Current through Register Vol. 40, No. 16, March 25, 2024
A. In accordance with provisions of the
National Highway Safety Act of 1966 ( 23 USC § 401 et seq.) and §
46.2-334 of the Code of Virginia, local school boards shall determine whether
to offer a driver education program, and, if offered, whether it will be
elective or required. School divisions offering programs that comply with the
standardized program of study and regulations established by the Board of
Education and the provisions of § 22.1-205 of the Code of Virginia are
entitled to participate in the distribution of state funds for driver
education.
B. A state-approved
driver education program consists of a minimum of 36 periods of classroom
instruction and 14 periods of in-car instruction. The standardized driver
education program established by the Board of Education requires that:
1. Classroom and in-car instruction shall
follow the standardized program of study.
2. Local programs shall have the option that
classroom driver education may be taught in lieu of 36 class periods of health
education or as an elective course.
3. Superintendents and heads of private
schools must seek program approval from the Department of Education prior to
providing instruction and certify that the proposed program meets all
state-approved program requirements.
4. The length of a class period must be a
minimum of 50 minutes.
5. Students
must drive a minimum of 50 miles during the in-car phase of
instruction.
6. In-car instruction
must be limited to no more than two periods of instruction in any 24-hour
period, of which at least one must be actual driving.
7. No more than four periods of actual
driving and four periods of observation on a multiple-car-range can count
towards the 14-period in-car requirement.
8. Combination, on-street, simulation, and
multiple-car-range programs must provide at least six periods of on-street
driving and observation, four periods of multiple-car-range driving and
observation, and eight periods of simulation.
9. Only fees approved by the Board of
Education shall be collected for the laboratory phase of driver education
pursuant to the Appropriation Act.
10. Public or private schools must submit
classroom and in-car driver education teachers' driver license information for
driver record monitoring as required by § 46.2-340 of the Code of
Virginia.
11. Local school boards
must develop written policies concerning initial or continued employment of
classroom and in-car teachers who receive excessive demerit points on their
driving record.
12. Public and
private schools must provide the Department of Education with the previous
year's program data to calculate in-car basic aid reimbursement and to monitor
program compliance.
13. Classroom
and laboratory phases of the program must be offered concurrently at the same
school, or allow only a limited amount of time to elapse between classroom
completion and laboratory instruction.
14. Students who have not successfully
completed the classroom phase at one school cannot begin in-car instruction at
another school.
15. Successful
completion of a standardized end-of-course road skills assessment must be
achieved prior to the school issuing a 90-day provisional license.
§§ 22.1-16, 22.1-205 and 46.2-334 of the Code of
Virginia.
