Coffee & Conversation is an easy way to connect with experts offering advice on topics helpful to parents. The free online gatherings take place 1-2 p.m. See the full schedule and register here for topics of your choice:
- Oct. 30 topic is “The College Mindset.”
- Nov. 6 topic is “Real Ways to Handle Peer Pressure.”
- Nov. 20 topic is “Supporting Your Child’s Self-Esteem.”
- Dec. 4 topic is “Managing Screen Time.”
- Dec. 11 topic is “Recognizing the Signs of Human Trafficking.”
The first nine weeks of this school year ended Oct. 23 for students at every school except Bellwood Elementary, which follows a year-round calendar. On Nov. 8, printed report cards will be issued to students and digital report cards will be posted to ParentVUE at every school except Bellwood Elementary (where report cards were issued Oct. 16).
- Parents can find easy-to-follow directions for accessing ParentVUE online. ParentVUE is also available as a free app from the App Store and Google Play. Parents who do not have access to ParentVUE should contact their child’s school to get login information.
- Get more information about report cards here.
Keep your eyes on the prize, class of 2025! Here is your graduation schedule:
- May 19: Matoaca High at 9 a.m. at Virginia State University and Thomas Dale High at 3 p.m. at Virginia Commonwealth University
- May 20 at Virginia Commonwealth University: Monacan High at 9:30 a.m. and Clover Hill High at 2 p.m.
- May 21 at Virginia Commonwealth University: Manchester High at 9:30 a.m. and Cosby High at 2 p.m.
- May 22 at Virginia Commonwealth University: James River High at 9:30 a.m. and Bird High at 2 p.m.
- May 23 at Virginia Commonwealth University: Meadowbrook High at 9:30 a.m. and Midlothian High at 2 p.m.
- May 28 at Career and Technical Center @ Hull: Carver College and Career Academy (time to be determined)
- Nov. 4-5 student holidays: At every Chesterfield County school, students will be on holiday Nov. 4-5. Also, parent-teacher conferences will take place Nov. 4.
- Complete student calendars for 2024-25 are available on this webpage, including English and Spanish versions of the regular school year calendar and the year-round calendar for Bellwood Elementary.
Oct. 21-25 is National School Bus Safety Week. This seems like a good week to share a video reminding students about what to do and what not to do on school buses.
October is National Bullying Prevention Month, making this a great time to talk about bullying and what to do if it happens. Watch this CCPS in the Know video to learn more about bullying prevention. Do you have a question that you’d like answered via CCPS in the Know? This video series gives quick-but-helpful insights into central Virginia's largest school system. If you have a question for CCPS in the Know, then ask it here. We’ll cover as many topics as we can. You can see all of the videos via this playlist, with captions available in English and in Spanish for each video.
Chesterfield County Public Schools is launching a weeklong celebration to honor and appreciate all staff members. Thank You, Team Chesterfield Week will take place Oct. 28-Nov. 1, and everyone is encouraged to express their thanks to teachers and school employees. The goal of Thank You, Team Chesterfield Week is to encourage and uplift all teachers and all employees of Chesterfield County Public Schools. Unlike days or weeks that focus on one group or another, this week of appreciation covers everyone working in Chesterfield County Public Schools: teachers, cafeteria staff, office workers, bus drivers, skilled tradespeople, custodians, technology employees and all other people working in our schools and central offices.
Free online tutoring is now available for students in grades 3-12 via Stride Tutoring. To provide this service, Chesterfield County Public Schools is using funds available through the Virginia Department of Education’s ALL In initiative as well as other funding sources. Students can access free tutoring through Stride as long as funds are available. To access Stride Tutoring, students along with their families should go to the backpack icon on the RapidIdentity dashboard using their CCPS-issued Chromebook. Click the Stride Tutoring icon under the “District Applications” heading. No additional login credentials are required. Students can reserve time for online video meetings with tutors licensed in subject areas in which they need additional support. Students and families select a tutor based on expertise and availability to fit their schedule, with tutoring available in the evenings and on weekends. Students do not need a teacher referral to schedule a tutoring session. There is no limit to the number of tutoring sessions at this time. Information is available at oneccps.org/tutors.
Gifted learners are students who show the potential for advanced thinking and reasoning, creativity and high achievement. So that schools can support, challenge, enrich and engage gifted students, Chesterfield County Public Schools conducts an annual referral process to identify gifted students. Students are evaluated during the current school year for services that will formally begin in the 2025-26 school year.
- Parents, teachers, community members, and students can refer a student for gifted evaluation by filling out this online form.
- Oct. 25 is the deadline to refer students currently in grades 2-12 in Chesterfield County Public Schools.
- Oct. 25 is also the deadline to refer students in grades 2-12 who are not enrolled in Chesterfield County Public Schools but who are residents of Chesterfield County.
- For more information, check out the gifted education overview and the gifted education webpage.
Everyone within Chesterfield County Public Schools works to support students and help them grow into strong young people. When problems arise that get in the way of learning, schools want to connect with students and families to solve those problems. But we can only solve problems that we know about, so communicating to school staff members is how problem-solving starts. That’s the topic of this CCPS in the Know video. Bonus: This easy-to-understand chart is a handy reference. Do you have a question that you’d like answered via CCPS in the Know? This video series gives quick-but-helpful insights into central Virginia's largest school system. If you have a question for CCPS in the Know, then ask it here. We’ll cover as many topics as we can. You can see all of the videos via this playlist, with captions available in English and in Spanish for each video on our YouTube channel.
County libraries will forgive fines Sept. 12-16
Are fines keeping you from fully accessing everything the Chesterfield Public Library has to offer? Read Away Your Fines! Stop by any Chesterfield County library Sept. 12-16, read for 30 minutes and tell a staff member about what you read. It’s that simple, so don't let fines hold you back any longer. This opportunity is open to anyone with an overdue fine with the Chesterfield Public Library. Find your nearest location via this webpage.
Students: Your presence matters
This is Attendance Awareness Month, and we want students to know that their presence matters. When students are in school, they help create a vibrant and complete learning environment. Chesterfield County Public Schools is here to support families and ensure every student is able to show up ready to learn in class.
The PSAT Academy is free and open to Chesterfield County Public Schools high school students who want to prepare for the PSAT exam that high schools administer for free each October. Register here for the Sept. 23-26 PSAT Academy. Registration closes Sept. 18.
The SAT Academy is free and available to Chesterfield County Public Schools high school students who want to prepare for college entrance exams. While there is no cost for the academy, students must purchase this study guide from the store or online site of their choice: Princeton Review Digital SAT Premium Prep, 2025 (ISBN 9780593517529). Register here for the Sept. 23-26 SAT Academy. Registration closes Sept. 18.
Chesterfield County Public Schools and the Chesterfield County Police Department have a close connection, working as partners to protect students and school staff members. A memorandum of understanding, which is updated regularly, provides a framework for the partnership. The Chesterfield County School Board invites public comment on an updated memorandum of understanding.
- To read the draft updated memorandum, click this link or copy the url and paste it into your browser: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1LPF2X_l5E4aZPXf7CYW3NLk2W0-XVZdD/view
- Email comments to ccpsinfo@ccpsnet.net before Aug. 4.
Congratulations to CCPS world language Teachers of the Year:
- Jane Baskerville Excellence in Teaching Award: Tessa Wilkey, German teacher at Manchester High
- Jane Crouch-Rieder Excellence in Teaching Award: Amira Moncada-Ossorio, Spanish and heritage teacher at Midlothian High
- Exceptional World Language Leader Award: Kelly Burleson, Latin teacher and world languages department leader at Manchester Middle
- Novice Teacher Award: Nic Barker, Spanish teacher at Clover Hill High
CCPS bus drivers gathered June 3 for a road-e-o, a friendly competition to demonstrate skills needed to safely transport students. The road-e-o included spotting safety problems and navigating an obstacle course. Some school system leaders also tried driving a bus (accompanied by an experienced trainer). School Board Chair Dot Heffron, Chief of Operations Josh Davis and Transportation Director Calvin Frye only knocked over a few cones on the obstacle course!
Parents and guardians must pick up their children’s medications from the school clinic, but the medications must be available for student use through the last day of school on May 31. All remaining student medications, including over-the-counter medications, may be picked up from the school clinic during normal school hours June 3-4.
After 4 p.m. June 4, all leftover medications will be packed and turned over to the Chesterfield County Police Department for disposal. Once medications are packed for police collection, they cannot be retrieved so it is important for parents to pick up medications on time. Late pickups are not permitted, and medications cannot be stored at the school during the summer.
All medications must be picked up even if your student will attend summer school. At the beginning of summer school, parents will need to provide children’s medication to the summer school coordinator at your child’s summer site. Please contact your child’s school nurse to request a copy of the medication order for all medications being administered during summer school.