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2021 SESSION
21102777DPatrons-- Coyner, Cole, J.G., Roem, VanValkenburg, Adams, D.M., Avoli, Convirs-Fowler, Keam, Kilgore, LaRock, McGuire, Mugler, Murphy, O'Quinn, Reid, Robinson, Runion and Wiley; Senators: Morrissey, Dunnavant, Hanger and McPike
Be it enacted by the General Assembly of Virginia:
1. That § 22.1-253.13:3 of the Code of Virginia is amended and reenacted as follows:
§ 22.1-253.13:3. Standard 3. Accreditation, other standards, assessments, and releases from state regulations.
A. The Board of Education
shall promulgate regulations establishing standards for accreditation pursuant
to the Administrative Process Act (§ 2.2-4000 et seq.), which shall include (i)
student outcome and growth
measures, (ii)
requirements and guidelines for instructional programs and for the integration
of educational technology into such instructional programs, (iii)
administrative and instructional staffing levels and positions, including staff
positions for supporting educational technology, (iv)
student services, (v)
auxiliary education programs such as library and media services, (vi)
requirements for graduation from high school, (vii)
community relations, and (viii)
the philosophy, goals, and objectives of public education in Virginia the
Commonwealth.
The Board of Education
shall promulgate regulations establishing standards for accreditation of public
virtual schools under the authority of the local school board that enroll
students full time.
The Board's regulations establishing standards for accreditation shall ensure that the accreditation process is transparent and based on objective measurements and that any appeal of the accreditation status of a school is heard and decided by the Board.
The Board shall review annually the accreditation status of all schools in the Commonwealth. The Board shall review the accreditation status of a school once every three years if the school has been fully accredited for three consecutive years. Upon such triennial review, the Board shall review the accreditation status of the school for each individual year within that triennial review period. If the Board finds that the school would have been accredited every year of that triennial review period the Board shall accredit the school for another three years. The Board may review the accreditation status of any other school once every two years or once every three years, provided that any school that receives a multiyear accreditation status other than full accreditation shall be covered by a Board-approved multiyear corrective action plan for the duration of the period of accreditation. Such multiyear corrective action plan shall include annual written progress updates to the Board. A multiyear accreditation status shall not relieve any school or division of annual reporting requirements.
Each local school board shall maintain schools that are fully
accredited pursuant to the standards for accreditation as prescribed by the
Board of Education. Each local
school board shall report the accreditation status of all schools in the local
school division annually in public session.
The Board shall establish a review process to assist any school that does not meet the standards established by the Board. The relevant school board shall report the results of such review and any annual progress reports in public session and shall implement any actions identified through such review and utilize them for improvement planning.
The Board shall establish a corrective action plan process for
any school that does not meet the standards established by the Board. Such
process shall require (i) (a) each school board to
submit a corrective action plan for any school in the local school division
that does not meet the standards established by the Board and (ii) (b)
any school board that fails to demonstrate progress in developing or
implementing any such corrective action plan to enter into a memorandum of
understanding with the Board.
When the Board determines through its review process that the
failure of schools within a division to meet the standards established by the
Board is related to division-level failure to implement the Standards of
Quality or other division-level action or inaction, the Board may require a
division-level academic review. After the conduct of such review and within the
time specified by the Board of Education,
each school board shall enter into a memorandum of understanding with the Board
and shall subsequently submit to the Board for approval a corrective action plan,
consistent with criteria established by the Board setting forth specific
actions and a schedule designed to ensure that schools within its school
division meet the standards established by the Board. If the Board determines
that the proposed corrective action plan is not sufficient to enable all
schools within the division to meet the standards established by the Board, the
Board may return the plan to the local school board with directions to submit
an amended plan pursuant to Board guidance. Such corrective action plans shall
be part of the relevant school division's comprehensive plan pursuant to §
22.1-253.13:6.
B. The Superintendent of Public Instruction shall develop and the, subject
to revision by the Board of Education shall
approve,
criteria for determining and recognizing educational performance in the
Commonwealth's public local
school divisions and public schools. Such The portion of such criteria, when approved, that measures individual student growth
shall become an integral part of the accreditation process and shall
include student outcome measurements for
schools in which any grade level in the grade three
through eight range is taught. The Superintendent of Public
Instruction shall annually report to the Board on the accreditation status of
all school divisions and schools. Such report shall include an analysis of the
strengths and weaknesses of public education programs in the various school
divisions in Virginia and recommendations to the General Assembly for further
enhancing student learning uniformly across the Commonwealth. In recognizing
educational performance and individual student
growth in the school divisions, the Board shall include
consideration of special school division accomplishments, such as numbers of
dual enrollments and students in Advanced Placement and International
Baccalaureate courses, and participation in academic year Governor's Schools.
The Superintendent of Public Instruction shall assist local
school boards in the implementation of action plans for increasing educational
performance and individual student growth
in those school divisions and schools that are identified as not meeting the
approved criteria. The Superintendent of Public Instruction shall monitor the
implementation of and report to the Board of Education
on the effectiveness of the corrective actions taken to improve the educational
performance in such school divisions and schools.
C. With such funds as are available for this purpose, the
Board of Education shall prescribe
assessment methods to determine the level of achievement of the Standards of
Learning objectives by all students. Such assessments shall evaluate knowledge,
application of knowledge, critical thinking, and skills related to the
Standards of Learning being assessed. The Board shall, with the
assistance of independent testing experts, conduct a regular analysis and
validation process for these assessments. The Department of Education
shall make available to school divisions Standards of Learning assessments
typically administered by the middle and high schools by December 1 of the
school year in which such assessments are to be administered or when newly
developed assessments are available, whichever is later Each reading
and mathematics Standards of Learning
assessment for students in grades three
through eight shall be administered three times
per school year, at the beginning, in
the middle, and at the end of each school year, for the purpose of providing
measures of individual student growth over the course of the school year and shall provide
accurate measurement of a student's performance outside of his grade level
through the incorporation, through computer adaptive technology, of test items
at grade levels below and above the tested level. Any student growth data shall
include such measurement of outside-of-grade-level
performance. The Department shall ensure
adequate training for teachers and principals on how to interpret and use student growth
data from such assessments to improve reading and mathematics instruction in
grades three through eight throughout the school year. The total
time spent taking each such assessment over each
of the three annual administrations shall not exceed 150 percent
of the time spent taking a single end-of-year proficiency assessment.
The Board shall also provide the option of industry certification and state licensure examinations as a student-selected credit.
The Department shall make available to school divisions Standards of Learning assessments typically administered by high schools by December 1 of the school year in which such assessments are to be administered or when newly developed assessments are available, whichever is later.
The Board of Education
shall make publicly available such assessments in a timely manner and as soon
as practicable following the administration of such tests, so long as the release
of such assessments does not compromise test security or deplete the bank of
assessment questions necessary to construct subsequent tests, or limit the
ability to test students on demand and provide immediate results in the
web-based assessment system.
The Board shall prescribe alternative methods of Standards of Learning assessment administration for children with disabilities, as that term is defined in § 22.1-213, who meet criteria established by the Board to demonstrate achievement of the Standards of Learning. An eligible student's Individual Education Program team shall make the final determination as to whether an alternative method of administration is appropriate for the student.
The Board shall include in the student outcome and growth measures that are
required by the Standards for Accreditation
end-of-course or end-of-grade standards
of accreditation the required assessments for various grade
levels and classes, including the completion of the alternative assessments
implemented by each local school board, in accordance with the Standards of
Learning. These assessments shall include end-of-course or end-of-grade tests
for English, mathematics, science, and history and social science and may be
integrated to include multiple subject areas.
The Board shall prescribe
alternative methods of Standards of Learning assessment administration for
children with disabilities, as that term is defined in § 22.1-213, who meet
criteria established by the Board to demonstrate achievement of the Standards of
Learning. An eligible student's Individual Education Program team shall make
the final determination as to whether an alternative method of administration
is appropriate for the student.
The Standards of Learning assessments administered to students
in grades three through eight shall not exceed (a) (i) reading and mathematics in
grades three and four; (b) (ii) reading, mathematics, and
science in grade five; (c) (iii) reading and mathematics
in grades six and seven; (d) (iv) reading, writing, and
mathematics in grade eight; (e) (v) science after the student
receives instruction in the grade six science, life science, and physical
science Standards of Learning and before the student completes grade eight; and (f) (vi)
Virginia Studies and Civics and Economics once each at the grade levels deemed
appropriate by each local school board. The
reading and mathematics assessments required pursuant to this subsection shall
provide individual student growth scores over the course of the school year.
Each school board shall annually certify that it has provided
instruction and administered an alternative assessment, consistent with Board
guidelines, to students in grades three through eight in each Standards of
Learning subject area in which a Standards of Learning assessment was not
administered during the school year. Such guidelines shall (1) (a) incorporate options for
age-appropriate, authentic performance assessments and portfolios with rubrics
and other methodologies designed to ensure that students are making adequate
academic progress in the subject area and that the Standards of Learning
content is being taught; (2) (b) permit and encourage
integrated assessments that include multiple subject areas; and (3) (c)
emphasize collaboration between teachers to administer and substantiate the
assessments and the professional development of teachers to enable them to make
the best use of alternative assessments.
Local school divisions shall provide targeted mathematics remediation and intervention to students in grades six through eight who show computational deficiencies as demonstrated by their individual performance on any diagnostic test or grade-level Standards of Learning mathematics test that measures non-calculator computational skills.
The Department of Education shall award recovery credit to any student in grades three through
eight who fails performs below grade level on a Standards of Learning assessment in English reading or
mathematics, receives remediation, and subsequently retakes and passes performs
at or above grade level on such an
assessment, including any such student who subsequently retakes such an
assessment on an expedited basis.
In addition, to assess the educational progress of students,
the Board of Education shall (A) (1)
develop appropriate assessments, which may include criterion-referenced tests
and other assessment instruments that may be used by classroom teachers; (B) (2)
select appropriate industry certification and state licensure examinations; and (C) (3)
prescribe and provide measures, which may include nationally normed tests to be
used to identify students who score in the bottom quartile at selected grade
levels. An annual justification that includes evidence that the student meets
the participation criteria defined by the Virginia
Department of Education shall be provided for
each student considered for the Virginia Grade Level Alternative. Each
Individual Education Program team shall review such justification and make the
final determination as to whether or not the Virginia Grade Level Alternative
is appropriate for the student. The superintendent and the school board
chairman shall certify to the Board of Education,
as a part of certifying compliance with the Standards of Quality, that there is
a justification in the Individual Education Program for every student who takes
the Virginia Grade Level Alternative. Compliance with this requirement shall be
monitored as a part of the special education monitoring process conducted by
the Department of Education. The Board shall report
to the Governor and General Assembly in its annual reports pursuant to §
22.1-18 any school division that is not in compliance with this requirement.
The Standards of Learning requirements, including all related
assessments, shall be waived for any student awarded a scholarship under the
Brown v. Board of Education Scholarship Program, pursuant to § 30-231.2, who is
enrolled in a preparation program for a high school equivalency examination
approved by the Board of Education
or in an adult basic education program or an adult secondary education program
to obtain the high school diploma or a high school equivalency certificate.
The Department of Education shall develop processes
for informing school divisions of changes in the Standards of Learning.
The Board of Education
may adopt special provisions related to the administration and use of any
Standards of Learning test or tests in a content area as applied to
accreditation ratings for any period during which the Standards of Learning
content or assessments in that area are being revised and phased in. Prior to
statewide administration of such tests, the Board of
Education shall provide notice to local school boards
regarding such special provisions.
The Board of Education
shall not include in its calculation of the passage rate of for a Standards of Learning
assessment or the level of achievement of the Standards of
Learning objectives for an individual student growth assessment
for the purposes of state accountability any student whose parent has decided
to not have his child take such Standards of Learning assessment, unless such
exclusions would result in the school's not meeting any required state or
federal participation rate.
D. The Board of Education
may pursue all available civil remedies pursuant to § 22.1-19.1 or
administrative action pursuant to § 22.1-292.1 for breaches in test security
and unauthorized alteration of test materials or test results.
The Board may initiate or cause to be initiated a review or investigation of any alleged breach in security, unauthorized alteration, or improper administration of tests, including the exclusion of students from testing who are required to be assessed, by local school board employees responsible for the distribution or administration of the tests.
Records and other information furnished to or prepared by the Board during the conduct of a review or investigation may be withheld pursuant to subdivision 10 of § 2.2-3705.3. However, this section shall not prohibit the disclosure of records to (i) a local school board or division superintendent for the purpose of permitting such board or superintendent to consider or to take personnel action with regard to an employee or (ii) any requester, after the conclusion of a review or investigation, in a form that (a) does not reveal the identity of any person making a complaint or supplying information to the Board on a confidential basis and (b) does not compromise the security of any test mandated by the Board. Any local school board or division superintendent receiving such records or other information shall, upon taking personnel action against a relevant employee, place copies of such records or information relating to the specific employee in such person's personnel file.
Notwithstanding any other provision of state law, no test or examination authorized by this section, including the Standards of Learning assessments, shall be released or required to be released as minimum competency tests, if, in the judgment of the Board, such release would breach the security of such test or examination or deplete the bank of questions necessary to construct future secure tests.
E. With such funds as may be appropriated, the Board of Education may provide,
through an agreement with vendors having the technical capacity and expertise
to provide computerized tests and assessments, and test construction, analysis,
and security, for (i) web-based computerized tests
and assessments, including computer-adaptive Standards of Learning assessments,
for the evaluation of student progress during and after remediation and (ii) the development of a remediation item bank directly
related to the Standards of Learning.
F. To assess the educational progress of students as
individuals and as groups, each local school board shall require the use of
Standards of Learning assessments, alternative assessments, and other relevant
data, such as industry certification and state licensure examinations, to
evaluate student progress and to determine educational performance. Each local
school shall require the administration of appropriate assessments to students,
which may include criterion-referenced tests and teacher-made tests and shall
include the Standards of Learning assessments, the local school board's
alternative assessments, and the National Assessment of Educational Progress
state-by-state assessment. Each school board shall analyze and report annually,
in compliance with any criteria that may be established by the Board of Education, the results from
the Stanford Achievement Test Series, Ninth Edition (Stanford Nine) assessment,
if administered, industry certification examinations, and the Standards of
Learning Assessments to the public.
The Board of Education
shall not require administration of the Stanford Achievement Test Series, Ninth
Edition (Stanford Nine) assessment, except as may be selected to facilitate
compliance with the requirements for home instruction pursuant to § 22.1-254.1.
The Board shall include requirements for the reporting of the Standards of Learning assessment scores
and averages for each year data, regardless of
accreditation frequency, as part of the Board's requirements relating to the
School Performance Report Card. Such scores shall be disaggregated for each school
by student subgroups on the Virginia assessment program as appropriate and
shall be reported to the public within three months of their receipt. These
reports (i) shall be posted on the portion of the Department of Education's
Department's website relating to the School Performance Report
Card, in a format and in a manner that allows year-to-year comparisons, and
(ii) may include the National Assessment of Educational Progress state-by-state
assessment.
G. Each local school division superintendent shall regularly
review the division's submission of data and reports required by state and
federal law and regulations to ensure that all information is accurate and
submitted in a timely fashion. The Superintendent of Public Instruction shall
provide a list of the required reports and data to division superintendents
annually. The status of compliance with this requirement shall be included in
the Board of Education's Board's annual report to the
Governor and the General Assembly as required by § 22.1-18.
H. Any school board may request the Board of
Education for release from state regulations or, on behalf
of one or more of its schools, for approval of an Individual School
Accreditation Plan for the evaluation of the performance of one or more of its
schools as authorized for certain other schools by the Standards for
Accreditation pursuant to 8VAC20-131-280 C of the Virginia Administrative Code.
Waivers of regulatory requirements may be granted by the Board of Education based on
submission of a request from the division superintendent and chairman of the
local school board. The Board of Education
may grant, for a period up to five years, a waiver of regulatory requirements
that are not (i) mandated by state or federal law or (ii) designed to promote
health or safety. The school board shall provide in its waiver request a
description of how the releases from state regulations are designed to increase
the quality of instruction and improve the achievement of students in the
affected school or schools. The Department of Education
shall provide (a) guidance to any local school division that requests releases
from state regulations and (b) information about opportunities to form
partnerships with other agencies or entities to any local school division in
which the school or schools granted releases from state regulations have
demonstrated improvement in the quality of instruction and the achievement of
students.
The Board of Education
may also grant local school boards waivers of specific requirements in §
22.1-253.13:2, based on submission of a request from the division
superintendent and chairman of the local school board, permitting the local
school board to assign instructional personnel to the schools with the greatest
needs, so long as the school division employs a sufficient number of personnel
divisionwide to meet the total number required by § 22.1-253.13:2 and all
pupil/teacher ratios and class size maximums set forth in subsection C of §
22.1-253.13:2 are met. The school board shall provide in its request a
description of how the waivers from specific Standards of Quality staffing
standards are designed to increase the quality of instruction and improve the
achievement of students in the affected school or schools. The waivers may be
renewed in up to five-year increments, or revoked, based on student achievement
results in the affected school or schools.
2. That the provisions of subsection C of § 22.1-253.13:3 of the Code of Virginia, as amended by this act, shall be fully implemented in each local school division in the Commonwealth no later than the 2024–2025 school year.