Due Process Hearing Against Fairfax County School Board: Day 5
Inside day five of a due process hearing against Fairfax County School Board (Virginia), and what it reveals about what happens when a school division limits training and communication.
Location & Accessibility: The due process hearing was scheduled for March 23–27, 2026. An additional day—April 24, 2026—has been added to continue the hearing. It’s open to the public at the Virginia Hills Center, 6520 Diana Lane, Alexandria, VA 22310. The hearing room is on the second floor of a building without an elevator, so access is by stairs only and may present challenges for those with mobility needs. Grace Kim is representing the family and John Cafferky is repping Fairfax County School Board (FCSB).
Overview
Day five of the due‑process hearing against Fairfax County School Board (FCSB) continued themes that had surfaced throughout the week and shifted the spotlight to the staff members who work with the student every day. Testimony came from two classroom teachers, a second instructional assistant who serves as a communication‑regulation partner (CRP), the school’s special‑education department head and, later in the day, a procedural support liaison and senior manager from central office. (I left before the central‑office witnesses testified, so this account covers only the four earlier testimonies.) Also from central office: FCPS’s Crisis Prevention and Policy Specialist attended as an observer.
The witnesses showed how staff adapt classwork; how gaps in funding, training and placement choices still limit the student’s opportunity to show what he knows; and how FCSB gatekeeps communication between staff and the practitioner who trains the CRPs.