Prince William County Public Schools

In accordance with Section 22.1-254.1 of the Code of Virginia,  any parent of a child who will have reached the fifth birthday on or before September 30 of any school year and who has not passed the eighteenth birthday may elect to provide home instruction in lieu of school attendance.  A parent or guardian is qualified to provide home instruction if one of the following conditions is met:

• The parent or guardian holds a high school diploma;
• The parent or guardian is a teacher of qualifications prescribed by the Board of Education;
• The parent or guardian provides the child with a program of study or curriculum which may be delivered through a correspondence course or distance learning program or in any other manner; or
• The parent or guardian can provide evidence that an adequate education is provided for the child. 

Parents or guardians electing to provide home instruction in lieu of school attendance shall annually notify the school division superintendent no later than August 15 of intention to instruct the child and provide a description of the curriculum. 

Certified Tutor Option:

Section 22.1-254  of the Code of Virginia allows parents to have their children taught by a tutor or a teacher who meets the teacher licensure qualifications prescribed by the Board of Education when that individual has been approved as a tutor by the school division superintendent. To meet the qualifications prescribed by the Board of Education, the tutor must have a valid Virginia teaching license in any area and may be a parent who meets the tutor qualifications.  

Tutors are approved for four years or as long as their teaching license is valid, whichever comes sooner.  Proof of academic progress is not required. 

Parents selecting this option must notify the Home Instruction Office  by mail: PWCS Office of Student Services, Home Instruction, P.O. Box 389, Manassas, VA 20108 or email: PWCSHomeInstruction@pwcs.edu.  

Please include the following in your correspondence:

• Student's Name
• Copy of the tutor's valid (current) Virginia teaching license

The parent is required to submit to the local school division, by the following August 1, evidence of the child’s academic progress with either:

1. Evidence that the child has attained a composite score in or above the fourth stanine on any nationally normed standardized achievement test; or an equivalent score on the ACT, SAT, or PSAT test;or
2. An evaluation or assessment which the division superintendent determines to indicate that the child is achieving an adequate level of educational growth and progress, including but not limited to:

1. An evaluation letter from a person licensed to teach in any state, or a person with a master's degree or higher in an academic discipline, having knowledge of the child's academic progress, stating that the child is achieving an adequate level of educational growth and progress; or
2. A report card or transcript from a community college or college, college distance learning program, or home-education correspondence school. (VDOE: Private Schools & Home Schooling)

Per Virginia Department of Education Superintendent’s Memo #105-20, dated April 24, 2020,  parents electing to provide home instruction during the 2019-20 school year shall be relieved of the requirement to provide evidence of student progress to the local school division superintendent (§ 22.1-254.1).  

Required Home Instruction Documents

College Admissions and Placement Exams

High school-aged home instruction students may participate in Advanced Placement (AP) and Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test (PSAT/NMSQT) examinations and are eligible to receive free AP and PSAT testing opportunities to the same extent as students enrolled in Prince William County Public Schools. If a student wishes to participate in PSAT or AP Testing for the 2020-21 school year, the parents must notify the school no later than:

• September 16 — PSAT (contact student's base school for details)
• October 16 — AP Tests
• A $40 fee will be incurred for any AP test order submitted after October 16, 2020.

Students approved for home instruction may complete driver education at home. The student must currently be enrolled in a home instruction program approved by the school division superintendent.

Please refer to the  Virginia Department of Motor Vehicles Driver Education Information for Home Schoolers website for details.

Partially-enrolled home instruction and private school students may participate in school-sponsored intramurals, student organizations and clubs, and other extracurricular activities, with the exception of Virginia High School League (VHSL) activities. Partially-enrolled home instruction and private school students shall be required to meet all criteria for participation in the desired organization, club, and extracurricular activities.  (Regulation 722-2)

The Prince William County School Board allows partial enrollment of home instruction/private school students for up to two credit-bearing high school courses per semester. For more information, please complete the online Home Instruction registration process provided on the link above. You may contact your zoned high school counseling department if you have further questions.

If you wish to discontinue home instruction, you may notify us one of three ways:

• Visit the Online Registration for Existing Families webpage .  After following the directions to log in, you will be directed to options which include withdrawing your student from home instruction.   
  
  
• Complete and submit the following form: Notice of Intent to Discontinue Home Instruction (PDF) via email:  PWCSHomeInstruction@pwcs.edu; or
  
  
• Mail:
  PWCS Office of Student Services
  Home Instruction
  P.O. Box 389
  Manassas, VA 20108