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Charlottesville City Schools

Family Resources for Students in Special Ed

Student Services symbols

Special Education is a term for the program which serves students formally identified as having disabilities. The disability may be physical, emotional, intellectual, and/or neurological and must adversely impact the child’s educational progress.

Special Education Advisory Committee
The special education program at Charlottesville City Schools is guided by the Special Education Advisory Committee.

Does your child receive special education services? Here are two ways to get involved:

Family Resources:

Family Rights:

Additional information about special education and these procedural safeguards is available by contacting the local director of special education (see contacts, below),  your school principal, or VDOE’s Office of Dispute Resolution and Administrative Services, 804-225-2013.


Eligibility Process

  • The eligibility process begins with the school’s Early Intervention Team or Child Study Team. Anyone may refer a child to these problem-solving groups. The teams are responsible for determining whether or not it is appropriate for a student to be evaluated for special education eligibility. If a student is to be evaluated, parental permission is obtained and information is gathered. The information may include the student’s intellectual ability, emotional health, school achievement, behavior, and ability to use language. Parents usually provide information about the home and the student’s medical history. Eligibility for special education is determined by a multi-disciplinary team of professionals, including the parent/s, who compare the information gathered about the student with the definitions of disability which are defined by federal law and state regulations. The Charlottesville City Schools offer eligible children an array of services in order to meet each student’s individual educational needs.

To Learn More

Rachel Rasnake
Director of Student Services
245-2500
rasnakr1@charlottesvilleschools.org 

Lauren Diggs
Coordinator
245-2648
DiggsL1@charlottesvilleschools.org

Pattye Leslie
Coordinator
245-2660
LeslieP1@charlottesvilleschools.org