Review‌ ‌the‌ ‌latest‌ ‌information‌ ‌related‌ ‌to‌ ‌the‌ ‌coronavirus‌ ‌disease‌ ‌2019‌ ‌(COVID-19)‌ ‌pandemic.‌ Our special education attorneys and advocates can help you and your child prepare for the return to school.

Virginia Department of Education (VDOE)

  • Governor Ralph Northam held a press conference on Friday, Feb. 5, 2021, in which he addressed returning students to in-person learning. “We also know this plain fact: children learn better in classrooms, and that’s where they need to be.”
    • He acknowledged that there was a lot of uncertainty when planning for this school year, but there is more data now that suggests there hasn’t been the rapid spread of COVID-19 in schools that everyone was worried about. He says it is time to find a path forward, especially due to the increases in behavioral and mental health issues and decline in academic performance.
  • By March 15, Governor Northam expects all school divisions to make in-person learning options available in accordance with the guidance the VDOE set out last month. He also expects them to plan for summer school options; while this isn’t mandatory, it needs to be an option. “Our children need to catch up to be ready for learning in the fall.”
    • He wants students to be prioritized by who needs in-person learning the most.
    • The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and other relevant authorities have said it’s possible to reopen safely. Daycare and early childhood centers have also demonstrated this. Virginia has given school divisions funding to do so. School won’t look the same, “but we need to make a start.”
  • In the near future, VDOE plans to create a work group called Virginia Learns which will address learning loss and how to make up that loss.

Alexandria City Public Schools (ACPS)

  • ACPS plans to return students in March 2021 to in-person learning two days per week through the hybrid program.
    • March 2: Group 1
      • Grades K–5 receiving special education services in citywide and self-contained full-day class programs
      • Students in K–5 receiving special education reading and math services in a self-contained setting
      • Early Childhood Special Education students
      • Students in grades K–5 receiving English Learner services
    • March 9: Group 2
      • Grades 6–12 receiving special education citywide and self-contained reading and math services
      • Newcomer English Learner students in grades 6–12
    • March 16: Group 3
      • All remaining students who have chosen hybrid learning

Arlington Public Schools (APS)

  • Nearly 200 Career & Technical Education (CTE) students returned for hybrid in-person learning.
  • APS has not set return dates yet, but will give everyone two to three weeks of notice for future transitions. The next group APS intends to return will be Level 2, which includes grades PreK–2 and all elementary special education students.

Fairfax County Public Schools (FCPS)

  • The Fairfax County School Board has given unanimous support for a plan in which all students will be able to transition to in-person learning two days per week. The return dates are as follows:
    • Feb. 16: Groups 1–4 (Select CTE and special education students)
    • Feb. 23: Group 5 (Pre-K, kindergarten, and special education students)
    • March 2: Group 8 (Grades 8, 9, and 12)
    • March 9: Group 6 and Group 8 (Grades 1, 2, 7, 10, 11; Poe, Glasgow, and Holmes grade 6 students)
    • March 16: Group 7 (Grades 3–6)
  • FCPS has in-person classroom monitors to watch students for teachers who are teaching from home. They currently have 92% of the monitors needed for the first group of students. They have 86% of the monitors needed for the second group of students, which will include grades 1–2.
  • When students begin returning on Feb. 16, FCPS will implement a new bell schedule in order to accommodate social distancing requirements on school buses. This change will apply to those learning both in-person and virtually.

Loudoun County Public Schools (LCPS)

  • LCPS has announced that students in stages 1–3 will return to hybrid learning on Feb. 16, 2021, including:
    • Students whose parents chose hybrid learning for the second semester in grades PreK–5
    • Monroe Advanced Technical Academy students
    • Academy of Engineering and Technology and Academy of Science seniors who chose hybrid learning
    • Grades K–12 English learners, proficiency levels 1.0 – 1.9
    • Students with disabilities who receive instruction through:
      • Aligned Standards of Learning (ASOL)
      • Specialized self-contained programs
    • Early Childhood Special Education (ECSE) through returning graduates are eligible to receive up to four days of in-person instruction, as determined by their Individualized Education Program (IEP) team.
  • Students in Stage 4, which include middle and high school students, will start hybrid learning no later than March 3.