Integrated Student Supports

Introduction 

Integrated student support frameworks provide a structure to improve students’ outcomes by systematically supporting their academic and non-academic needs.

School-Based Behavioral Health

In accordance with 2023 General Assembly SB 1043, the Virginia Department of Education, in consultation with the Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Services (DBHDS) and the Department of Medical Assistance Services (DMAS) has created a model memorandum of understanding (MOU) to support local school boards partnering with public or private community health providers for the provision of mental health services to public school students enrolled in the local school division.

Virginia Tiered Systems of Supports (VTSS)

The Virginia Tiered Systems of Supports (VTSS) is a data-informed decision making framework for establishing the academic, behavioral and social-emotional supports needed for a school to be an effective learning environment for all students.

Virginia Community Schools Framework

The Virginia Community School Framework (VCSF) seeks to remove nonacademic barriers to learning as a means to enhance student academic success. Community schools vigorously pursue equity by creating opportunities, empowering communities, providing wrap-around services, and meeting students where they are, every day.

Student Assistance Programming

Student Assistance Programming (SAP) is a systematic team process used to mobilize school resources to create positive conditions for learning. SAP is designed to address various conditions that impact learning so that students may maximize their potential and succeed in school and beyond. 

Social Emotional Learning (SEL)

Social emotional learning is defined as “the process through which all young people and adults acquire and apply the knowledge, skills, and attitudes to develop healthy identities, manage emotions and achieve personal and collective goals, feel and show empathy for others, establish and maintain supportive relationships, and make responsible and caring decisions.”

The VDOE’s SEL efforts are driven by our commitment to ensure that every student in Virginia attends a school that maximizes their potential and prepares them for the future: academically, socially, and emotionally. 

Student Support & Conduct

The Model Guidance for Positive and Preventive Code of Student Conduct Policy and Alternatives to Suspension guides Virginia local school boards to establish a student code of conduct policy that promotes a vision for improving conditions for learning so that all students experience a safe, supportive school environment.