Privacy Violated
Fairfax County Public Schools (FCPS) is again guilty of violating the privacy of its students.
Although FCPS struggles with consistency in many arenas, repeat violations of privacy is not one of them.
$200,000+ = What Fairfax County Public Schools Paid to be Told the Program it Pushed is Inappropriate for Students with Dyslexia
$65,370.60 = The amount law firm Blankingship & Keith invoiced Fairfax County Public Schools between November 22, 2019, and August 27, 2020.
The result? The Virginia hearing officer ruled the the program “Just Words” is inappropriate for a student with Dyslexia, which was the program FCPS proposed for the student on which the due process hearing was focused.
Two months = The amount of time that passed before Blankingship & Keith started invoicing FCPS for another hearing related to “Just Words” not being appropriate for a student with Dyslexia.
Student Records—Confidentiality: Regulations and Case Law Cited by School Divisions, Lawyers and State Education Agencies
This article focuses on student records—confidentiality regulations and case law that school divisions, school division lawyers, hearing officers, and state education agencies use in documents they issue.
It will be updated as new information is obtained.