Student Services & Safety
The purpose of the Student Services office is to provide meaningful prevention and intervention services so that all children can learn and succeed. Our work is focused on providing support to our schools through a collaborative approach directed at one student at a time. We embrace the overall mission of Montgomery County Public Schools to engage, encourage and empower our students by being committed to the academic, social, physical and emotional well-being and progress of each and every student.
- Section 504
- Distribution
- Foreign Student Exchange
- Homebound Services
- Homeschool Instruction
- ISAEP
- Mental Health Resources
- Youth Risk Behavior Survey
- Relationship with Local Law Enforcement
- Triennial Assessment of Local Wellness Policy
- Records for Former Students
Section 504
Section 504 is a portion of the Rehabilitation Act of l973, a piece of civil rights legislation. It provides that:
"No otherwise qualified individual with a disability in the United States…shall, solely by reason of his disability, be excluded from the participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under, any program or activity receiving federal financial assistance…”
Because public schools receive federal financial assistance, they are subject to this law.
Under Section 504 a student is a “qualified individual with a disability” if he or she has a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits a major life activity. A student would also receive the protections of Section 504 under certain circumstances in which a school district treated the student as if he or she had a disability and denied or limited the student’s access to its programs for that reason.
The phrase “physical or mental impairment” refers to a wide variety of mental and physical disorders and conditions. The term “major life activity” is also very broad and includes functions such as caring for one’s self, performing manual tasks, walking, seeing, hearing, speaking, breathing, learning, thinking, working, eating, sleeping, concentrating, and communicating. It also includes major bodily functions such as the immune system, endocrine system, and normal cell growth. In order to meet Section 504 eligibility criteria, a person’s impairment must limit a major life activity substantially.
For further information, contact Montgomery County Public Schools' Supervisor of School Counseling and Section 504, Jane Greenough, by email at janegreenough@mcps.org or telephone at (540) 382-5100 ext. 1021.
Section 504 - Forms
- Referral Form
- Procedural Safeguards
- Authorization for Exchange of Confidential Information
- Complaint of Discrimination
Section 504 - Handbook
Distribution
Distribution Guidelines
To request flyer approval, follow the steps below. Once approved, your flyer will be emailed to all parents and posted online. Paper flyers from outside organizations will no longer be distributed.
- Visit www.peachjar.com
- Register as an Enrichment / Community Org. (account type).
- Upload your flyer for approval.
Your flyer will be automatically submitted to the district office. District staff will review the material and approve or deny based on the standards below. Peachjar charges a fee for this service that is typically much less than the cost to copy and deliver paper flyers to each school.
Communications to parents from parent organizations affiliated with the school may be distributed and approved by the relevant school principal
If you are a former student from Montgomery County Public Schools and are in need of your records, please complete and submit a records release form.
All third party requests for student records, education verification, or related student records must be made using our secure online request system, https://needmytranscript.com/,as we will no longer accept fax, mail, or phone requests.
Foreign Student Exchange
MCPS recognizes that study abroad programs provide an international perspective for all students and gives them a more balanced understanding of their place in the global community. Student's minds are opened to new perspectives and the program builds global competencies. More importantly, educational travel and exchange connections help teenagers on both sides grow and gain maturity.
These guidelines and procedures are established to promote rewarding cultural exchanges and to ensure that foreign exchange students in Montgomery County adhere to local expectations.
Exchange organizations should contact the Student Services office to indicate an interest in placing exchange students and provide an advance notice of their intent to place.
For more information regarding the foreign exchange process, you may contact the Student Services office at 540-382-5100, ext. 1023 or Rhonda Reid at rhondareid@mcps.org.
Homebound Services
Homebound Services
Montgomery County Public Schools seeks to provide homebound instruction in a seamless manner for students who must use this service. It is designed to provide continuity of educational services between the classroom, home or health care facility for students whose medical needs, both physical and psychiatric, do not allow for school attendance for a limited time period.
Homebound instruction is not intended to supplant school services and is, by design, temporary. Students are expected to attend school to the fullest extent possible. The student's inability to attend school for medical reasons, must be certified by a licensed physician, psychiatrist or a licensed clinical psychologist.
For Staff
- School Personnel Expectations
- MCPS Policy
- MCPS Guidelines
- DOE Guidelines
- Teacher Profile
- School Recommendation
- Homebound Agreement
- SOL Protocol for Homebound
- Forms A, B & C
- Journal
For Parents
Parent Responsibilities
There are two forms that must be completed and submitted to the building representative or school guidance counselor to certify homebound services.
- Form A to be completed and signed by the parent
- Form B to be completed by the child's physician
Extension of Homebound Services
Homebound instruction is intended to be a temporary service. Requests for homebound instruction extending beyond nine weeks (or 45 days) requires the following form:
-
Form C Physician Transition Plan (Medical Certification of Need)
It is the responsibility of the parent or guardian to provide this information to the school guidance counselor or school consulting teacher. Homebound instruction can not be extended without this required documentation.
Forms/Additional Information
Homeschool Instruction
In Montgomery County, a parent who elects home instruction must notify the school division no later than August 15 of the intent to do so for the coming school year. Parents who move into the school district or begin home instruction after the school year has begun must notify MCPS of their intent to provide home instruction as soon as possible and comply with the provisions of the statute within 30 days of such notice. The notice may be in the form of a letter or other written document and must identify the child or children involved. MCPS has developed a form to provide notice to the school division.
Evidence of Achievement
The home school parent is required to submit, by the following August 1, evidence of the child's academic achievement in one of the following ways:
- Evidence that the child has attained a composite score in or above the fourth stanine on a nationally normed standardized achievement test;
- An evaluation or assessment which the school division administration determines to indicate that the child is achieving an adequate level of educational growth and progress.
Religious Exemption Statute
Montgomery County School Board shall excuse from attendance at school any pupil who, together with his parents, by reason of bona fide religious training or belief, is conscientiously opposed to attendance at school. The Montgomery County School Board policy regarding home school instruction and religious exemptions can be found below.
Forms and Resources
ISAEP
What is ISAEP?
The Individual Student Alternative Education Plan (ISAEP) program prepares certain secondary students to take the Tests of General Educational Development (GED) while developing career and technical education skills.
What are the Age Requirements to Enroll?
A student must be at least 16 years of age and enrolled in their home school before enrolling in the ISAEP program.
What are the Goals of the Program?
- To get the student back into school
- To train the student towards successful completion of the GED
- Provide vocational and career skills to allow for successful transition into the workforce or higher education
What are the Program Requirements?
The student must:
- Receive career guidance counseling from his home school prior to enrollment in the GED program
- Be enrolled in a CTE program leading towards an industry certification or workplace readiness skills assessment
- Successfully complete Economics and Personal Finance
- Receive a grade level score of 7.5 or higher on a standardized reading test or pass the 8th grade reading SOL
- Score a 125 or higher on each of the GED ready tests
- Spend a minimum of 15 hours per week on high school level academic content designed to prepare the student for the GED test
- Spend a minimum of 10 hours per week on work-based or career transition education
- Score a 150 or higher on EACH of the GED Ready tests prior to taking the GED test
- Attend class regularly
What Steps are Involved in Completing the Program?
- Passing all 4 components of the GED test
- Completing a VDOE approved certification course
- Successfully completing EPF
**A student that completes the ISAEP program will be allowed to walk with the graduating class of his/her high school**
Mental Health Resources
Youth Risk Behavior Survey
MCPS 2017 Youth Risk Behavior Survey Comparison Data Summary
What is the Youth Risk Behavior Survey?
“The Youth Risk Behavior Survey (YRBS) is an American biennial survey of adolescent health risk and health protective behaviors such as smoking, drinking, drug use, diet, and physical activity conducted by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. It is one of the major sources of information about these risk behaviors, and is used by federal agencies to track drug use, sexual behavior, and other risk behaviors. The YRBS is the official source of information about adolescent risk behaviors used to evaluate federal, state, and local public health initiatives to decrease these risk behaviors.”
Who takes the YRBS?
The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) Youth Risk Behavior Survey (YRBS) was adapted for distribution to Montgomery County 6th grade students (6th Grade Survey), 7th and 8th grade students (7th and 8th Grade Survey), and 9th through 12th grade students (High School Survey). In 2017, two thousand eighty-six total 6th (34.9%, n=729), and 7th and 8th (65.1%, n=1,357) grade students completed the Middle School YRBS. Two thousand four hundred and forty-four total (n=2,444) 9th through 12th grade students completed the High School YRBS. The grade breakdown was as follows: 9th grade (26.4%, n=641); 10th grade (28.5%, n=691); 11th grade (24.3%, n=589,); 12th grade (20.8%, n=506).
Why does MCPS partner to administer the YRBS?
The data gathered from the administration of these surveys will provide school, health department and other vital county personnel with useful, reliable, and valid data that should help in future planning and resource allocation. MCPS is the vehicle for the survey to be given but the data and identified concerns must be owned by the the community. Our focus needs to be on how we can successfully partner and collaborate, using this and other relevant data to drive our decisions as we evaluate current prevention and intervention programming and identify gaps of service to be filled. MCPS plays an important role in this work and is an invaluable member of a much larger team. We recognize we could not do this without the support of our community stakeholders and most of all, our families. This work shows that we value safety and emotional well-being for our students, while helping to provide a nurturing environment, positive relationships, high expectations and continuous growth.
Who are our community partners in this work?
New River Valley Community Services
- Pays for the YRBS through the Partners for Success Grant
- Utilizes YRBS data during their annual needs assessment to identify needs and choose appropriate prevention and intervention programming
Montgomery County Prevention Partners
Include the following community stakeholders:
- Montgomery County Sheriff's Department
- Blacksburg Police Department
- Christiansburg Police Department
- Lewis-Gale Hospital
- New River Valley Pediatrics
- Court Services
- Department of Social Services
- Carilion Clinic
- Women's Resource Center
- Planned Parenthood
- Ignite
- Family Preservation Services
- National Guard
- Virginia Department of Health
- Virginia Tech Center for Public Health and Research
- Christiansburg Aquatic Center
- Depaul Community Resources
- INTotal Health
- Alternative Community Programming of Montgomery County Human Services Department
Relationship with Local Law Enforcement
MCPS has enjoyed a long history of cooperation and support from our local law enforcement partners. A key component of this support has been our SRO Programs. By Code, MCPS is required to formalize these partnerships through a written Memorandum of Understanding. Throughout the 2019-20 School Year, MCPS and our local agencies updated our MOUs to better meet the guidelines of the Virginia School-Law Enforcement Partnership Model set forth by the Department of Criminal Justice Services. As of July 1, 2020, we are required to post the MOUs on the division website and provide opportunity for public input during each review period (at least every two years).
Triennial Assessment of Local Wellness Policy
Records for Former Students
If you are a former student from Montgomery County Public Schools and are in need of your records, please complete and submit a records release form.
All third party requests for student records, education verification, or related student records must be made using our secure online request system, https://needmytranscript.com/,
Teen Safety Seminar
