Frequently Asked Questions

Fauquier County Public Schools offers an English as a Second Language (ESL) program designed to meet the needs of the English Learners (ELs) who live in our district.  The mission of the FCPS ESL program is for ELs to demonstrate progress and proficiency in English, as determined by the WIDA ACCESS for ELLs 2.0® assessment.  Additionally, ELs will show adequate progress in academic subjects every year as required of all students by the Virginia Department of Education.

Parents are notified in writing within the first 30 days of school each school year if their child qualifies for ESL services.  If a student transfers to FCPS after the first 30 days of school, parents are notified within 2 weeks of the student's enrollment. 

During initial enrollment in FCPS, federally required home language questions are answered for all students.  If a language other than English is indicated as the answer to any one of the questions, students are given an English language proficiency assessment.  Results of the proficiency assessment are used to determine the student's eligibility to receive instructional support from the ESL program.  Students are placed in the appropriate instructional program based on their academic and language needs.

Students exit from the ESL program by attaining proficiency in English as determined by the Virginia Department of Education.  Proficiency is attained by achieving an overall composite score of 4.4 or higher on the ACCESS for ELLs 2.0® test.