Standards of Accreditation
News & Announcements
Guidance on the Sequential Elective Graduation Requirement
On March 21, 2021, the Board of Education approved new flexibility regarding the sequential elective graduation requirement, which is now reflected in the SOA Guidance Document (8VAC20-131) (Word). Please see Superintendent's Memo #067-21 (PDF) for detailed information on this flexibility.
Introduction
The Virginia Standards of Accreditation (SOA) are designed to ensure that an effective educational program is established and maintained in all of Virginia's public schools. The SOA:
- Provide an essential foundation of educational programs of high quality in all schools for all students.
- Encourage continuous appraisal and improvement of the school program for the purpose of raising student achievement.
- Foster public confidence.
- Assure recognition of Virginia's public schools by other institutions of learning.
- Establish a means of determining the effectiveness of schools.
Guidance Document
This guidance document incorporates both guidance adopted by the Board of Education and guidance issued by the Virginia Department of Education, and is updated as additional guidance is issued. Please direct questions about the SOA or this guidance document to the Office of Board Relations at boardrelations@doe.virginia.gov.
Resources
- School Accreditation Ratings
- School Quality Profiles
- Graduation Requirements – Information on college and career readiness, diploma requirements, coursework, assessments, and the Academic and Career Plan.
Standards of Accreditation Archives
Standards from 1970 through 1992 are scanned documents and will take longer to download.