School Board to adopt budget, weigh possible year-round school option for 2021-22

The Henrico School Board will hold a virtual work session today, and board members intend to discuss in more detail the budget cuts that school officials have made to fit with the county’s revised overall budget for Fiscal Year 2021, which the Board of Supervisors approved Tuesday.

That budget, which will take effect July 1, was $99 million less than originally anticipated, and it trimmed the school system’s share by about $32.5 million, to $509.9 million. Included in the final $8 million of school cuts made during the past month: the elimination of stipends for teachers who handle various extracurricular duties at their schools.

The board will vote to formally adopt the school system’s revised budget at today’s meeting.

Board members also are expected to discuss plans for summer school and what options will be made available. Whereas in most years, summer school is viewed as an opportunity for students who need to catch up or receive extra help, this year it is expected to be offered to all students, whether virtually or in person.

The board also intends to discuss a variety of options for the coming school year, including some that would anticipate the continuation of distance-learning only, others that would expect students to be back in school full time and some that would involve a hybrid of the two.

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Also at the meeting, board members will discuss three options for the 2021-22 school year calendar:
• one that would include a pre-Labor Day starting date of August 23 and a final day of June 3;
• another that would retain the existing post-Labor Day start of Sept. 8 and run through June 17;
• and a third year-round school option, which would involve drastic changes.

Under the latter plan, school would begin July 26 and conclude June 17, but students would have a two-and-a-half-week break from late September through mid-October, a one-month break from mid-December through mid-January (similar to college winter break periods) a three-week break from late-March through early April; and a month-long break from mid-June through mid-July.

You can watch the work session beginning at 1 p.m. at https://henricoschools.us. To submit comments to the board, click here.