COMMONWEALTH OF VIRGINIA

DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION

P.O. BOX 2120

RICHMOND, VIRGINIA 23218-2120

SUPTS. MEMO NO. 209

September 28, 2007

INFORMATIONAL

TO:

Division Superintendents

 

FROM:

Billy K. Cannaday, Jr.

Superintendent of Public Instruction

 

SUBJECT:

Response to Intervention (RtI) Initiative and Fall 2007 Institutes

 

 

The reauthorization of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act in 2004 focused national attention on Response to Intervention (RtI), a framework for assessing and teaching struggling learners. RtI is an integrated approach that encompasses general, remedial, and special education. It incorporates the provision of research-based instructional interventions matched to student needs along with the measurement of student learning rates and outcomes.

 

The Virginia Department of Education (VDOE) is pleased to introduce its initiative to provide leadership and technical assistance to school divisions concerning RtI, beginning with two statewide institutes this fall. The objectives of the institutes include building understanding about RtI and its implementation in schools.

 

Further, the VDOE is nearing completion of a RtI guidance document. Entitled Responsive Instruction: Refining Our Work of Teaching All ChildrenVirginias Response to Intervention Initiative, the document includes the principles and components of RtI, along with case examples and strategies for successful implementation. It will be distributed to school divisions and posted on the VDOE website prior to the institutes.

 

The first RtI institute is planned for November 15 16, 2007, at the Roanoke Holiday Inn, Ordway Road, Roanoke, Virginia. The second institute will be held December 4 5, 2007, at the Omni Newport News Hotel, 1000 Omni Boulevard, Newport News, Virginia. Nationally recognized authorities on RtI will lead sessions on topics that include:

 

  • The RtI Framework and Principles

 

  • Universal Screening

 

  • Progress Monitoring

 

  • Tiered Interventions

 

  • Implementation Considerations

Teams of up to four persons from a division are invited to attend one of the two institutes. Participants may include division superintendents, principals, directors of instruction, directors of student services, directors of special education, and curriculum specialists. See Attachment A for information regarding registration and lodging.

 

The VDOE will be seeking up to eight divisions to serve as pilot sites for RtI implementation, beginning with the 2008-2009 school year. More information regarding the pilot sites will be provided at the institutes and in a subsequent Superintendents Memorandum.

 

If you need additional information, please contact Susan M. Trulove, at (804)786-0720 or e-mail:

Susan.Trulove@doe.virginia.gov

 

BKCJr/smt

 

Attachment

 

http://www.doe.virginia.gov/administrators/superintendents_memos/2007/inf209a.pdf