Alexandria City Public Schools

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New Race and Ethnicity Classification


ACPS Parents,

Please look in your mailbox over the next couple of weeks for the new race and ethnicity classification forms required by the federal government.

Since 1977, federal agencies - including the U.S Department of Education (USED) - have been collecting race and ethnicity information. The data is required for eligibility for federal education funds and for accountability reports. By fall 2010, the federal government is requiring that ethnic and racial information for all students be reported in a new way to more accurately reflect the nation's diversity. Individuals will be allowed to select more than one race and/or ethnicity that will more accurately reflect their heritage.

If a form is not completed or returned for each student, the school is still responsible for reporting the information. The new federal guidelines mandate that a designated school division employee will fill out the form using visual observation to make a determination of race and ethnicity.

DID YOU KNOW?

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