Virginia Administrative Code
Title 8 - EDUCATION
Agency 20 - STATE BOARD OF EDUCATION
Chapter 81 - REGULATIONS GOVERNING SPECIAL EDUCATION PROGRAMS FOR CHILDREN WITH DISABILITIES IN VIRGINIA
Part III - Responsibilities of Local School Divisions and State-Operated Programs
Section 8VAC20-81-40 - Special education staffing requirements
Universal Citation: 8 VA Admin Code 20-81-40
Current through Register Vol. 40, No. 16, March 25, 2024
A. School age programs. The following specifies the staffing patterns for special education services for school age (five to 21, inclusive) children, in addition to the Standards of Quality (§ 22.1.253.13:2 of the Code of Virginia) and Regulations Establishing Standards for Accrediting Public Schools in Virginia (8VAC20-131-240 ).
1. Staffing shall be in accordance with the
requirements of
8VAC20-81-340 in the following
settings.
a. Students with disabilities shall
be instructed with students without disabilities in general education settings
and classrooms, as appropriate, and in accordance with the Individualized
Education Program (IEP). The service level, Level I or II, is based on the
amount of time the student receives special education.
b. When children with disabilities are
removed from the general education setting and classroom to provide
instruction, special education and related services, they may receive services
with children with the same disability or with children with different
disabilities.
2.
Personnel assignment.
a. Each student shall
receive special education services from special education personnel assigned in
accordance with the Virginia Licensure Regulations for School Personnel
(8VAC20-22).
b. Special education
teachers who are the teachers of record shall be highly qualified.
c. General education qualified personnel who
are knowledgeable about the students and their special education, may implement
special education services in collaboration with special education
personnel.
d. Special education
services include those services provided directly to the student and those
provided indirectly.
3.
Caseload standards.
a. The maximum
instructional caseloads for special education teachers and speech-language
pathologists, for which public schools receive state funds in accordance with
the Virginia Appropriation Act are listed in
8VAC20-81-340. Special education
services for children with visual impairment are established, maintained, and
operated jointly by the local school board and the Virginia Department for the
Blind and Vision Impaired.
b. If
children with disabilities in a single building receive academic content area
instruction from multiple special education teachers, the teachers' caseloads
shall be determined by using a building average.
(1) A building average is computed by
dividing the total weights (found in
8VAC20-81-340 ) for all children
served in this fashion by the number of special education teachers providing
services. Any itinerant teacher shall be counted according to the amount of
time the teacher spends in the school. Subdivision 3 d of this subsection
applies for any teacher assigned to administrative duties or to providing
services to children who do not have disabilities.
(2) The building average shall not exceed 20
points if services are provided to students receiving Level I services and to
children receiving Level II services. The building average shall not exceed 24
points if services are provided only to children receiving Level I
services.
(3) No more than 14
children shall be assigned to a single class period if there are similar
achievement levels and one subject area and level are taught. No more than 10
students shall be assigned to a single class period when there are varying
achievement levels.
c.
Special education personnel may also be assigned to serve children who are not
eligible for special education and related services under this chapter, as long
as special education personnel hold appropriate licenses and endorsements for
such assignments.
d. When special
education personnel are assigned to provide services for children who do not
have a disability under this chapter or are assigned to administrative duties,
a reduction in the caseload specified in the Virginia Appropriation Act shall
be made in proportion to the percentage of school time on such assignment.
(1) This provision does not apply when
special education and related services are provided in a general education
class, based on the goals of the IEP of at least one child in that classroom,
and children without disabilities incidentally benefit from such
services.
(2) When special
education personnel provide services in a general education classroom based on
the IEP goals of at least one child in that classroom, the special education
caseloads do not include children with disabilities who incidentally benefit
from such services.
B. Staffing for early childhood special education.
1. Children of preschool ages (two
to five, inclusive) who are eligible for special education receive early
childhood special education. The amount of services is determined by the
child's individualized education program (IEP) team. A schedule comparable in
length to school age students shall be made available if determined appropriate
by the IEP team.
2. Staffing
requirements.
a. Children receiving early
childhood special education services may receive services together with other
preschool-aged children with the same or with different disabilities.
b. Each student shall receive special
education services from special education personnel assigned in accordance with
the Virginia Licensure Regulations for School Personnel (8VAC20-22).
c. The maximum special education caseloads,
with and without paraprofessionals, are set and funded in the Virginia
Appropriation Act. See
8VAC20-81-340 for the funded
caseloads. Special education services for children with visual impairment are
established, maintained, and operated jointly by the local school board and the
Virginia Department for the Blind and Vision Impaired.
C. Staffing for education programs in regional and local jails. Special education personnel with any special education endorsement, except early childhood special education, may provide instructional services to eligible students with disabilities incarcerated in a regional or local jail.
D. Alternative special education staffing plan. School divisions and private special education schools may offer for consideration of approval, an alternative staffing plan in accordance with Virginia Department of Education procedures. The Virginia Department of Education may grant approval for alternative staffing levels upon request from local school divisions and private special education schools seeking to implement innovative programs that are not consistent with these staffing levels.
E. Educational interpreting services.
1. The qualification requirements for
personnel providing interpreting services for children who are deaf or hard of
hearing are as follows:
a. Personnel providing
educational interpreting services for children using sign language shall:
(1) Have a valid Virginia Quality Assurance
Screening (VQAS) Level III; or
(2)
Have a passing score on the Educational Interpreter Performance Assessment
(EIPA) Written Test along with a minimum of a Level 3.5 on the EIPA Performance
Test or any other state qualification or national certification (excluding
Certificate of Deaf Interpretation) recognized by the Virginia Department for
the Deaf and Hard of Hearing as equivalent to or exceeding the VQAS Level
III.
b. Personnel
providing educational interpreting services for children using cued
speech/language shall have a Virginia Quality Assurance Screening Level III for
cued speech or hold a national Transliteration Skills Certificate from the
Testing, Evaluation and Certification Unit (TEC Unit) or equivalent recognized
by the Virginia Department for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing.
c. Personnel providing educational
interpreting services for children requiring oral interpreting shall meet
minimum requirements for competency on the Virginia Quality Assurance Screening
written assessment of the Code of Ethics.
2. Personnel who provide interpreting
services for children who use sign language or cued speech/language and who do
not hold the required qualifications may be employed in accordance with the
following criteria:
a. Personnel shall have a
valid Virginia Quality Assurance Screening Level I, or its equivalent, as
determined by the Virginia Department for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing;
or
b. Personnel shall have a
passing score on the EIPA Written Test and a minimum score of 2.5 on the EIPA
Performance Test upon hiring date in any local educational agency in
Virginia.
3. The
following qualification requirements for personnel providing interpreting
services for students who are deaf or hard of hearing will become effective in
2010:
a. Personnel providing educational
interpreting services for children using sign language shall hold:
(1) A valid Virginia Quality Assurance
Screening (VQAS) Level III; or
(2)
A passing score on the Educational Interpreter Performance Assessment (EIPA)
Written Test along with a minimum of a Level 3.5 on the EIPA Performance Test
or any other state qualification or national certification (excluding
Certificate of Deaf Interpretation) recognized by the Virginia Department for
the Deaf and Hard of Hearing as equivalent to or exceeding the VQAS Level
III.
(3) Under no circumstances
shall local educational agencies or private special education schools hire
interpreters who hold qualifications below a VQAS Level II, EIPA Level 3.0 or
the equivalent from another state.
(4) Interpreters hired with a VQAS Level II,
EIPA Level 3.0 or the equivalent shall have two years from the date of hire to
reach the required qualifications.
b. Personnel providing educational
interpreting services for children using cued speech/language shall have a
valid Virginia Quality Assurance Screening Level III for cued speech/language
or hold a national Transliteration Skills Certificate from the Testing,
Evaluation and Certification Unit (TEC Unit) or equivalent recognized by the
Virginia Department for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing.
(1) Under no circumstances shall local
educational agencies or private special education schools hire educational
interpreters to provide cued speech services who hold qualifications below a
VQAS Level I or the equivalent from another state.
(2) Educational Interpreters to provide cued
speech hired with a VQAS Level I or the equivalent have three years from the
date of hire to reach the required qualifications.
c. Personnel providing educational
interpreting services for children requiring oral interpreting shall hold a
national Oral Transliteration Certificate (OTC) or equivalent recognized by the
Virginia Department of Deaf and Hard of Hearing.
4. For a child who is not deaf or hard of
hearing but for whom sign language services are specified in the IEP to address
expressive or receptive language needs, the sign language services shall be
provided by an individual meeting the requirements determined appropriate by
the local educational agency.
Statutory Authority
§§ 22.1-16 and 22.1-214 of the Code of Virginia; 20 USC § 1400 et seq.; 34 CFR Part 300.
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