The Virginia Department of Education (VDOE) provides information on its website about educational services and resources to support students who are deaf or hard of hearing, blind or visually impaired, or deaf-blind. The following resources are sourced from VDOE’s Sensory Disabilities and websites for partnering agencies, centers, and college/university programs in Virginia. 

Guidance Documents

Deaf and Hard of Hearing

• Guidelines for Working With Students Who are Deaf or Hard of Hearing in Virginia Public Schools (Revised September 2019)
• Virginia Communication Plan for a Student Who is Deaf or Hard of Hearing (Revised September 2019)

Blindness And Visual Impairment

• Guidelines for Working With Students Who are Blind or Visually Impaired in Virginia Public Schools (Revised December 2017)
• Unified English Braille Implementation Plan for Virginia Public Schools (Updated September 2019)

State Agencies

• The Virginia School for the Deaf and the Blind (VSDB) s located in Staunton, Virginia, and provides a comprehensive PreK-12 educational day program, outreach services, and residential services exclusively for Virginia students who are deaf or hard of hearing, blind or visually impaired, or deaf-blind. The VSDB Outreach Services aassists early intervention programs, local school divisions, and families in meeting the needs of children with sensory disabilities across the Commonwealth. The VSDB’s admissions policy is available on its website.
  • Contact: Pat Trice, Superintendent at (804) 536-0591
• The Virginia Department for the Blind and Vision Impaired (DBVI) ncludes an Education Services Program to provide services to early intervention providers, school personnel, and families to assist children with visual impairment, blindness, and deaf-blindness to be successful in school and the community and to prepare for the future. The Library and Resource Center provides services to local school divisions to support the education of children who are blind or visually impaired and persons who are print disabled.The Virginia Rehabilitation Center for the Blind and Vision Impaired offers training in the skills of blindness.
  • Contact: Donna Cox, Director of Educatuion adn Library Services at (804) 887-7327
• The Virginia Department for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing (VDDHH) provides information and services for telecommunication services and equipment, interpreter standards, referrals, Deaf mentors for families, and other services. These resources promote accessible communications so that students and parents who are Deaf and Hard of Hearing may fully participate in programs, services, and opportunities throughout Virginia.
  • Contact: Eric Raff, Director at (804) 404-9090 or (800) 552-7917

Technical Assistance Centers

• The Accessible Instructional Materials Center-Virginia (AIM-VA) eveloped an extensive library and alternative system for providing accessible educational media under standards set by federal law to students who meet the federal requirements for print disabilities and who are eligible for accessing educational media through an Individualized Education Program. The AIM-VA Center, in conjunction with partnering agencies, provides required accessible educational materials to students and training for school division staff at no cost to local educational agencies.
  • Contact: AIM-VA Help Desk at (888) 496-0252
• The Center for Family Involvement at the Partnership for People with Disabilities (CFI) at Virginia Commonwealth University provides information and training to support children with disabilities, their families, and professionals.
  • Contact: CFI Office at (877) 567-1122
• The Technical Assistance Center for Children Who Are Deaf and Hard of Hearing (TAC-DHH) provides information, training, and technical assistance pertaining to children who are deaf and hard of hearing. Assistance is available to Virginia public school divisions, including early childhood special education and early intervention programs, through the Virginia Network of Consultants for Professionals (VNOC) Working with Children Who are Deaf and Hard of Hearing.
  • Contact: Tracey Yurechko, Project Director at (804) 828-1342
• The Virginia Hearing Aid Loan Bank (HALB) program loans hearing aids and hearing assistive technology to eligible children in Virginia whose hearing loss is confirmed by an audiologist. Devices are loaned at no cost for up to six months while families and school divisions are waiting for a permanent device to arrive.
  • Contact: Sandra Woodward, Program Director at (434) 924-0222
• The Virginia Project for Children and Young Adults with Deaf-Blindness (VDBP) provides technical assistance, training, distanceeducation, and networking information to service providers and families of children withdeafblindness and dual sensory disabilities.
  • Contact: Ira Padhye, Project Director at (804) 828-2052
    
    

Professional Training Programs

• Radford University’s Deaf and Hard of Hearing Program offers Virginia’s only academicprogram leading to Virginia teacher licensure with an endorsement in Special Education-Deaf and Hard of Hearing PreK-12. Courses are taught through combined on-campus,distance education, and varied educational field experiences. The comprehensive programteaches all communication and instructional approaches used with students who are deafand hard of hearing. Tuition assistance is available for qualified Virginia teachers.
  • Contact: Karen Stinson, Graduate Advisor at (540) 831-5549
• The Virginia Consortium for Teacher Preparation in Visual Impairment (VI Consortium) is the only academic program in Virginia for teacher preparation leading to Virginiateacher licensure with an endorsement in Special Education-Visual Impairment PreK-12.Classes are offered through combined on-campus, video, and web conferencing throughthree universities: George Mason, Old Dominion, and Radford. Tuition assistance isavailable for qualified Virginia teachers.
  • Contact: Kimberly Avila, Coordinator at (703) 993-5625
• The Educational Interpreter Services and Training Program is supported with grantfunding from the VDOE to assist Virginia educational interpreters and cued languagetransliterators with acquiring and maintaining the required skills and qualifications towork with children who are deaf and hard of hearing in Virginia public schools. Freeregional workshops and mentoring support are available.
  • Contact: Becky Hillegass, Region 2 Interpreter Training Grant Coordinator at (757) 263-2825
• American Sign Language-English Interpretation programs/courses are offered at the following
  Virginia community colleges and universities:
  • Liberty University Telephone: (434) 582-2064
  • Northern Virginia Community College Telephone: (703) 323-3192
  • Radford University Telephone: (540) 831-5549
  • Reynolds Community College Telephone: (804) 523-5604
  • Tidewater Community College Telephone: (757) 214-6157

For questions regarding this guidance, contact Wanda Council, Education Specialist, in the Office of Special Education Instructional Services, by phone at (804) 371-4059, or email at Wanda.Council@doe.virginia.gov.

Roanoke City Public School’s Child Find process helps to identify potential special education needs and educate the community about Child Find. The importance of Child Find in early intervention for children who may need services is critical. Roanoke City Public Schools will maintain an active and continuing child find program designed to identify, locate, and evaluate children residing in this jurisdiction who are two through 21 years of age, inclusively, who are in need of special education and related services. These shall include the following:

• Children who are highly mobile, such as migrant and homeless
• Children who attend private schools, including children who are home instructed or home-tutored
• Children who are suspected of being in need of special education and related services though they are advancing from grade to grade; and
• Children who are under age 18 who are suspected of having a disability
• Children who under age 18 and need special education and related services
• Children who are incarcerated in a regional or local jail in this jurisdiction for 10 or more days
• Child who are living in nursing homes

Roanoke City Public Schools will coordinate Child Find activities for infants and toddlers (birth to age two, inclusively) with the Part C local interagency coordinating council.

Roanoke City Public Schools conducts a public awareness campaign to inform the community of all persons, ages birth to 21 inclusively, rights to a free and appropriate public education and the availability of special education services.

Please refer children that may need to be considered for special education services to the Early Childhood Special Education Coordinator at (540) 853-1438. Contact may also be made to the principal of the school your child attends or the Executive Director of Special Education & Exceptional Learners at (540) 853-1437.