General Information:

Q.	What does the Fall Membership data collection consist of?
	Information collected under "Fall Membership" is actually several different data collections consisting of:
	September 30 School Membership March 31 ADM Projections Pupil / Teacher Ratios, Standards of Quality Limited English Proficient Home Instruction / Religious Exemption
	The September 30 School Membership is the only data reported at the individual school level. The remaining reports are collected at the Locality / Division level.
Q.	When is the data collection due to the Department of Education?
	All data must be received by the Fall Membership team, Management Information Systems, Department of Education on or before Thursday, October 15, 1998. Early submission is strongly encouraged.
	The facsimile number is:
	(804) 371-8978
	The mailing address is:
	1998-98 Fall Membership Team Virginia Department of Education Attn:  L. Ande Johnson Management Information Systems P. O. Box 2120, 22nd floor Richmond, VA 23218-2120
	At the end of October, information from Fall Membership is submitted to the Department of Planning and Budget.  Because of this time constraint, deadline extensions can be granted only in extreme situations.  Fall Membership can NOT be released to the public until it is approved by the Superintendent of Public Instruction.
	All requests for changes or corrections to Fall Membership data after October 27, 1998 must be made in writing to the Superintendent of Public Instruction.
Q.	What happens to the data once submitted?
	As each school in your division is keyed, we will verify that row and column totals agree. Once all identified errors are corrected, the data will be processed and will be compared with previous year data. Any racial/ethnic data which shows a difference of plus-or-minus 5 percent or more from the previous Fall Membership will be reviewed. A Fall Membership Team member may contact you for confirmation of any questionable data. After all errors and flagged differences are corrected or resolved, a verification report will be sent by facsimile. The verification report must be reviewed and signed by the division superintendent or an official designee, and returned within 24 hours of receipt.
Q.	If the reports are submitted using the facsimile machine, is it necessary to send original data through the mail?
	No, there is no need to submit the same data twice.
Q.	Where do the pre-printed comments come from?
	Any pre-printed comment (e.g., "abandoned," "annex-report membership with parent school," "closed," etc.) was previously reported by your Superintendent on the "School Administration Data Collection" report (Admin Supts Memo No. 41, dated June 26, 1998). If there are any inconsistancies, please contact Mona Mallory, M.I.S., (804) 225-2099 before submitting School Membership.
Q.	How is this information used?
	Information from this report is used in the development of the accreditation status report; to revise monthly general fund payments to localities; for the School Report Card; and other statistical requests. Accuracy here will help ensure correctness during other data collections.
Q.	What statistics are collected?
	September 30 Membership data for each school according to grade and ethnicity Projections of March 31 Average Daily Membership (ADM) Limited English Proficient (LEP) for each division Pupil / Teacher Ratios for publication in the Superintendent's Annual School Report Home Instruction / Religious Exemption data for each division
Beginning of Document, Table I, Table II, Table III, Table IV, Table V
Table I -- September 30 School Membership
Q.	Which schools should report Fall Membership?
	Only schools maintaining the official attendance records of pupils should submit membership.
Q.	How are LPT students recorded?
	The number of students in each school classified as ungraded solely because they did not successfully complete the Literacy Passport Testing program (LPT) must be counted in the UNGRADED column for the appropriate school.
Q.	Who is included in this report?
	Report membership (E's + R's - W's) as of September 30 in the appropriate columns. The following programs are categorized as PreKindergarten: Early Childhood and similar programs Head Start or similar federally funded programs The following programs are categorized as Kindergarten: Junior Kindergarten Developmental Kindergarten Transitional First Grade
Q.	Who is included in the "Ungraded" category?
	Pupils who are in self-contained special education classes ages five through twenty-one pupils in alternative education program classes for which separate attendance accounting is kept pupils who did not successfully complete all three components of the Literacy Testing Program (LTP) by the close of grade 8. Note: Do NOT report the above "Ungraded" pupils in the standard PK-12 grade columns.
Q.	How is "Post Graduate" defined?
	A high school graduate (GED , certificate, diploma, etc.) who is in attendance for additional academic or vocational coursework.
Q.	Who is NOT included in the Fall Membership data collection?
	Special education preschool pupils Pupils in hospitals, clinics or detention homes who have been withdrawn from school attendance rolls.
Q.	How do you report students who attend the Regional Academic Governor's Schools?
	Each division that sends students to the Governor's schools reports those students in the child's original "home" school.
Q.	What are the definitions of the racial/ethnic categories?
	The definitions of the five racial/ethnic categories are as follows: AMERICAN INDIAN or ALASKAN NATIVE - A person having origins (ancestry) in any of the original peoples of North America, who maintains cultural identification through tribal affiliation or community recognition. ASIAN or PACIFIC ISLANDER - A person having origins (ancestry) in any of the original peoples of the Far East, Southeast Asia, the Pacific Islands, or the Indian subcontinent. Included, for example, are peoples of China, Korea, the Philippine Islands, Samoa, and India. BLACK, NOT OF HISPANIC ORIGIN - A person having origins (ancestry) in any of the black racial groups of Africa. HISPANIC - A person of Mexican, Puerto Rican, Cuban, Central or South American, or other Spanish culture or origin (ancestry), regardless of race. WHITE, NOT OF HISPANIC ORIGIN - A person having origins (ancestry) in any of the original peoples of Europe, North Africa, or the Middle East. At the present time, only the above categories are valid. All students should be reported in one of the preceding groups. The Virginia Department of Education will begin accepting more categories once guidelines are provided by the Federal government.
Q.	How can the September 30 School Membership data be submitted?
	The ONLY acceptable formats are: E-Mail or Diskette: This is the preferred submission format. A copy of the ASCII file layout is available from L. Ande Johnson, M.I.S., (804) 225-2947. Please ensure that the information on the school checklist is correct before submitting electronic School Membership data. FORM SA.097 - Table I: Copies of the form, pre-printed with individual school information for those schools authorized to report membership, were included with the Superintendent's memo. You must use these pre-printed forms. Should there be a change which allows other schools to report membership, or if there is a new school for which we have not pre-printed a matrix, please prepare that report on a blank form. TSS/TESS REPORT 585 - "Report of Fall Membership": School divisions using the VASIMS/COLUMBIA (release 7.0v) software may utilize report 585 - "Report of Fall Membership". Please refer to the "Virginia Customization" chapter of your TSS/TESS manual for specific instructions. Inquiries should be directed to Jerry Mathews, M.I.S., telephone (804) 225-2950. Unreadable forms will NOT be accepted
	Beginning of Document, Table I, Table II, Table III, Table IV, Table V
Table II -- March 31 ADM Projections
Q.	What programs are categorized as Kindergarten when completing this report?
	Junior Kindergarten Developmental Kindergarten Transitional First Grade
Q.	Which pupils are EXCLUDED from ADM projections?
	Children who have not reached their 5th birthday by September 30 Children covered by the Comprehensive Services Act Special education preschool pupils Regional program pupils Private school pupils Pupils in hospitals, clinics or detention homes who have been withdrawn from school attendance rolls.
Q.	What Kindergarten programs are considered a half-day program?
	Programs operating at least 3 hours and less than 5 1/2 hours per day AND having a pupil/teacher ratio greater than 30 to 1
	Beginning of Document, Table I, Table II, Table III, Table IV, Table V
Table III -- Pupil / Teacher Ratios, Standards of Quality, number 1-G, Instructional Personnel
Q.	What teaching positions are EXCLUDED when calculating the division wide Pupil / Teacher ratios?
	Principals Assistant Principals Special Education teachers Counselors Librarians Teachers employed with federal funds
Q.	What are the division wide ratios required by Standard number 1-G Instructional Personnel of the "Standards of Quality"?
	In Kindergarten, a ratio not greater than twenty-five to one In grade one, a ratio not greater than twenty-four to one In grades two through six, a ratio not greater than twenty-five to one In English classes, grades six through twelve, a ratio of not greater than twenty-four to one. (This only applies to students and teachers in departmentalized school organizations typically found in middle and secondary schools; not to self-contained situations typically found in elementary schools.)
Q.	What programs are categorized as Kindergarten when completing this report?
	Junior Kindergarten Developmental Kindergarten Transitional First Grade
Q.	What courses should be included in calculating the Pupil / Teacher Ratio, English classes, grades 6-12?
	1106 Reading Grade 6 1107 Reading Grade 7 1109 Language Arts Grade 6 1110 Language Arts Grade 7 1120 English Grade 8 1130 English Grade 9 1140 English Grade 10 1150 English Grade 11 1160 English Grade 12 1161 Local English Elective 1165 Literature of a Particular Author 1166 The Short Story 1167 The Novel 1168 Poetry 1169 Non-Fiction	1171 Creative Writing 1177 Advanced Composition 1178 Advanced English 1180 Developmental Reading, Grades 8 - 12 1184 Remedial Reading, Grades 8-12 1186 Advance Reading & Study Skills, Grades 8-12 1188 Dramatic Literature 1189 Ethnic Literature 1191 World Literature 1195 AP Language & Literature 1196 AP Language & Composition 1197 Literature of the Bible 1198 English - Social Study, Grade 8 (block time) 1199 Interdisciplinary Literary Art
Beginning of Document, Table I, Table II, Table III, Table IV, Table V
Table IV -- Limited English Proficient
	Limited English Proficient (LEP) is defined as a student who (a)     meets one or more of the following conditions: the student was born outside of the United States or whose native language is not English;      OR the student comes from an environment where a language other than English is dominant;      OR the student is American Indian or American Native and comes from an environment where a language other than English has had a significant impact on his/her level of English proficiency; AND (b)     has sufficient difficulty speaking, reading, writing, or understanding the English language to deny him or her the opportunity to learn successfully in English-only classrooms.
	Beginning of Document, Table I, Table II, Table III, Table IV, Table V
Table V -- Home Instruction / Religious Exemptions
	Background: The 1990 General Assembly amended Section 22.1-254 of the Code of Virginia to provide home instruction as an alternative to compulsory school attendance and enacted Section 22.1-254.1 governing the conditions under which home instruction may be conducted. Home Instruction: Under Paragraph B of Section 22.1-254, the division superintendent is required to report the number of students in the school division receiving home instruction. Religious Exemptions: It is important that we be able to identify the number of children who are excused from compulsory attendance by reason of a religious exemption, according to Section 22.1-257, Code of Virginia. Inquiries concerning this report should be directed to Charles Finley, Division of Compliance, at (804) 225-2747 or by e-mail at cfinley@pen.k12.va.us.
	Beginning of Document, Table I, Table II, Table III, Table IV, Table V