Special Education Enhancement Planning Process
Fairfax County Public Schools (FCPS) is developing a Special Education Enhancement Plan that will enhance outcomes for students with disabilities and support the goals in the Division Strategic Plan.
Draft Special Education Enhancement Plan: Part 1 Update
Updated wording to Part 1 based on the consensus of the Steering Committee.
Please note: Updated wording based on the consensus of the Steering Committee is in bold italics.
Updated Draft FCPS Special Education Vision
To cultivate the premier educational experience that empowers all students with disabilities to thrive today, tomorrow, and in the future.
Updated Draft FCPS Special Education Mission
Engage, encourage and equip students and their families by:
- providing specialized instruction and inclusive opportunities to meet the individual needs of each student;
- providing purposeful learning opportunities to prepare students with the knowledge, skills, and habits of mind needed to be successful in post-secondary education and/or career opportunities;
- acknowledging and respecting diversity through open communication and collaborative partnerships between home, school and the community;
- promoting a collaborative and inclusive learning environment where educators implement research-based and evidence-based practices;
- promoting self-determination and independence skills for student success in school and life; and valuing students' unique gifts and talents, inspiring them to develop meaningful goals, and
- preparing them to become responsible global citizens.
Updated Draft FCPS Special Education Core Values
|
Value |
What Do the Core Values Mean? |
|
Inclusivity |
Welcome and celebrate diversity of students with disabilities, respect all perspectives, and foster equitable access for all students in their least restrictive environment |
|
Collective Responsibility |
All stakeholders are accountable and responsible for fostering student success Stakeholders include persons such as administrators, general education staff, special education staff, Advanced Academic Program staff, specialists, families, community, and students, to name a few. |
|
Equity |
Every student, staff, and family receives what they need to foster student success |
|
Engagement |
Work collaboratively with and among students, families, and the community to ensure students’ individualized needs are met in the school, class, and community |
|
Focus on Strengths |
Recognizing and using each student’s unique strengths to enhance their individual outcomes, presuming competence for students and removing barriers to access |
|
Consistency |
Across the division, in all placements, students will have consistent, data-driven, evidenced-based supports, culturally responsive instruction implemented with fidelity, to meet their individualized needs |
Updated Draft Strategic Goals and Objectives
| Goal | Through a culture of collective responsibility, FCPS will implement instructional and inclusive practices that result in improved outcomes for students with disabilities in the least restrictive environment. |
|---|---|
| Objective 1 | Given a continuum of services, effective Tier 1 and specially designed instruction, and the use of High-Leverage Practices, the percentage of school-aged students with disabilities who spend 80% or more of the school day in general education settings will increase. |
| Objective 2 | Given accessible, instructional content in the least restrictive environment, students with disabilities will demonstrate an increase in success measures on division-wide and statewide assessments, and an increased percentage accessing a higher level diploma. |
| Objective 3 | Given increased understanding and implementation of the multi-tiered systems of support (MTSS) framework, students will receive individualized supports that result in increased academic, behavior, and wellness outcomes. |
| Goal | To foster increased, positive outcomes for students with disabilities, FCPS will implement special education processes and procedures that ensure compliance with federal and state special education regulations. |
|---|---|
| Objective 1 | FCPS will ensure individualized education programs (IEP) and Section 504 plans are developed in accordance with federal and state regulations. |
| Objective 2 | FCPS will increase parent/guardian understanding of and engagement with special education processes. |
| Objective 3 | FCPS will ensure specific data sources are consistently used to inform student progress throughout the student’s advancement in special education. |
| Goal | In order to improve outcomes for students with disabilities, FCPS will implement consistent practices and protocols to ensure all instructional staff are highly effective. |
|---|---|
| Objective 1 | Given targeted, innovative recruitment strategies and other identified mechanisms to attract and retain special education teachers, FCPS will increase its percentage of fully licensed special education teachers. |
| Objective 2 | Given objective data and feedback from staff, FCPS will develop and implement a comprehensive, division-wide professional development (PD) plan with differentiated offerings targeted to the role of staff to increase their capacity to instruct students with disabilities and support special education processes and procedures. |
| Objective 3 | Using research-based practices, FCPS will create systems that provide staff with the time needed to effectively plan for and implement actions required to effectively perform their job functions. |
| Goal | FCPS will establish and implement systems for communication between staff and families to foster improved relationships and increase achievement for students with disabilities. |
|---|---|
| Objective 1 | FCPS will ensure all divisionwide Special Education communications are 508 compliant and accessible across multiple modalities (e.g. closed captioning, text to speech, etc.), translated into the FCPS’ top seven (7) languages (Amharic, Arabic, Chinese, Korean, Spanish, Urdu and Vietnamese) and available on the FCPS public webpage for easy access. |
| Objective 2 | FCPS will ensure all individualized education program (IEP) and Section 504 documents, in accordance with applicable laws and regulations, are securely translated so that confidential documents are accessible to the individual student and their family. |
| Objective 3 | FCPS will develop and implement a divisionwide communication framework and protocol for special education communications to ensure all stakeholders receive timely and consistent communication. |
