Henrico School Board to hear back-to-school plans, HVAC repair updates at Aug. 13 meeting

The Henrico School Board will get a detailed look Thursday at plans for the start of the 2026-27 school year, which will begin with a new staggered opening schedule, stricter cellphone rules, several new school facilities and the arrival of 20 electric school buses.

The board's Aug. 13 work session will begin at 2:30 p.m. at the New Bridge Learning Center auditorium, 5915 Nine Mile Road; it will be streamed at henricoschools.us as well.

Officials will brief the board about the school system's back-to-school plans, which will include the staggered start to the school year. On Monday, Aug. 24, classes will begin for half of pre-K and kindergarten students, all students in grades 1-5, students in grades 6 and 9, and Henrico Virtual Academy students in grades 3-12.

The remaining pre-K and kindergarten students and students in grades 7, 8 and 10-12 will begin Aug. 25. All students will attend beginning Wednesday, Aug. 26.

Students also will encounter tighter cellphone restrictions. Changes to state law prohibit cellphone use on school property from bell to bell, including during lunch and class changes. The division plans to provide administrators and teachers with guidance and establish consistent expectations for enforcement.

HCPS's back-to-school materials tell students that cellphones must be "stored and away" throughout the school day. Students also will receive Smart IDs that must be worn all day.

The school system will host its annual Back-to-School Kickoff event at the Henrico Sports and Events Center, 1 All Star Boulevard in Glen Allen, Saturday, Aug. 15 from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., featuring carinval-style games and activities, live entertainment, free backpacks and school supplies while they last, resources for students and families and vaccination opportunities for rising seventh and 12th graders.

New electric buses and school facilities, HVAC repairs

The board also will hear that 20 electric school buses are scheduled to enter service this fall. Bus assignments are already available through the EduLog app, which offers real-time tracking.

Officials will detail updates to the school system's security plans, which include the implementation of the Alertus desktop alert system, in addition to buzz-in entrances, safety officers and weapon scanners at all schools.

The division also will open several new facilities. The replacement R.C. Longan Elementary School and Henrico High School's new Center for Cybersecurity are scheduled to open Aug. 24, while the replacement Jackson Davis Elementary School is expected to open in November.

Meal prices will remain unchanged for students this year, although some à la carte prices will increase. Forty-nine HCPS schools will continue participating in the Community Eligibility Provision, which allows students at those schools to receive meals without individual free- and reduced-price applications.

Officials also will brief the school board about plans to repair and improve HVAC systems at a number of schools that have suffered from frequent heating and air conditioning issues or outages. Teachers at Donahoe and Mehfoud elementaries and several West End schools told the Citizen this week that their schools are currently experiencing more air conditioning issues.

The HVAC issues have been persistent for the school system for several years; the Citizen has reported extensively about the topic since August 2023. (See previous coverage by clicking here)

Additionally Thursday, the board is scheduled to vote to accept more than $450,000 in grants and state funding.

That total includes a $200,000 Claude Moore Charitable Foundation grant to help HCPS develop a four-year high school health-sciences pathway. The division is adding dental assistant, surgical technologist, sterile processing technician and medical assistant programs this year at its Allied Health and Human Services Center connected with the ACE Center at Hermitage.

Other proposed awards include $50,000 from the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching for continued work through the Future of High School Network; $98,853 from the NOAA Chesapeake Bay Office for the second year of a three-year environmental education project; $104,678 in state funding for student vision screenings; and a $3,000 Dominion Energy grant for Henrico High School's Classroom2Community Scholars Collective Club. The vision-screening program reached more than 20,000 students during the 2025-26 school year.

Another vote would authorize solar installations at the replacement Jackson Davis and Longan elementary schools and replacement Quioccasin Middle School. The board approved the overarching solar contract last year and now is being asked to approve individual 25-year power-purchase and lease agreements with DE Solutions Solar Development.

The board also is scheduled to act on a new Dominion Energy easement needed to provide underground electrical service to the replacement Quioccasin Middle School and easements allowing Henrico County to make sidewalk and traffic-control improvements at Tuckahoe Middle, Freeman High and Hermitage High.

In addition, board members are scheduled to vote on a ninth amendment to Superintendent Amy Cashwell's employment agreement; details were not made public in advance of the vote.

Thursday's work session also will include updates on summer academic and engagement programs, school readiness and HCPS's approach to "digital wellness," including efforts to balance instructional technology use.

The division's summer Extended School Year program served 996 students and included special-education, reading, math, behavioral, social-skills and job-skills programming.