The Virginia Department of Education (VDOE) provides information on educational services and resources to support students who are deaf and hard of hearing, blind or visually impaired, or deaf-blind at its website.  The following links to information and resources are excerpted from the VDOE’s website at Special Education-Specific Disabilities-Sensory Disabilities:

Guidance Documents

Deaf and Hard of Hearing 

• Guidelines for Working With Students Who are Deaf or Hard of Hearing in Virginia Public Schools (Revised September 2019)

Blindness and Visual Impairment

• Guidelines for Working With Students Who are Blind or Visually Impaired in Virginia Public Schools (Revised December 2017) 

State Agencies

• Virginia School for the Deaf and the Blind (VSDB) - The VSDB is located in Staunton, Virginia and provides a K-12 educational day program, outreach services, and residential services exclusively for students who are deaf or hard of hearing, blind or visually impaired, or deaf-blind.  The VSDB Outreach Services assist early intervention providers, local school divisions, and families in meeting the needs of children with sensory disabilities across the Commonwealth.  The VSDB’s admissions policy is available at its website.

• Virginia Department for the Blind and Vision Impaired (DBVI) - The DBVI’s education services program provides services to early intervention providers, school personnel, and families to help children to be successful in school and the community, and to prepare for the future.  The Virginia Rehabilitation Center for the Blind and Vision Impaired offers training in the skills of blindness.  The Library and Resource Center provides services to local school divisions to support the education of children who are blind or visually impaired and persons who are print disabled. 

• Virginia Department for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing (VDDHH) - The VDDHH provides standards for educational interpreting services and other services to reduce the communication barriers between persons who are deaf or hard of hearing and their families and the professionals who serve them. 

Technical Assistance Centers and Training Programs

• Accessible Instructional Materials Center-Virginia (AIM-VA) - The AIM-VA’s extensive library has developed an alternative system for providing accessible educational media under standards set by federal law to students who meet the federal requirements for print disabilities and who are eligible for accessing educational media through an Individualized Education Program (IEP).  The AIM-VA, in conjunction with partnering agencies, provides required accessible educational materials to students and training for school division staff, at no cost to Local Educational Agencies. 

• Center for Family Involvement at the Partnership for People with Disabilities-Virginia Commonwealth University (CFI) -The CFI provides information and training to support children with disabilities, their families and professionals. 

• Technical Assistance Center for Children Who Are Deaf and Hard of Hearing (TAC-DHH) - The TAC-DHH provides information, training and technical assistance pertaining to children who are deaf and hard of hearing.  Assistance is available to Virginia public school divisions, including early childhood special education and early intervention programs, through the Virginia Network of Consultants for Professionals Working with Children Who are Deaf and Hard of Hearing (VNOC).

• Virginia Hearing Aid Loan Bank (HALB) - The HALB provides hearing aids and FM systems for children in Virginia under age 18 whose hearing loss is confirmed by an audiologist.  Devices are loaned for free for up to six months while families/school divisions are waiting for a permanent device to arrive. 

• Virginia Project for Children and Young Adults with Deaf-Blindness (VDBP) - The VDBP provides technical assistance, training, distance education, and networking information to service providers and families of children with deaf-blindness/dual sensory disabilities.