Search Virginia.gov:

Virginia Department of Education

Information on this page is provided by the Office of Educational Information Management.

Staff Contacts

Student Record Collection

Student Records Data Definitions

Data Definitions (Revised 6/24/2009)

• Disability Status
• Division-Level Actual and Projection of March 31 ADM, K-12
• Division-Level Home Instruction / Religious Exemptions
• Dropout
  • More Dropout Guidelines
  • Summary of School Dropout Status (PDF)
• Dropout for a Career and Technical Education Program
• Dropout Rate
• Economically Disadvantaged (free/reduced meals eligibility)
• English Class, Grades 6-12 Membership
• Foster Care
• Homeless Children and Youth
• Immigrant Children and Youth
• Limited English Proficient
• Migratory Children
• Neglected/Delinquent Children and Youth
• Percent of Attendance
• Title I Schoolwide Programs
• Title I Targeted Assistance Schools
• Truancy Conference Data
• Truancy Rate Data

Disability Status

Disability types are used for students who are eligible for services under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) and who have Individualized Education Programs (IEPs). “Individualized education program” means a written statement for a child with a disability that is developed, reviewed, and revised in a team meeting in accordance with the Regulations Governing Special Education Programs for Children with Disabilities in Virginia. The IEP specifies the individual educational needs of the child and what special education and related services are necessary to meet the needs.

Division-Level Actual and Projection of March 31 ADM, K-12

Department of Education projections of March 31 unadjusted K-12 ADM will be provided for the previous school year.  Projections for March 31 unadjusted K-12 ADM and projections for March 31 total adjusted ADM are requested for the current school year.

Please note the following when reviewing these projections:

• Regulations governing state reimbursement to school divisions for special education categorical programs state, in part, that state tuition reimbursement for regional programs and Comprehensive Services Act payments or reimbursements for private school costs shall be in lieu of Basic Aid and other per pupil payments (such as remedial and gifted education aid). Thus, students placed in private school or public school regional programs for whom tuition reimbursement is requested may not be included in the March 31 ADM report.  Please be aware of these restrictions when making your ADM projections and completing the Miscellaneous Web Form.

• If you will be entering projections of the March 31 ADM for kindergarten pupils, please refer to Section 22.1-199, Code of Virginia, which establishes the entrance age for kindergarten.  Children who have reached their 5th birthday by September 30 can be included.

• Include under “Kindergarten” any pupils enrolled in the programs of junior   kindergarten or developmental kindergarten.  

For the purpose of Basic School Aid calculations, kindergarten programs operating less than 5½ hours per day, and having a pupil/teacher ratio greater than 30 to 1, are considered half-day programs.  For reporting the Total Adjusted ADM, the ADM is adjusted for the half-day Kindergarten at 85% of ADM.

Division-Level 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.  Enter on the spreadsheet the number of children receiving home instruction by kindergarten through fifth grade, grades six through eight and grades nine through twelve.  If the number of students is not available by the specified grade ranges, report the total number under the other category.
• Religious Exemptions: It is important that we attempt 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.  Enter on the spreadsheet the number of children receiving religious exemptions by kindergarten through fifth grade, grades six through eight and grades nine through twelve. If the number of students is not available by the specified grade ranges, report the total number under the other category.

Inquiries concerning home instruction or religious exemptions should be directed to Charles Finley, Division of Policy and Communications, at (804) 786-5737 or by e-mail at charles.finley@doe.virginia.gov.

Dropout

A dropout is an individual who: 

          1. Was enrolled in school at some time during the previous school year and was not enrolled on October 1 of the current school year, or

2. Was not enrolled on October 1 of the previous school year although expected to be in membership ; and 

3. Has not graduated from high school or completed a state- or district-approved educational program; and

4.  Does not meet any of the following exclusionary conditions:

(i) Transfer to another public school district, private school, or state- or district-approved education program;

(ii)  Temporary school-recognized absence due to suspension or illness;

(iii)  Death .

School completer graduated from high school or completed some other education program that is approved by the state or local education agency.

State or district approved program is formal recognition of completion from school authorities. INCLUDE special education programs, home-based instruction, and programs administered by a secondary education agency (but NOT adult or postsecondary education programs) leading to a GED-based diploma or some other certification differing from the regular diploma.  Programs recognized as legitimate by the state are considered approved even if the public education system does not directly administer them; home schooling and charter schools are examples of such programs.

Transfer to another school or program is confirmed by a method selected by the state or school district.  A transcript request, withdrawal notice signed by a parent that includes assurances the student will be enrolled elsewhere, and the like are acceptable.  Divisions should NOT accept hearsay reports or unsubstantiated statements of intent from departing students.

More Dropout Guidelines:

1. 1. Summer Dropouts are students who were not dropouts at the close of the previous school year but who fail to enroll by October 1.  Summer dropouts are reported as dropouts for the grade and year for which they fail to report.  For example, a student who completes the 10th grade in 2001-2002 but who is not re-enrolled on October 1, 2002 is reported as a 2002-2003 dropout for 11th grade.

   2. Students who enroll in adult education programs are counted as dropouts unless the elementary/secondary school system remains responsible for the student.  The intent of this guideline is to ensure that students who do not complete a program but for whom the district no longer takes responsibility are counted as dropouts.

   i. Transferring to an alternative education setting, if it is part of the elementary/secondary education system, is not considered dropping out.  For example, students enrolled in elementary/secondary education in prisons, hospitals, storefront locations or other nontraditional locations are not dropouts if the program is part of the elementary/secondary system.  This means that a student who enrolls in a school-operated program for high-risk students is not a dropout, even if the program is preparing the student to take the GED examination.

   ii. A student who leaves the public elementary/secondary school and enrolls in adult education is a dropout.  The exception is when the public school system monitors the student’s enrollment and reports the student as a dropout if the student drops out of the adult program.  An example is a cooperative arrangement between a public school district and a local technical institute that provides GED preparation for students referred directly by the district.  The district counts as dropouts the referred students who do not complete the GED study program.

   iii. Students who drop out during the previous school year but who have obtained a completion credential, such as a GED-based diploma or certificate of completion, on October 1 of the current school year are NOT reported as dropouts.

   3. An early college admissions student, one who transfers to a postsecondary program leading to a baccalaureate or associate’s degree, is NOT a dropout.

   4. Students who fail to meet some graduation requirements, and who leave school without a diploma or other credential, are dropouts even if they have completed the 12th grade.

   5. Students who leave the United States are not considered to be dropouts even if the school district cannot document the student’s subsequent enrollment in school.
   
   6.    Students who drop out during the previous school year but are re-enrolled by October 1 of the current school year are not reported as dropouts.
   
   7. Students who drop out multiple times in a school year are reported only once for a single school year.  However, students who drop out in more than one year are reported as dropouts for each year in which they are not in membership on October 1.
   
   8. Report underage student dropouts leaving school when they are still too young to do so legally.  These students should be reported even if the state or district considers them truants rather than dropouts.

   Summary of School Dropout Status (PDF)

Dropout for a Career and Technical Education Program

A student who finished the coursework for a Career and Technical Education concentration or specialization but dropped out of school prior to graduating.

Dropout Rate

The dropout rate is calculated as:

(i) the number of dropouts for a given school year; divided by

(ii) the September 30th membership of that school year.

Economically Disadvantaged

A student is economically disadvantaged if the student:

1. is eligible for Free/Reduced Meals,
2. receives TANF, or
3. is eligible for Medicaid.

Please note:  If the student is identified as experiencing homelessness or becomes identified as migrant, at any point during the school year, the student is automatically identified as Disadvantaged and is also eligible for the Free and Reduced Meals Program. This change in eligibility is outlined in Superintendents Memo Regulatory #5.

English Class, Grades 6-12 Membership

The pupil/teacher ratio for grades six through twelve English classes only applies to students and teachers in departmentalized school organizations typically found in middle and secondary schools. It does not apply to self-contained situations typically found in elementary schools. English classes taught exclusively to special education students should not be included. Membership data reported should be the sum of the membership in English classes, grades six through twelve inclusive.

Courses included in calculating the pupil-teacher ratio, English classes, grades six through twelve are:

0054 Remedial Reading Grades 4-7
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
1160 English Grade 12
1165 Local Literature Elective
1171 Creative Writing
1177 Advanced Composition
1195 AP Literature & Composition
1196 AP Language & Composition
1200 Journalism I
1210 Journalism II
1211 Journalism III
1212 Journalism IV
1213 AP Journalism
1215 Photojournalism I
1216 Photojournalism II
1217 Photojournalism III
1220 Local Journalism Elective
1300 Speech Fundamentals
1302 Advanced Speech
1395 Speech Applications
1399 Local Speech Elective
1515 Local English Elective I
1516 Local English Elective II

Foster Care

The state funding is provided for pupils who are not residents of the school divisions that are providing their education and:

• a) Who have been placed in foster care or other custodial care within the geographical boundaries of such school division by a Virginia agency, whether state or local, which is authorized under the laws of the commonwealth to place children;

• b) Who have been placed in an orphanage or children’s home which exercises legal guardianship rights; or

• c) Who are residents of Virginia and have been placed, not solely for school purposes, in a child-caring institution or group home.

This appropriation also provides funding to support children with disabilities attending public schools who have been placed in foster care or other custodial care across jurisdictional lines, as provided by subsection B of Section 22.1-101.1, Code of Virginia.

Graduate Rate

The term ‘graduate rate’ means –

"The percentage of students, measured from the beginning of high school, who graduate from high school with a regular diploma (not including an alternative degree that is not fully aligned with the State's academic standard, such as a certificate or GED) in the standard number of years." 

Homeless Children and Youth

(A) Means individuals who lack a fixed, regular, and adequate nighttime residence (within the meaning of section 103(a)(1)); and

(B) Includes -

• (i) children and youths who are sharing the housing of other persons due to loss of housing, economic hardship, or a similar reason; are living in motels, hotels, trailer parks, or camping grounds due to the lack of alternative adequate accommodations; are living in emergency or transitional shelters; are abandoned in hospitals; or are awaiting foster care placement;

• (ii) children and youths who have a primary nighttime residence that is a public or private place not designed for or ordinarily used as a regular sleeping accommodation for human beings (within the meaning of section 103(a)(2)(C));

• (iii) children and youths who are living in cars, parks, public spaces, abandoned buildings, substandard housing, bus or train stations, or similar settings; and

• (iv) migratory children (as such term is defined in section 1309 of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965) who qualify as homeless for the purposes of this subtitle because the children are living in circumstances described in clauses (i) through (iii).

As defined by McKinney-Vento Homeless Education Assistance Act, Title VII, Part B, Sec. 725, (2)

The term ‘homeless children and youths’ – (A) means individuals who lack a fixed, regular, and adequate nighttime residence (within the meaning of section 103(a)(1)); and (B) includes – (i) children and youths who are sharing the  housing of other persons due to loss of housing, economic hardship, or a similar reason; are living in motels, hotels, trailer parks, or camping grounds due to the lack of alternative adequate accommodations; are living in emergency or transitional shelters; are abandoned in hospitals; or are awaiting foster care placement;  (ii) children and youths who have a primary nighttime residence that is a public or private place not designed for or ordinarily used as a regular sleeping accommodation for human beings (within the meaning of section 103(a)(2)(C)); (iii) children and youths who are living in cars, parks, public spaces, abandoned buildings, substandard housing, bus or train stations, or similar settings; and (iv) migratory children (as such term is defined in section 1309 of the Elementary and Secondary  Education Act of 1965) who qualify as homeless for the purposes of this subtitle because the children are living in circumstances described in clauses (i) through (iii).

Immigrant Children and Youth

The term ‘immigrant children and youth’ means individuals who –

1. are aged 3 through 21;
2. were not born in any State; and
3. have not been attending one or more schools in any one or more States for more than 3 full academic years.

[P.L. 107-100, Title III, Part C, Sec. 3301, (6)]

Limited English Proficient

The term "limited English proficient" when used with respect to an individual, means an individual –

1. who is aged 3 through 21;
2. who is enrolled or preparing to enroll in an elementary school or secondary school;
3. 1. who was not born in the United States or whose native language is a language other than English;
   2. (I) who is a Native American or Alaska Native, or a native resident of the outlying areas and (II) who comes from an environment where a language other than English has had a significant impact on the individual's level of English language proficiency; or
   3. who is migratory , whose native language is a language other than English, and who comes from an environment where a language other than English is dominant; and
4. whose difficulties in speaking, reading, writing, or understanding the English language may be sufficient to deny the individual –
   1. the ability to meet the State's proficient level of achievement on State assessments described in section 1111(b)(3);
   2. the ability to successfully achieve in classrooms where the language of instruction is English; or
   3. the opportunity to participate fully in society.

[P.L. 107-100, Title IX, Part A, Sec. 9101, (25)]

Migratory Children (also referred to as Children with Migrant Status)

The term "migratory children," also referred to as children with migrant status, means children who are, or whose parents or spouses are, migratory agricultural workers, including migratory dairy workers, or migratory fishers, and who, in the preceding 36 months, in order to accompany such parents or spouses in order to obtain temporary or seasonal employment in agricultural or fishing work –

1. have moved from one LEA to another;
2. in a State that is comprised of a single LEA, have moved from one administrative area to another within such LEA; or
3. resides in an LEA of more than 15,000 square miles and migrates a distance of 20 miles or more to a temporary residence to engage in a fishing activity.

Neglected/Delinquent Children and Youth

In order to be eligible to be counted as neglected/delinquent, a child age 5 through 17 must live in an "Institution for neglected children and youth," which means a public or private residential facility, other than a foster home, that is operated primarily for the care of children and youth who (a) have been committed to the institution or voluntarily placed in the institution under applicable State law due to abandonment, neglect, or death of their parents or guardians; and (b) have had an average length of stay in the institution of at least 30 days;
or
must live in an "Institution for delinquent children and youth," which means a public or private residential facility that is operated for the care of children and youth who (a) have been adjudicated to be delinquent or in need of supervision and (b) have had an average length of stay in the institution of at least 30 days.

Percent of Attendance

The percent of attendance equals the "average daily attendance" divided by the "average daily membership."

The term "average daily attendance" means –

1. the aggregate number of days of attendance of all students during a school year; divided by
2. the number of days school is in session during the year.

The term "average daily membership" means –

1. the aggregate number of days of membership of all students during a school year; divided by
2. the number of days school is in session during the year.

Title I – Schoolwide Programs

1. "USE OF FUNDS FOR SCHOOLWIDE PROGRAMS. –
   1. "IN GENERAL.– A local educational agency may consolidate and use funds under this part, together with other Federal, State, and local funds, in order to upgrade the entire educational program of a school that serves an eligible school attendance area in which not less than 40 percent of the children are from low-income families, or not less than 40 percent of the children enrolled in the school are from such families.
   2. "IDENTIFICATION OF STUDENTS NOT REQUIRED. –
      1. "IN GENERAL.– No school participating in a schoolwide program shall be required –
         1. "to identify particular children under this part as eligible to participate in a schoolwide program; or
         2. "to provide services to such children that are supplementary, as otherwise required by section 1120A(b).

[P.L. 107-100, Title I, Sec. 1114]

Title I – Targeted Assistance Schools

1. "IN GENERAL.– In all schools selected to receive funds under section 1113(c) that are ineligible for a schoolwide program under section 1114, or that choose not to operate such a schoolwide program, a local educational agency serving such school may use funds received under this part only for programs that provide services to eligible children under subsection (b) identified as having the greatest need for special assistance.
2. "ELIGIBLE CHILDREN.–
   1. "ELIGIBLE POPULATION
      1. "IN GENERAL. – The eligible population for services under this section is –
         1. "children not older than age 21 who are entitled to a free public education through grade 12; and
         2. "children who are not yet at a grade level at which the local educational agency provides a free public education.
      2. "ELIGIBLE CHILDREN FROM ELIGIBLE POPULATION. From the population described in subparagraph (a), eligible children are children identified by the school as failing, or most at risk of failing, to meet the State's challenging student academic achievement standards on the basis of multiple, educationally related, objective criteria established by the local educational agency and supplemented by the school, except that children from preschool through grade 2 shall be selected solely on the basis of such criteria as teacher judgment, interviews with parents, and developmentally appropriate measures.
   2. "CHILDREN INCLUDED.–
      1. "IN GENERAL.– Children who are economically disadvantaged, children with disabilities, migrant children or limited English proficient children, are eligible for services under this part on the same basis as other children selected to receive services under this part.
      2. "HEAD START, EVEN START, OR EARLY READING FIRST CHILDREN.—A child who, at any time in the 2 years preceding the year for which the determination is made, participated in a Head Start, Even Start, or Early Reading First program, in preschool services under this title, is eligible for services under this part.
      3. "PART C CHILDREN.– A child who, at any time in the 2 years preceding the year for which the determination is made, received services under part C is eligible for services under this part.
      4. "NEGLECTED OR DELINQUENT CHILDREN.– A child in a local institution for neglected or delinquent children and youth or attending a community day program for such children is eligible for services under this part.
      5. "HOMELESS CHILDREN.– A child who is homeless and attending any school served by the local educational agency is eligible for services under this part.
   3. "SPECIAL RULE.– Funds received under this part may not be used to provide services that are otherwise required by law to be made available to children described in paragraph (2) but may be used to coordinate or supplement such services.

[P.L. 107-100, Title I, Sec. 1116]

Truancy Conference Data

The 1999 General Assembly amended Section 22.1-258 of the Code of Virginia related to truancy and compulsory school attendance that requires a conference to be scheduled within ten school days, after the pupil accumulates six absences in the school year, to resolve issues related to the pupils nonattendance. The pupil's parent and school personnel shall participate in the conference. The conference shall be held no later than fifteen school days after the sixth absence. ( Informational Superintendent's Memo No. 185 , dated October 8, 1999)

The amendment directs principals to report annually to the division superintendent the number of pupils by grade level for whom a conference between the pupil, the pupil's parent and a school personnel has been scheduled.

Truancy Rate Data

For further information regarding the Truancy Rate, please refer to an excerpt from: The Uniform Data Set: a Guide to Measures for the Uniform Management Information and Reporting System (PDF). 

Top of Page