Proposed 2027-2028 Henrico Schools calendar would shift more days off to spring, continue staggered start

Henrico Schools’ proposed calendar for the 2027-2028 school year would place more student holidays in the spring semester and implement a staggered start for all schools.

The proposal, which was presented to the Henrico School Board March 26, would shift one “wellness day” – a day when schools are closed – from November to April and keep the second wellness day in February. HCPS also would eliminate a student half day in October, reducing the number of half days during the year from three to two, and add a half clerical day for staff in March.

While about three-fourths of respondents to a community survey conducted this past winter suggested keeping a wellness day in November, HCPS officials said that the shift created a better balance between days off in the fall and days off in the spring because of significant fall breaks like Thanksgiving and winter break.

Under the proposed calendar, 2027-2028 would be the second year that HCPS implements a staggered start for the first day of school. Students in pre-kindergarten, kindergarten, and grades 6 and 9 would begin school on Aug. 23, while students in all grades would attend school the next day on Aug. 24.

That schedule would differ from the three-day staggered start planned for 2026-2027, which implements one first day for one half of pre-K and kindergarten and another first day for the second half. After approving the 2026-2027 calendar, HCPS Superintendent Amy Cashwell said that she received feedback from elementary school leaders that a two-day staggered start would be easier for 2027-2028.

Notable dates in proposed 2027-2028 calendar:

First days of school:

• Aug. 23 – Pre-K, Kindergarten, and grades 6 and 9 attend
• Aug. 24 – all grades attend

Professional learning days (student holidays):

• Aug. 18
• Sept. 27
• Nov. 1
• Feb. 28

Student half days:

• Mar. 31
• June 2 (last day of school)

Wellness days (schools closed):

• Feb. 21
• Apr. 17

Major breaks:

• Nov. 24-26 – Thanksgiving
• Dec. 20-31 – Winter break
• Apr. 3-7 – Spring break

Clerical days (student holidays):

• Nov. 2 (Election Day)
• Jan. 24
• Mar. 31 (half clerical day)

Last day of school:

• June 2

For the upcoming staggered start this fall, Cashwell said that each elementary school will have the flexibility to decide how to divide Pre-K and Kindergarten into two halves. Schools can either have students in classrooms all start on one first day together, or divide classrooms over the two days.

The 2027-2028 proposed calendar would also continue to implement an extra 10 days of instructional time in case of emergency school closures, which allows HCPS to avoid adding more days later in the year. 

School board members expressed their support for the proposed half day and wellness day changes as well as the tweaked staggered start. The proposed calendar has received input from HCPS’ Calendar Committee, multiple HCPS advisory committees, division leadership, and the public through a community survey, said Tuckahoe District representative Marcie Shea.

“This is not created in a vacuum, this is not people throwing darts at a calendar,” She said. “It really is drenched in feedback. We sit down with faith leaders, we sit down with instructional leaders, we sit down with parents and students.”

The school board is set to vote on the proposed 2027-2028 calendar on Apr. 30.

HCPS announces new updates and 'off-the-charts' engagement with ParentSquare

At their Thursday meeting, HCPS officials also shared new features added to the teacher-parent communication app “ParentSquare.” Starting this past school year, teachers have been able to use ParentSquare on their personal device without revealing their personal phone numbers to families.

Calls between teachers and parents on ParentSquare are automatically recorded, but parents will receive an immediate notification when the recording starts and can opt-out but still continue the call without recording, said HCPS Chief of Communications Eileen Cox.

Since launching the app divisionwide in 2023, HCPS has seen increased engagement with families, Cox said, particularly because of ParentSquare’s automatic translation tool. HCPS leaders have also received anecdotal positive feedback on the app, she said.

“We’ve come a very long way in communication,” said Varina District representative Alicia Atkins. “What has been presented today really proves that the team’s work is successful.”

HCPS is able to contact 99.5% of families through the app or through text messages or emails sent via the app. Most families elect to receive messages through text or email, but 59% of parents have also downloaded the app.

About 71% of teachers actively post on ParentSquare, with elementary teachers posting the most, and 85% of teachers use direct messaging, especially middle and high school teachers. Posts have seen an interaction rate of about 53% with parents.

Through ParentSquare’s secure document delivery feature, which allows teachers to send exam reports or forms electronically to parents – HCPS has been able to save about $107,000 in mailing costs, Cox said.

HCPS also launched “StudentSquare” in 2024, and is looking into adding a feature to ParentSquare that would allow parents and students to message each other on the app.

Liana Hardy is the Citizen’s government and education reporter. Support her work and articles like this one by making a contribution to the Citizen.