Closings and Delays

When schools are closed, all full-time 12-month employees are expected to maintain regular working hours except when HCPS Central Office is closed.

The following employees do not report unless students are in attendance:  clinic attendant, school security officers, bus drivers, food service staff and temporary staff members. A temporary staff member is anyone working 29 hours or less per week; substitutes; and board substitutes. In the event that schools are closed to students, any of these employees who report to work without permission from the superintendent or superintendent’s designee will be directed to leave the premises. No monetary compensation will be provided. Please be sure employees are clear regarding their classification: temporary, part-time, full-time, or 12-month. If you have questions about the status of employees, please check with the school secretary or call HCPS Human Resources at 804-652-3657. Annual leave may be taken if employees choose to report late or miss the day. However, supervisors should be notified before the start of duty time.

In any emergency event, Facilities employees (school and Central Office) identified as essential personnel are subject to being called in. This designation requires employees to ensure that school facilities are ready for use by staff and students following an emergency event. Facilities employees should follow the guidelines below when school operation times are altered.

Early School Closing
All Facilities employees (school and Central Office) should remain at their assigned location until notified by their facilities supervisor. Evening custodial employees should not report to work unless notified by their facilities supervisor. This includes full-time, part-time and temporary staff.

School Closed –  All HCPS Employees
All Facilities employees (school and Central Office) should not report to work unless notified by their Facilities supervisor. This includes full-time, part-time and temporary staff members.

School Closed – 12-month Employees Report (delay or no delay)
All Facilities employees (school and Central Office) should report to work on time. This includes school-based evening custodial employees.

If there are questions, maintenance supervisors should contact the Maintenance Control Supervisor at 804-349-2464 and custodial employees should contact their school’s maintenance supervisor.

When schools are closed, all field trips, athletic events, after-school and evening activities are canceled. This includes adult education classes, staff development programs and any activities planned by outside groups in school facilities. Exceptions may be made, at the high school level only, if the activity involves tournament playoffs, district-, regional- or state-level competition or activities. Approval for the exception may be given only by superintendent or designee when conditions indicate transportation and facility access can safely occur. On non-school days, should emergency conditions develop, the superintendent or designee will determine whether participation in scheduled events can be safely permitted.

When schools open two hours late, all half-day PEDD classes are canceled.

As soon as a decision is made by the superintendent to close schools early due to emergency conditions, notification will be made to principals. News media sources will be contacted as soon as principals and parents/guardians have been notified.

Students are dismissed in the following order: elementary, middle (Virginia Randolph Education Center) and high schools.

Bus drivers and assistants are advised to listen to local news media sources when emergency conditions arise. Drivers with shuttle runs will pick up students in the usual order and return students to their home schools. Principals must hold all buses until students in specialty center programs have returned to their home schools, unless otherwise notified by transportation. Special education buses will follow their designated routes. When buses serving a school have not arrived by the time of dismissal, other drivers are to return until all bus riders have been taken home. Transportation supervisors will contact principals once all students have been transported home safely.

Staff may be dismissed at the discretion of the principal; however, some staff members must remain to respond to calls from parents or any situation that may occur as students are transported home. Facilities employees are not included in dismissal by the principal. Central Office and annex facilities will be notified by the superintendent (or designee) of early dismissal time.