Students with Special Needs
Child Find
The 1997 Amendments to the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act mandate that every school district in the country develop a system to identify children with disabilities, birth through age 21, residing in the district. OHVA will make a concerted effort to identify, locate, and evaluate children below 22 years of age, who enroll in the school and have a confirmed or suspected disability in accordance with all federal regulations and state standards. In addition, it shall be the policy of the school that the child with a disability and their parent/guardian shall be provided with safeguards, as required by law, throughout the identification, assessment and placement process, and the provision of a free appropriate public education to the child. Any child that you suspect has a disability should be referred to the student’s teachers. From there, that staff member will submit a request on Child Find, as outlined via the school’s Child Find process.
Special Education
The Ohio Virtual Academy offers a full special education program for students who have been identified with special needs in accordance with the Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act (IDEIA). General education teachers will work with the Intervention Specialist teachers to identify and serve children with disabilities.
Eligibility is based on definitions outlined in Ohio Revised Code 3301-51-01 and is made by a team of professionals as well as the student’s parent. Students who are identified with a disability must meet the eligibility criteria set forth in the Operating Standards for Ohio Educational Agencies serving Children with Disabilities. Not all students who learn differently will meet the eligibility criteria for special education services. General education teachers will provide added supports for those students who may not meet eligibility criteria. OHVA offers a continuum of services based on the student’s needs (ranging from self-contained classroom to full inclusion). Many students that qualify for special education services receive their instruction alongside their general education peers. Students serviced in special education and in the inclusion setting are expected to meet regularly with their Intervention Specialist and General Education teacher.
Like all classes within OHVA, IEP meetings are held in online classrooms. The meetings are held with a full IEP team consisting of the Intervention Specialist, General Education Teacher, the parent or legal guardian, and the District Representative. In some cases, Administrators will attend IEP meetings and respond to email/phone communications to help support the team and to offer real time resolution if the need arises.
Students with related services (such as speech or occupational therapy) can be serviced either virtually or face-to-face. A properly licensed therapist will determine if the student’s related service goal can be met virtually. Ohio Virtual Academy contracts with properly licensed therapists throughout the state and works closely with parents to set these services up for students who qualify; however, final staffing decisions remain under the discretion of the school.
We have the privilege of having our own in-house School Psychologists, Behavior Specialists, Special Education Social Emotional Counselors, and Speech and Language Pathologists to service our students, in addition to the contracted professionals. Special education services are individualized and may not resemble the services that are delivered within other districts.