Authority: Public Education Instructional Services: Title 22.1, Chapter 13, Code of Virginia; P.L. 107-110, P.L. 105-332, P.L.108-447, P.L. 102-305, Federal Code.

Program Administration and Assistance for Instructional Services: Title 22.1, Chapter 13, Code of Virginia; P.L. 107-110, P.L. 105-332, P.L. 108-447, P.L. 102-305, Federal Code.

Compliance and Monitoring of Instructional Services: Title 22.1, Chapter 13, Code of Virginia; P.L. 107-110, P.L. 105-332, P.L. 108-447, Federal Code.

Adult Education and Literacy: §§ 2.2-2472, 22.1-223-226, 22.1-253.13:1, 22.1-254.2, Code of Virginia; P.L. 105-220, Federal Code.

Early Childhood Care and Education: Title 22.1, Chapter 14, Code of Virginia; P.L. 113-186, Federal Code.

A. The Superintendent of Public Instruction is encouraged to implement school/community team training.

B. The Superintendent of Public Instruction shall provide direction and technical assistance to local school divisions in the revision of their Vocational Education curriculum and instructional practices.

C. The Superintendent of Public Instruction, in cooperation with the Commissioner of Social Services, shall encourage local departments of social services and local school divisions to work together to develop cooperative arrangements for the use of school resources, especially computer labs, for the purpose of training Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) recipients for the workforce.

D. Notwithstanding § 4-1.04 a 3 of this act, the Superintendent of Public Instruction may apply for grant funding to be used by local school divisions consistent with the provisions of Chapter 447, 1999 Acts of Assembly. The nongeneral fund appropriation for this agency shall be adjusted by the amount of the proceeds of any such grant awards.

E. 1. Out of the appropriations in this item, $1,300,000 the first year and $1,300,000 the second year from the general fund is provided to support students and teachers pursuing information technology industry certifications. The funding shall be used to provide outreach, training, instructional resources, industry recognized certification opportunities for teachers and students enrolled in Virginia public high schools and regional career and technical education programs, and information technology curriculum resources for use by students' parents.

2. The funds provided in this initiative shall be used to support the following priority objectives: a) increase the percentage of students enrolled in career and technical education courses who receive instruction in information technology leading to an increased number of students achieving industry recognized certifications in information technology; b) increase the number of high schools and regional career and technical education programs that receive the training and technical support to be ready to implement information technology curricula leading to increased statewide implementation and use; c) increase the number of teachers teaching targeted career and technical education courses and other high school teachers who receive training in information technology and in industry recognized certifications leading to an increased number of teachers achieving industry recognized certifications in information technology; and, d) support implementation of information technology curricula in school divisions in Southside and Southwest Virginia so that implementation in those regions is at least comparable to implementation in other regions of Virginia.

F. Out of the appropriation in this Item, $413,000 the first year and $413,000 the second year from the general fund is provided for the Department of Education to continue a professional development program intended to increase the capacity of principals as school leaders in under-performing schools.

G. Out of the appropriation in this Item, $366,000 the first year and $366,000 the second year from the general fund is provided to the Department of Education to assist local school divisions, as needed, to establish criteria for the professional development of teachers and principals on the subject of issues related to high-needs students.

H. Out of this appropriation, $3,652,000 the first year and $3,652,000 the second year from the general fund is provided for the Virginia Kindergarten Readiness Program.

a. Of this amount, $1,377,000 the first year and $1,377,000 the second year from the general fund is provided through the Department of Education to the University of Virginia to continue statewide implementation of the Virginia Kindergarten Readiness Program conducted in the fall, and to continue to support a post-assessment upon the conclusion of the kindergarten year.

b. The Department of Education shall coordinate with the University of Virginia's Center for Advanced Study of Teaching and Learning to ensure that all school divisions shall be required to have their kindergarten students assessed annually during the school year using the multi-dimensional kindergarten readiness assessment model. All school divisions shall be required to have their kindergarten students assessed with such model.

c. Of this amount, $1,050,000 the first year and $1,050,000 the second year shall be allocated to the University of Virginia to support implementation of a pre-kindergarten version of the Virginia Kindergarten Readiness Program for four-year-old children enrolled in publicly-funded pre-kindergarten programs, and for piloting the use and development of a pre-kindergarten version of the Virginia Kindergarten Readiness Program for three-year-old children enrolled in publicly-funded pre-kindergarten programs.

d. Of this amount, $350,000 the first year and $350,000 the second year from the general fund shall be allocated to University of Virginia's Center for Advanced Study of Teaching and Learning to provide training to school divisions annually on how to effectively use Virginia Kindergarten Readiness Program data to improve instructional practices and student learning. Such teacher focused professional development and training shall be prioritized for the school divisions that would most benefit from state assistance in order to provide more time for classroom instruction and student learning for kindergarten and pre-kindergarten students, including both three- and four-year-old pre-kindergarten classrooms.

e. The Department and the University of Virginia's Center for Advanced Study of Teaching and Learning shall use the results of the multi-dimensional Virginia Kindergarten Readiness Program assessments to determine how well the Virginia Preschool Initiative promotes readiness in all key developmental domains assessed. The Department shall submit such findings using data from the prior year's fall assessment to the Chairs of House Appropriations and Senate Finance and Appropriations Committees no later than October 1 each year.

f. Of this amount, $875,000 the first year and $875,000 the second year from the general fund is provided through the Department of Education to the University of Virginia in partnership with the Department and school divisions to support an assessment in literacy, math, social skills and self-regulation in grades one, two and three to help teachers, parents and divisions identify students' strengths, deficiencies and support student growth longitudinally.

I. Out of this appropriation, $700,000 the first year and $700,000 the second year from the general fund is provided through the Department of Education to the University of Virginia's Center for Advanced Study of Teaching and Learning to ensure that teachers in select publicly-funded early childhood programs, including Virginia Preschool Initiative classrooms, receive appropriate individualized professional development training from professional development specialists to support quality teacher-child interactions and effective implementation of high-quality curriculum. Funding and professional development assistance shall be prioritized for classrooms that have demonstrated need based on the Unified Measurement and Improvement System, known as VQB5, established pursuant to § 22.1-289.05, Code of Virginia, which is based on observing teachers with the Classroom Assessment Scoring System (CLASS) observation tool and use of standards-aligned curriculum. The University of Virginia's Center for Advanced Study of Teaching and Learning, assisted on an as needed basis by the Department of Education, Virginia Early Childhood Foundation, and Elevate Early Education shall hire and train specialists to provide such individualized professional development. The University of Virginia's Center for Advanced Study of Teaching and Learning and the Training and Technical Assistance Centers funded by the Individuals with Disabilities Act (IDEA) through the Department of Education shall coordinate to ensure alignment of professional development and supports for teachers of children with special needs.

J. Out of this appropriation, $1,047,000 the first year and $1,047,000 the second year from the general fund is provided to ensure that select publicly-funded early childhood programs, including Virginia Preschool Initiative programs, have the quality of their teacher-child interactions assessed through a rigorous and research-based classroom observational instrument using the CLASS observational instrument for such assessment. These observations shall be used to verify accuracy and maintain reliability of the measurements required within Virginia's Unified Measurement and Improvement System, known as VQB5, established pursuant to § 22.1-289.05, Code of Virginia.

K. 1. The Department of Education and the Department of Social Services shall determine the amount of nongeneral funds to be transferred to the Department of Social Services to address costs associated with administration of the Child Care and Development Fund each year.

2. The Department of Social Services and the Department of Education shall ensure that the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) Virginia Initiative for Employment and Work (VIEW) mandated child care forecast is funded through a combination of general fund, TANF, and Child Care Development Fund (CCDF) grant dollars. The amount of needed CCDF dollars identified in the Memorandum of Agreement between the agencies shall be transferred from the Department of Education to the Department of Social Services within the first thirty days of the fiscal year. The Department of Social Services shall notify the Department of Education of the required amount of the next fiscal year transfer upon the enrollment of the budget. This amount shall reflect the need identified in the official forecast as well as changes resulting from actions in the final budget.

L. The Department of Education, in collaboration with the Department of Social Services, shall prepare an annual Child Care and Development Fund (CCDF) report that reflects all CCDF expenditures from the previous fiscal year, current grant balances and obligation and liquidation deadlines, as well as all anticipated spending for the current and two subsequent fiscal years. Identified spending should, at a minimum, be broken down by subsidies (mandated and discretionary), administrative costs, and quality efforts. The plan also shall include a certification from the Department that the maximum amount of federal funds were drawn down in the preceding fiscal year. Should the Department be unable to certify that maximum federal funds were drawn down, the Department shall identify strategies for Virginia to obtain the maximum amount of federal funds in the following fiscal year(s) as part of this plan. In addition, this plan should report, by locality, the number of subsidies (mandated and discretionary) provided, number of providers receiving CCDF dollars, the overall number of child care providers, and the waitlist for services. This information should be provided the previous fiscal year, current fiscal year, and two subsequent fiscal years. The plan shall also include an appendix with the most recently completed CCDF annual report as required by the federal Office of Child Care. The department shall submit the report by October 1 of each year to the Governor and the Chairs of the House Appropriations and Senate Finance and Appropriations Committees. In addition, the department shall post this report on its website along with any reports from previous fiscal years.

M. Notwithstanding 8VAC-20-790, the Department of Education shall establish an annual target at the local level for the number of children that may be served by available funds and ensure that each locality has mechanisms in place for maintaining waitlists if family demand exceeds the targets.

N. Out of this appropriation, $173,258,588 the first year from the general fund and $38,996,516 the first year from the federal American Rescue Plan Act State and Local Fiscal Recovery Fund and $237,815,584 the second year from the general fund is provided for the Child Care Subsidy Program. Any general fund appropriation in the Child Care Subsidy Program that is unexpended as of June 30 each fiscal year shall be reappropriated for expenditure in the following year for the same purpose.

O. Out of this appropriation, $1,000,000 the first year from the general fund is provided to establish and administer early learning and child care accounts hosted on a digital wallet platform. These accounts will be made available to Virginia families with a child age birth-to-five. State contributions to accounts will be limited to the highest need households as outlined in 8VAC20-790-20 section A.7. The Department shall establish guidelines for the use and oversight of these accounts. Any amount that is unexpended from this appropriation as of June 30 each fiscal year shall be reappropriated for expenditure in the following year for the same purpose.

P. Notwithstanding 8VAC-20-780, or any other requirement in state law or regulation, the Superintendent of Public Instruction shall have the authority to alter staff-to-child ratios and group sizes for licensed child day centers and child day centers that participate in the Child Care Subsidy Program by increasing the number of children per staff by (1) one child for groups of children from birth to the age of eligibility to attend public school, and (2) two children for groups of children from the age of eligibility to attend public school through 12 years. Child day centers that take advantage of this flexibility must notify families in writing of the temporary increase in ratios and group size. This authority and any resultant waiver of state law or regulation shall expire June 30, 2026. The Superintendent of Public Instruction shall ensure that any action taken under this provision is permissible under federal requirements.

Q. 1. Out of this appropriation, $4,640,000 the first year and $4,640,000 the second year from the general fund is provided to implement literacy instruction aligned with science-based reading research beginning in the 2024-2025 school year, as required by the Virginia Literacy Act, Chapters 549 and 550, 2022 Acts of Assembly and as amended by Chapters 645 and 646, 2023 Acts of Assembly. These funds shall be used to support the development of microcredentials, parent resources, professional development resources, deployment of a train the trainer model to disseminate the professional development to teachers, the provision of technical assistance and professional development to school divisions, and development of a literacy screener for administration in grades 4-7.

2. Of this amount, $2,400,000 the first year and $2,400,000 the second year shall be allocated to the University of Virginia's Virginia Literacy Partnership through the Department of Education, for the establishment and provision of literacy coaching, technical assistance and professional development as required by the act.

3. The Board of Education shall initiate the textbook approval process as provided in § 22.1-238 et seq. to ensure local school boards may purchase textbooks aligned with Chapters 549 and 550, 2022 Acts of Assembly, through the Virginia Public Procurement Act exemption provided in § 22.1-241.

R. Out of this appropriation, $7,200,000 the first year and $7,200,000 the second year from the general fund is provided for the Department of Education to contract with a telehealth provider to provide high-quality mental health care services statewide to public school students in grades six through 12. Local school divisions that opt to participate in these services shall develop a process for parents or guardians to opt in a child for such services.