                                 CODE OF VIRGINIA

DECLARATION OF POLICY; REQUIREMENTS FOR HOME INSTRUCTION OF CHILDREN (§
22.1-254.1)

A. When the requirements of this section have been satisfied, instruction of
children by their parents is an acceptable alternative form of education under
the policy of the Commonwealth of Virginia. Any parent of any child who will
have reached the fifth birthday on or before September 30 of any school year and
who has not passed the eighteenth birthday may elect to provide home instruction
in lieu of school attendance if he (i) holds a high school diploma; (ii) is a
teacher of qualifications prescribed by the Board; (iii) provides the child with
a program of study or curriculum, which may be delivered through a
correspondence course or distance learning program or in any other manner; or
(iv) provides evidence that he is able to provide an adequate education for the
child.

B. Any parent who elects to provide home instruction in lieu of school
attendance shall annually notify the division superintendent in August of his
intention to so instruct the child and provide a description of the curriculum,
limited to a list of subjects to be studied during the coming year, and evidence
of having met one of the criteria for providing home instruction as required by
subsection A. Parents electing to provide home instruction shall provide such
annual notice no later than August 15. Any parent who moves into a school
division or begins home instruction after the school year has begun shall notify
the division superintendent of his intention to provide home instruction as soon
as practicable and shall thereafter comply with the requirements of this section
within 30 days of such notice. The division superintendent shall notify the
Superintendent of the number of students in the school division receiving home
instruction.

C. The parent who elects to provide home instruction shall provide the division
superintendent by August 1 following the school year in which the child has
received home instruction with either (i) evidence that the child has attained a
composite score in or above the fourth stanine on any nationally normed
standardized achievement test, or an equivalent score on the ACT, SAT, or PSAT
test or (ii) an evaluation or assessment that the division superintendent
determines to indicate that the child is achieving an adequate level of
educational growth and progress, including (a) an evaluation letter from a
person licensed to teach in any state, or a person with a master&#8217;s degree
or higher in an academic discipline, having knowledge of the child&#8217;s
academic progress, stating that the child is achieving an adequate level of
educational growth and progress or (b) a report card or transcript from an
institution of higher education, college distance learning program, or
home-education correspondence school.
			In the event that evidence of progress as required in this subsection is not
provided by the parent, the home instruction program for that child may be
placed on probation for one year. Parents shall file with the division
superintendent evidence of their ability to provide an adequate education for
their child in compliance with subsection A and a remediation plan for the
probationary year that indicates their program is designed to address any
educational deficiency. Upon acceptance of such evidence and plan by the
division superintendent, the home instruction may continue for one probationary
year. If the remediation plan and evidence are not accepted or the required
evidence of progress is not provided by August 1 following the probationary
year, home instruction shall cease and the parent shall make other arrangements
for the education of the child that comply with &#xA7; 22.1-254. The
requirements of this subsection shall not apply to children who are under the
age of six as of September 30 of the school year.

D. Nothing in this section shall prohibit a pupil and his parents from obtaining
an excuse from school attendance by reason of bona fide religious training or
belief pursuant to subdivision B 1 of &#xA7; 22.1-254.

E. Any party aggrieved by a decision of the division superintendent may appeal
his decision within 30 days to an independent hearing officer. The independent
hearing officer shall be chosen from the list maintained by the Executive
Secretary of the Supreme Court for hearing appeals of the placements of children
with disabilities. The costs of the hearing shall be apportioned among the
parties by the hearing officer in a manner consistent with his findings.

F. School boards shall make Advanced Placement (AP), Preliminary SAT/National
Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test (PSAT/NMSQT), and PreACT examinations
available to students receiving home instruction pursuant to this section.
School boards shall adopt written policies that specify the date by which such
students shall register to participate in such examinations. School boards shall
notify such students and their parents of such registration deadline and the
availability of financial assistance to low-income and needy students to take
such examinations.

G. No division superintendent or local school board shall disclose to the
Department or any other person or entity outside of the local school division
information that is provided by a parent or student to satisfy the requirements
of this section or subdivision B 1 of &#xA7; 22.1-254. However, a division
superintendent or local school board may disclose, with the written consent of a
student&#8217;s parent, such information to the extent provided by the
parent&#8217;s consent. Nothing in this subsection shall prohibit a division
superintendent from notifying the Superintendent of the number of students in
the school division receiving home instruction as required by subsection B.

HISTORY: 1984, c. 436; 1986, c. 215; 1991, c. 306; 1992, c. 131; 1993, c. 992;
1994, c. 854; 1998, c. 435; 1999, cc. 488, 552; 2005, c. 377; 2006, cc. 562,
567, 911, 932; 2008, cc. 364, 553; 2012, cc. 547, 587; 2015, cc. 567, 590, 592;
2016, c. 640; 2017, cc. 302, 334; 2018, c. 516; 2022, c. 355.