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.

U.S. Department of Education (DOE)

  • $81 billion in American Rescue Plan (ARP) funds have been released to all 50 states, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico to support students’ safe return to classrooms and address their academic, social, emotional, and mental health needs.
  • There will be a new Summer Learning & Enrichment Collaborative to help states use ARP funding to develop summer programs for all students, especially those disproportionately affected by COVID-19. The Collaborative will launch this month and will bring education leaders and experts together to develop these plans.

Virginia Department of Education (VDOE)

  • Virginia has updated its guidance to allow for 3 feet of physical distancing instead of 6 feet in certain circumstances. This change was made based on the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) revised Operational Strategy for K–12 Schools Through Phased Mitigation.

Alexandria City Public Schools (ACPS)

  • ACPS will have virtual learning for the week of April 5–9, 2021, following Spring Break. In-person learning will resume on Tuesday, April 13.

Arlington Public Schools (APS)

  • APS is shifting from the previously announced summer school cohort model to a new model. This new model will give eligible students a choice to participate either fully in-person or fully virtual for the entire summer strengthening program, which is four weeks for elementary students and five weeks for secondary students.
    • Eligible students are automatically enrolled in the full in-person model unless families contact their school to change or opt out of the program. Only students who are notified that they’ve been pre-identified as eligible will be able to participate in this program.
    • Elementary student families will be contacted in mid-April and have until April 30 to change or opt out of the program.
    • Secondary student families will be contacted in mid-May and have until May 28 to opt out or make changes.
  • In response to the CDC’s guidance allowing 3 feet between students, APS plans to do the following:
    • Continue to admit additional students to participate in hybrid/in-person instruction during this school year
    • Prioritize special populations on school waitlists
    • Provide transportation for prioritized, eligible students on school waitlists
    • Strengthen the summer school model by offering five-day schedules
    • Plan for a strong, five-day in-person model for fall 2021

Stafford County Public Schools (SCPS)

  • SCPS has announced that hybrid students at all grade levels will begin four days of in-person instruction on April 20, 2021, which coincides with the beginning of the fourth quarter. In-person instruction is scheduled as follows:
    • Shift 1 elementary students: 8 a.m. to 1 p.m.
    • Shift 2 elementary students: 9 a.m. to 2 p.m.
    • Middle school students: m 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.
    • High school students: 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.
    • Early Childhood students: 9:30 a.m. to 3:45 p.m.
    • Early Childhood Special Education and half-day Virginia Preschool Initiative students will attend three hours, four days a week, in the morning or afternoon or as otherwise noted in their Individualized Education Plan (IEP).