May 11, 2010 Dear Parents and Guardians: I am writing to inform ...

May 11, 2010
Dear Parents and Guardians:
I am writing to inform you about new requirements from the U.S. Department of Education
regarding the data on race and ethnicity for public school students and staff. The federal
government, which requires all states to collect this information, has developed a new way to
report ethnicity and race that includes new categories. The new categories will be used in all
reports beginning in the fall of 2010.
The federal government has developed these new categories in order to provide a more accurate
picture of the nation’s ethnic and racial diversity. This will enable individuals to be identified in
ethnic and racial classifications and in more than one racial category. In the past, forms allowed
individuals to be identified in only one racial category. The new categories will replace all
existing categories for use in state and federal data collections that include information about
ethnicity or race. These changes include the elimination of the category “unspecified.” Parents
will now be required to report specific race and ethnicity information for their child(ren).
The data with the new ethnicity and race categories will be used in the same manner that such
information is currently used. For example, the federal government uses racial and ethnic data in
membership reports and in reporting test results such as the Virginia Standards of Learning
Assessments. Currently Page County Public Schools asks families to provide information on
students’ race and ethnicity at the time of enrollment. We are asking that parents/guardians
complete the enclosed form in order that we may update information on your children’s ethnicity
and race.
A question-and-answer sheet on the back of this letter provides additional information about
these changes. Please feel free to contact the principal at your child’s school if you have any
questions. Completed forms should be returned to your child’s school by Friday, May 21,
2010.
Sincerely,
Dr. Randall W. Thomas
Superintendent of Schools

Questions and Answers about the New Federal Guidelines for Reporting Ethnicity and Race
Data for Page County Public School Students
Overview
The US Department of Education requires
all states to collect information on the race
and ethnicity of public school students and
staff. The federal government has
developed a new way to report ethnicity and
race that includes new categories. The
changes should provide a more accurate
picture of the nation’s ethnic and racial
diversity. Beginning in January 2010,
families of all students will be asked to fill
out a brief form to update the reporting of
their children’s ethnicity and race.
Reporting of staff data will occur in January
as well.
If I have already provided this information
to the school system, why must I provide it
again?
In the past, forms for reporting race and
ethnicity to the federal government allowed
individuals to be identified in only one racial
category. The new form enables individuals
to be identified in ethnic and racial
classifications and in more than one racial
category. The federal government is
requiring that ethnic and racial information
for all students and staff be reported in this
new way in order to reflect the nation’s
diversity more accurately.
How will the information be used?
The data with the new ethnicity/race
categories will be used in the same manner
that race/ethnic data are currently being
used. The new categories will replace the
existing categories for use in all state and
federally sponsored statistical data
collections that include data on ethnicity or
race. Some examples include student
enrollment data and SOL test results.
Who provides the information?
Parents will complete a brief form to
identify their children’s ethnic and racial
identity. Staff members will also fill out
their own information in an on-line survey.
When and how will the new information be
gathered?
Page County Public Schools will follow the
new federal guidelines with data collection
during the 2009-10 school year. The new
forms will be distributed to all schools and
will also be posted on the school district
website. The families of newly enrolled
students and of all current kindergarteners
through juniors in high school will be asked
to complete the form and return it to their
child’s school. The new reporting
categories will also be used for all incoming
kindergarten students.
Why isn’t the information being required
for the senior class?
The new data on ethnicity and race
categories will be used to report student
membership beginning in September, 2010
after the current seniors have graduated.
The information is being collected now to
allow time for data entry so that all Page
County Public School students can be
properly identified this spring. Collecting
the data now will allow summer testing of
our reporting systems with most of our
students. Those students who enroll in the
summer and in September may then be
added quickly to our files for the September
membership report.

Federal Race and Ethnicity Categories
Page County Public Schools
Student Name ______________________________________________________________________________
Last First Middle
Address __________________________________________________________________________________
School Attending ___________________________________ Date of Birth ____________________________
Please answer both part 1 and part 2 by checking the boxes that best describe your son or daughter.
Part 1 What is the student’s ethnicity? (check only one)
No, not Hispanic/Latino
Yes, Hispanic/Latino (a person of Cuban, Mexican, Puerto Rican, South American, Central American or
other Spanish culture or origin, regardless of race)
No matter what you selected in part 1, please continue to answer by marking one or more boxes in
part 2 to indicate what you consider your student’s race to be.
Part 2 What is the student’s race? (check one or more as appropriate)
American Indian or Alaskan (a person having
origins in any of the original peoples of North
America and South America, including Central
America, and who maintains tribal affiliation or
community attachment)
Black or African American (a person having
origins in any of the black racial groups of Africa)
White (a person having origins in any of the
original peoples of Europe, the Middle East or North
Africa)
Asian (a person having origins in any of the
original people of the Far East, Southeast Asia, or the
Indian subcontinent including, for example,
Cambodia, China, India, Japan, Korea, Malaysia,
Pakistan, the Philippine Islands, Thailand and
Vietnam)
Native Hawaiian / Other Pacific Islander (a
person having origins in any of the original peoples of
Hawaii, Guam, Samoa or other Pacific Islands)
Parent or Guardian Signature ________________________________________ Date _____________________
Page County Public Schools does not unlawfully discriminate on the basis of sex, race, color, age,
religion, disability or national origin in employment or in its educational programs and activities.