July 13, 2020: Article first published. January 23, 2023: Republished with new introduction (see italics below).
January 24, 2020, Samantha Hollins, assistant superintendent of VDOE’s Department of Special Education and Student Services, provided incorrect guidance on the recording of resolution meetings.
She first indicated that there is a Virginia regulation prohibiting the recording of resolution meetings.
Not true.
August 20, 2020: This article first published.
December 6, 2022: This article was updated to include this mention of Office of Civil Rights November 30, 2022, letter of findings about Fairfax County Public Schools and OCR’s resolution agreement with FCPS. OCR’s findings cite this systemic complaint and make it clear that parents should have prevailed in 2020.
This is part one of a series based on a pending systemic complaint against Fairfax County Public Schools (FCPS) and based on the Virginia Department of Education’s (VDOE) handling of the complaint.
May 8, 2020, a complaint against FCPS was submitted to the Virginia Department of Education (VDOE).
Five families and six children are listed on the complaint, which the parents asked VDOE to investigate at the systemic level.
In the three months since the complaint was submitted, VDOE and FCPS have exhibited how stacked the system is against the very children it is supposed to protect.
Struggling to obtain an Independent Educational Evaluation (IEE) in Virginia?
Below is an example of an IEE-related Letter of Findings, which the Virginia Department of Education (VDOE) issued after it found Fairfax County Public Schools (FCPS) in noncompliance.
VDOE’s Letter of Findings language can be used as guidance as you write your own state complaint in Virginia. If you live in another state, explore if your state has the same regulations as Virginia or if those regulations are in line with IDEA.
These May 5 and May 13, 2020 e-mails were obtained via a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request.
They are between Jane Strong, director of Fairfax County Public Schools’ (FCPS) Office of Special Education Procedural Support, and Samantha Hollins, assistant superintendent of the Virginia Department of Education’s (VDOE) Department of Special Education and Student Services.
Jane explores using waivers to graduate students who weren’t expected to graduate.
“Sorry this got to you and James”.
—Scott Brabrand, FCPS Superintendent.
4.21.20, Fairfax County Public School (FCPS) Superintendent Scott Brabrand emailed this apology to Donald R. Fairheart, Deputy Superintendent and Chief of Staff, Division of School Quality, Instruction, and Performance, VDOE. James is James Lane, Superintendent of the Virginia Department of Education.
His “sorry” followed an email from Alexander Cochran, Special Counsel to the Governor for Federal Affairs, Office of Governor Cuomo, to Stacey Brayboy, Director of the Virginia Office of Intergovernmental Affairs, warning about FCPS’ failures to launch.
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