Home & Hospital Teaching (HHT)

Home and Hospital Teaching (HHT) provides short-term or intermittent instruction to students who are unable to attend their regular school program due to a physical or emotional condition(s), as documented by an appropriate licensed provider. Instructional services are offered virtually to all eligible students during a period of recovery or treatment. A student will be counted present while actively participating in HHT virtually, in the home, or in a facility.

A student may be eligible for full time HHT if the student will miss a total of 15 or more consecutive days for one or more of the following reasons:

• Physical Condition: Licensed physician or certified nurse practitioner must complete the HHT application and treatment plan.
• Emotional Condition: Licensed psychiatrist, psychologist, or certified psychiatric nurse practitioner providing on-going treatment must complete the HHT application and treatment plan.                                                                                                                                     A student may be eligible for intermittent HHT services if the student has a physical/emotional condition that requires the student to be absent, intermittently, for one(1) or more days in the same school week. These conditions include but not limited to, kidney failure, cancer, asthma, cystic fibrosis, sickle cell anemia, depression and bi-polar disorder. WCPS reserves the right to request re-verification annually from the physician.

Initiation of Services

To be considered for HHT, parents/legal guardians:

• Are responsible for obtaining the HHT application and treatment plan from the student’s home school.
• Must have the HHT application and treatment plan completed by the appropriate care provider.
• Sign the HHT application and submit it to the student’s school for review.
• All full-time HHT students must have the condition verified by a licensed provider every sixty (60) days if continuance is needed.

Instructional SERVICES

• Instruction generally occurs online.
• Elementary and middle school students approved for HHT will receive instruction in the core academic subjects-English, math, science, and social studies.
• High school students approved for HHT will receive instruction for credited classes, except for courses such as dual credit college courses, some world languages, laboratory science, math and ELA support, band, and physical education.
• A full-time HHT student receives up to six (6) hours of instruction each week.
• Intermittent services are based on the number of absences in a given week.  One (1) day of absence yields up to three (3) hours of instruction ; two (2) days of absences yields up to six (6) hours of instruction. 
• For students with an Individualized Education Program (IEP), an IEP meeting will be held to determine the instructional services to be provided, the hours of instruction and to develop a plan for the students' return to a school-based program.   

Additional Information

While receiving full-time HHT services, students are NOT permitted to participate in school based extra-curricular activities such as proms/dances, sports, band, chorus, clubs, etc.  The parent/legal guardian of a student who has been approved for full-time HHT may request clearance from their student's HHT approving provider and approval from the school principal to participate in a one-time school activity.  The parent/legal guardian must obtain from the principal the Treatment Provider Verification Form and submit the completed form and required provider letter to the principal for consideration.  The request must be submitted to the principal two (2) weeks prior to the school activity.

While receiving intermittent HHT services, if the student is absent from school the entire day or is unable to finish their school day due to their HHT-related condition, then they are not eligible to participate in any extracurricular activities that day (this includes school clubs, dances, sports, etc.).  If the student is late to school because of their HHT-related condition and they are a high school athlete, then the parent must communicate the reason for lateness with the school the same day their child wishes to access athletics in order for them to be eligible to participate in games or practice that day.  The WCPS athletic policy requires athletes to be present in school or have an excused tardy/absence in order to participate in games or practice that same day.