◼︎ Special Educational Services

Welcome to the Rural Virtual Academy Special Education and Student Services

This page contains information about special education. Should you ever have concerns about your child's academic, behavior, or socio-emotional functioning, please do not hesitate to reach out to any member on our special education team or your child’s teacher.  

ALL children can learn.  It is our mission to provide the highest quality academic options & support available to ALL students, families, and districts for whom we have the privilege to serve.

Special education services are available to those students who have been determined to meet eligibility criteria in one of the following areas:   

• Specific Learning Disability

• Emotional Behavioral Disability

• Autism

• Other Health Impairment

• Blind and Visually Impaired

• Intellectual Disability

• Deaf and Hard of Hearing

• Significant Developmental Delay

• Traumatic Brain Injury

• Speech and Language

• Orthopedic Impairment

• Deafblind

Students that require special education are those with a documented educational disability that prevents them from being successful within the general education setting and structure without specific support and specially designed instruction. The level of need varies for each student. Once a student qualifies for support, an Individualized Education Plan (IEP) is developed to detail and document the support provided.

The RVA has a special education team that:

• Evaluates students for suspected disabilities

• Re-evaluates students that have already been identified (at least every three years as mandated by law), and

• Provides instruction, support and resources for struggling students.

Each student with an IEP is paired with a special education teacher who provides specially designed instruction to the student. The special education teacher selects specific curriculum and instruction that target the student's area(s) of struggle and provides needed accommodations/modifications to the curriculum. Special education students that are enrolled in the RVA also have access to occupational therapy,  speech/language therapy, and physical therapy if deemed needed as part of their IEP. The special education team works closely with the associated therapists to ensure that the student's IEP is being followed and that the student is making appropriate progress with their education.

Since each plan is tailored to the individual child and their needs, the education is truly designed for the benefit of the child.