The Virginia Council of Administrators of Special Education (VCASE) provides this public comment generally in support of the proposed Supplemental Guidance for Evaluation and Eligibility in Special Education. VCASE represents more than 350 members who supervise the special education services for more than 160,000 Virginia students with disabilities.

This supplemental guidance is in response to recommendations from the JLARC Report on Special Education in Virginia released in December, 2020 that were included in legislation passed during the 2021 General Assembly session and signed by the Governor.  These guidelines provide clearer and more thorough explanations and expectations for the training, procedures, parental involvement, monitoring and oversight of local teams who determine eligibility for special education services. 

The supplemental guidelines provide updated and more thorough explanations of terminology that will bring more clarity to parents and staff throughout the student evaluation and eligibility processes.  This supplemental guidance emphasizes that local evaluation and eligibility teams should have the training in evaluation and eligibility determination that ensures thorough, consistent, and unbiased consideration of a wide variety of student information before a student is found eligible for special education services.

The supplemental guidance for evaluation and eligibility provide well-explained definitions of terms and evaluation procedures that promote unbiased and non-discriminatory consideration for eligibility.  As thoroughly described in the supplemental guidance, these considerations are explained specifically to prevent the over-identification and under-identification of students who are Black, brown or English language learners. These guidelines do not, contrary to some public comment, function as barriers to access of special education services for these populations.  The supplemental guidance  serves to emphasize that consistent diligence is practiced as eligibility teams consider student eligibility, while being aware of some of the inherent biases in assessments as well as cultural, economic, and environmental factors that may emerge in eligibility discussions. In the consideration of a learning disability, the guidance notes, “The presence of an environmental, cultural, or economic disadvantage does not automatically exclude a student from possible eligibility for learning disability. Eligibility teams should carefully examine individual student factors and data to determine the degree to which each factor adversely affects their educational performance.” (p.25)  This individualized approach must continue to ensure that students who are found eligible for special education do in fact have a disability that adversely affects their learning as required by federal law.

School divisions are held federally accountable through the reporting of eligibility, special education services, and student discipline outcome data to ensure that there are no policies or practices in place that promote the disproportionate representation of black, brown, and other minority groups in special education.  “Indeed, disproportionality is and must remain a top concern for parents, educators, school professionals, policymakers, and advocates. It is imperative that the evaluation process is free from bias and discrimination.” *  The supplemental guidance document further details that the student response to systematic, evidence-based general education instructional interventions should be reviewed for age-appropriate students to ensure that the learning problems are not due to a failure to provide appropriate general education instruction.  This process further safeguards Virginia students’ access to quality instruction, with inclusive practices promoting differentiated core instruction for most children with and without disabilities in general education classrooms.

It is clear that this Supplemental Guidance for Evaluation and Eligibility reflects the recommendations of the JLARC Report as supported by the General Assembly and adds clarity and definition to the complicated processes of special education evaluation and eligibility.  VCASE looks forward to implementation of these guidelines that will be an effective resource for special education eligibility teams throughout the Commonwealth of Virginia.

* From Whittaker, M. & Ortiz, S. (2019) What a Specific Learning Disability Is Not: Examining Exclusionary Factors, as cited in the guidelines