COMMONWEALTH OF VIRGINIA

DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION

P.O. BOX 2120

RICHMOND, VIRGINIA 23218-2120

SUPTS. MEMO NO. 39

February 22, 2008

INFORMATIONAL

TO:	Division Superintendents
FROM:	Billy K. Cannaday, Jr. Superintendent of Public Instruction
SUBJECT:	Spring 2008 Response to Intervention Statewide Institute (RtI)

 

The Virginia Department of Education (VDOE) is pleased to host a third statewide Response to Intervention (RtI) Institute this spring. The purpose of the Institute is to help school divisions, institutions of higher education, and other educational professionals understand what RtI is, its origins in educational practices and research, and its instructional usefulness and value. Sessions on implementing the major components of RtI will be provided. The RtI Institute is planned for Tuesday, April 1, 2008, and Wednesday, April 2, 2008, at the Fredericksburg Hospitality House and Conference Center, 29801 Plank Road, Fredericksburg, Virginia.

 

The event will include two days of training sessions which are aligned with the RtI guidance document: Responsive Instruction: Refining Our Work of Teaching All Children Virginia's Response to Intervention Initiative (please reference Superintendent's Memo #209, November 9, 2007). The Institute will demonstrate that the RtI model is a valid process for identifying and helping struggling students.

 

Nationally recognized authorities on RtI and its essential components will lead sessions on topics that include:

 

1.  Key principles of RtI

 

2.  Presentation of the Virginia RtI guidance document entitled: Responsive Instruction: Refining Our Work of Teaching All Children Virginia's Response to Intervention Initiative

 

3.  Essential components of RtI

 

• Universal Screening

 

• Progress Monitoring

 

• Tiered Interventions

 

• Implementation Considerations

Teams of up to four educational curriculum leaders and staff from divisions that were unable to attend the first two RtI Institutes in 2007, as well as representatives from teacher preparation programs in Virginia's institutions of higher education (IHEs) and educational organizations are invited to attend the Institute. Possible participants include division superintendents, principals, directors of instruction, directors of special education, curriculum specialists, and deans, directors, and professors from Virginia IHEs. See Attachment A for information regarding registration and lodging.

 

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

 

a. Registration and Lodging (PDF)