Title I Bypass

Virginia Title I Bypass Program

 

            The Title I Bypass Program in Virginia provides eligible students attending private schools with a supplemental instructional program of essential knowledge and skills. Students are educated in a manner that assists them in developing and achieving grade appropriate expectations while fulfilling their potential.

            The eligibility criteria to receive Title I services apply to all Virginia students, whether they are enrolled in public or private schools. If a student attends a private school, lives within the attendance area of a Title I public school and meets the specified educational criteria, the qualifying student in the private school may receive assistance in the form of Title I services. These services provide individualized and small group supplemental instruction in reading and math and give the students the opportunity to achieve success in their classroom.

            In forty-eight of the fifty states across the nation, Title I services may be provided to both public and private school students by the public school system. In Virginia, due to an interpretation of Virginia law,  public school teachers were prohibited from providing Title I services to students attending private schools, particularly if the private school has a religious affiliation.

            In instances, where eligible students attending a private school are not receiving Title I services comparable to their public school counterparts, the U.S. Secretary of Education may elect to “bypass” the public school system and make arrangements for services to be provided through another agent.

            NonPublic Educational Services, Inc. (NESI) continues to be the agent contracted by the U.S. Department of Education to provide Title I services to PreK through eighth grade students attending private schools. Student must meet the eligibility requirements and live within the boundary areas of a public Title I school in one of the following fourteen “bypassed” public school divisions: Alexandria, Arlington, Fairfax, Falls Church City, Prince William County, Stafford County, Henrico County, Lynchburg, Richmond, Chesapeake, Newport News, Norfolk, Portsmouth and Virginia Beach.

            When people use terms such as Title I or “Bypass” program, it means having highly qualified teachers provide extra help to eligible students attending private schools. This extra help provides the opportunity for students to gain proficiency in their reading and math skills and to achieve successfully in their classroom.

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