WVEA

State Board (WVBE) Policies

WVEA seeks to keep you apprised of policies the West Virginia Board of Education has on public comment. Your ability to provide the students in your classroom with the best education possible is impacted by the policies passed by the West Virginia Board of Education. We urge you to read the synopsis of proposed policy revisions listed below and respond to the WVDE with your comments.

Policy 2444.4 - Issuance of WV GED Diploma Based on Passage of GED Tests

Background: Revisions to Policy 2444.4 are being recommended to implement the guidelines of the GED Option due to legislation which amended WV Code 18-8-6 relating to improving student participation, success and high school graduation rates and requiring county boards of education to have a plan for improving student retention and increasing the graduation rate.

Proposals:   A GED Option state designation by the American Council on Education would allow students to remain enrolled in WV schools and continue acquiring academic and career-technical credits while pursuing a GED diploma.  The GED Option would be blended with the WV virtual schools or a career-technical pathway.  Upon completion, rather than being a dropout, the student would have a GED diploma and a certification in the chosen career-technical or virtual school pathway.

Policy 2444.4 can be viewed in its entirety and comments submitted electronically by the July 13, 2010 deadline on the WVDE’s website at http://wvde.state.wv.us/policies.

Policy 4350 -  Procedures for the Collection, Maintenance and Disclosure of Student Data

Background:  This policy revision was requested by a WVBE member in order to facilitate the release of student directory information to organizations such as AmberVision which seek to ensure the safety and well-being of school-age students. 

Proposals:  Revisions so the policy in section 3.1.4. will align the definition of permissible directory information contained in the model notice developed by the U.S. Department of Education.  These will include a student’s name, address, telephone listing, email address, photograph, date and place of birth, major field of study, dates of attendance, grade level, participation in officially recognized activities, weight and height of members of athletic teams, degrees and awards received and the most recent previous educational agency or institution attended by the student. 

In section 23.4, the proposed revisions will require counties to establish at a minimum a student’s name, address, grade level, date of birth and photograph be designated and maintained as directory information for each student.

Impact:  Revisions will take away local county discretion regarding the designation of certain categories of information as directory information.  Most significantly, the revisions will require counties to maintain photographs of children and designate those photographs as directory information.  

Policy 4350 can be viewed in its entirety and comments submitted electronically by the July 13, 2010 deadline on the WVDE’s website at http://wvde.state.wv.us/policies.

If you have questions regarding any of these policies, contact Anita Maxwell, WVEA Communications and Instructional Issues by phone at 1.800.642.8261 ext. 116 or by email at amaxwell@wvea.org.

The following WV Board of Education (WVBE) policies are listed for your convenience.  All WVBE policies are posted on the WVDE's Website at  http://wvde.state.wv.us/policies.