Henrico County Public Schools’ High School Specialty Centers offer students a chance to immerse themselves in an area of particular interest, engage in a rigorous, tailored curriculum and be part of a community that shares their passions. Henrico County eighth-graders and their families can explore the benefits of HCPS Specialty Centers by attending open houses starting Monday, Oct. 26. To prioritize safety during the current pandemic all open houses will be virtual this year.

HCPS Specialty Center Virtual Open Houses (sessions at 5 p.m. and 7 p.m.):

• Center for Engineering (Highland Springs H.S.): Oct. 26
• International Baccalaureate Middle Years/Diploma Programs (Henrico H.S.): Oct. 27
• ACE Center at Highland Springs (Highland Springs H.S.): Oct. 28
• ACE Center at Hermitage (Hermitage H.S.): Oct. 29
• International Baccalaureate Middle Years/Diploma Programs (J.R. Tucker H.S.): Nov. 4
• Center for Education and Human Development (Glen Allen H.S.): Nov. 5
• Center for Communications and Media Relations (Varina H.S.): Nov. 10
• Advance College Academy for Business Administration (Highland Springs H.S.): Nov. 11
• Center for Spanish Language and Global Citizenship (J.R. Tucker H.S.): Nov. 17
• Center for the Humanities (Hermitage H.S.): Nov. 18
• The Todd A. Phillips Center for Medical Sciences (Mills Godwin H.S.): Nov. 23
• Center for Leadership, Government and Global Economics (Douglas Freeman H.S.): Dec. 1
• Advance College Academy for Social Sciences (J.R. Tucker H.S.): Dec. 2
• Center for Information Technology (Deep Run H.S.): Dec. 7
• Center for the Arts (Henrico H.S.): Dec. 8

To see the application timeline and information about applying, go to https://henricoschools.us/specialty-centers/. Links to attend the open houses will be available on the “Open House Schedule” tab by the day of the event. Families can get started now by viewing short informational videos and slide presentations about the Specialty Centers. To see those informational presentations, go to https://henricoschools.us/specialty-centers/ and click on the “Information Sessions” tab.

Each Specialty Center will hold two sessions on its scheduled open house day, one at 5 p.m. and another at 7 p.m. There will be a question period during each open house. Students can attend as many Specialty Center open houses as they wish. Open houses will be conducted using Microsoft Teams. No registration is required, participation is free and you can take part without creating a Teams account.

Admission to HCPS Specialty Centers is open to current HCPS students as well as Henrico residents who are currently enrolled in private schools or being home-schooled.

Files:

• Specialty Centers Open Houses, Fall 2020 (.pdf)

Three HCPS middle schools offer the International Baccalaureate Middle Years Program, which includes a comprehensive curriculum for students who are highly motivated and who have demonstrated the ability to achieve academically.

Application are now being accepted and are available in all elementary and middle school counseling departments. *Private school applicants must contact the IB Programs Office at Tuckahoe MS for an application.

Public Info Session/Virtual Open House Schedule 

Thursday, October 15, 2020 – Fairfield MS 5:30-7:30 p.m.

Tuesday, October 20, 2020 – George H. Moody MS 5:30-7:30 p.m.

Wednesday, October 21, 2020 -Tuckahoe MS 5:30-7:30 p.m.

Click here to view application timeline

Participation is free! Events happening now through November 4^th!

This year, HCPS will be hosting our annual College Fair virtually in partnership with the Virginia Association of Collegiate Registrars and Admissions Counselors (VACRAO).

Students are encouraged to participate live so they can ask questions and interact with the college admissions counselors. Visit https://www.strivescan.com/virginia/ to see participating colleges, event dates, register and learn more!

Inclusive education recognizes that students, staff and the greater community need cultural knowledge about themselves and others. More than ever before, students need to see themselves reflected in their learning environment, as well as appreciate someone else’s worldview. The ability to see the world from one’s own viewpoint and another’s at the same time allows everyone to perceive the world in three dimensions. For the months of September, November, February and May, the Department of Equity, Diversity and Opportunity has designed a virtual event that will take place to help celebrate the following cultural heritages: Hispanic, Native American, Black and Asian/Pacific, respectively.

The first Heritage month is September, which is focused on the celebration of Hispanic / LatinX history and culture. The attached Heritage Series Flyer includes information on the following virtual events:
• Advocacy of Dolores Huerta (open to students / teachers)
• LatinX teacher panel (open to all staff)
• Virginia Hispanic Chamber of Commerce (open to community / staff)
• Power of Language (open to all staff)

Click on this link to access the registration form.

We made it through the first week! Kudos to our parents for doing an AMAZING job at helping our students get into the virtual setting. We appreciate all you have been doing to get your child’s computer working and all your patience with us as we work through this new setting. Students are doing an amazing job staying focused and meeting all of our expectations. Teachers have gone above and beyond in reinventing education this school year. We hope that by now you are familiar with PowerSchool, Schoology, and Microsoft Teams. If you need any help, please reach out to us! Please check out some pictures of our first week!

Tomorrow, we have two community events scheduled. First, from 12 – 6 PM, you may bring your child dressed for school to Elko for a photo opportunity with your child’s grade level counselor and administrator. Have your child get creative with a first day poster or dry erase board for a great photo. Pull up and look for a staff member out front when you arrive. This is a great chance for you to grab your Elko yard sign as well or you can grab it any time school is open.

Also tomorrow, we will have our virtual open house from 6 – 7:30 PM. This is online so please do not come to the building. We will start with a welcome from our administration. The virtual Teams meeting will open at 5:30 so that you can test out the technology. We will start at 6 PM and follow your child’s schedule which can be found in PowerSchool. For a detailed schedule for the evening event, please visit our website or check your e-mail for the link. You will need to ensure Teams and Schoology are working for you.
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1UVGhmwKTKnC2BSH_bxJNq1zhXvL4h3MgKHCgU4LhLZM/edit

Two quick technology reminders: please make sure your child’s webcam works. If it doesn’t, please visit the school. Students log in with their hcps–___ username and the password for 6th grade students is their lunch ID number. If your student does not remember the password, please e-mail helpdesk@henrico.k12.va.us or check our website for the link to reset passwords: https://pwmanager.henrico.k12.va.us/PMUser/.

Don’t forget to check out our ONE STOP guide for you as an Elko parent/guardian: https://tinyurl.com/elko-btsg-2020. This will be updated as new information comes out and is a live document. If you have any questions, please reach out to us!

Welcome to the 2020-2021 School Year! While students’ class schedules will become available on PowerSchool at 4:00pm today, Friday, August 28th, please know that these schedules are subject to change. Over the next week, counselors must still balance schedules to meet the needs of all students and do their best to not overcrowd any classes. As always, please have your child note the schedule that is active in PowerSchool the first day of school and follow the September 8th active schedule. If there is an issue with your student’s schedule please request a course change at https://bit.ly/32odMCS. Unless a student is missing a class or in the wrong core class, schedules will not be changed until September 21, 2020.