Harrisonburg board hears CTE redesign plan, adopts multiple policy changes on first reading; honors farm-to-school week and marching band

Harrisonburg City School Board members on Oct. 7 reviewed a plan to redesign the district’s career and technical education (CTE) offerings after the division announced it will leave the joint MTC program in 2027, recognized school nutrition’s farm-to-school activities and the Rock City Regiment marching band, and approved a slate of policy revisions on first reading.

The board’s most consequential policy discussion centered on the CTE redesign and the advisory committee the division convened to recommend new program areas and partnerships. Superintendent Dr. Richards said the advisory group — composed of local employers, higher-education representatives, parents and educators — has met four times and will present its formal recommendations on Oct. 21. "We have determined that we'll keep an advisory board together, in perpetuity," Richards said, citing labor-market analysis and student-survey results used to identify six initial program areas.

Why it matters: HCPS’s decision to leave the regional Massanutten Technical Center (MTC) arrangement will require new local partnerships and course delivery models; Richards described the redesign as a hybrid model that relies on community and regional partners rather than a single campus. The board scheduled a public work session on Oct. 21 at Bluestone Elementary School where advisory committee members will present the recommendations.

The meeting also included routine recognition items. Heather Yudsey, the division’s director of school nutrition, described Farm to School Week activities and invited the board to participate in the statewide Virginia "Crunch" event on Oct. 9, noting the division is prioritizing locally sourced produce. Yudsey identified Showalter’s Orchard in Timberville as one local supplier and said the nutrition program plans demonstrations, a tractor visit to one school and a petting zoo as part of weeklong activities. "Our goal in the nutrition department is to increase our local and fresh produce on the menu," Yudsey said.

Board members also heard from the Rock City Regiment’s drum majors after the board presented awards recognizing the marching band’s recent competition placements. Drum major Annie Snow of Harrisonburg High School told the board the ensemble’s competition weekend at James Madison University left students with "an internal satisfaction that, like, didn't even need a trophy." Board members praised students and the directors, Claire Leeper and Daniel Upton, for keeping the co‑operative band intact after the district opened a second high school.

Policy actions: The board considered several policy revisions and voted to approve a number of them on first reading. Most of the items were model-policy updates from the Virginia School Boards Association (VSBA) or local clarifications of existing practice. Notable items discussed or approved on first reading included:

- Communication policy (2-15): removed a previously listed staff advisory group after the board’s collective bargaining resolution designated the Harrisonburg Education Association as the exclusive staff representative. Approved on first reading.

- School attendance areas (4-02): clarified that students who move mid-semester may be allowed to remain at their current school through the semester and that waivers approved by the principal and superintendent are an option for continued enrollment. Approved on first reading.

- Buildings and grounds maintenance (3-37): board approved a wording change to make the administration ‘‘responsible for equipping’’ exit doors with panic hardware rather than wording that could be read as requiring principals to perform installations; approved on first reading.

- Crisis and emergency management (4-18): updated to align with VSBA model policy and to include a regulation that will list code-of-Virginia requirements; board clarified the policy should refer to multiple "crisis intervention teams" (school-based and division-wide). Approved on first reading.

- Weapons in school (4-40): board members flagged that the model policy text narrowed one subsection to firearms only; the board directed staff to return with language ensuring disciplinary rules for other weapons remain clear. No final action taken—item to be revised and returned.

- Opioid antagonists (4-42): approved as a new stand-alone policy, cross-referenced to existing medication administration rules.

- Student transcripts: clarified longstanding practice that families may request expungement of middle‑school credit-bearing course grades (for example, Algebra I in eighth grade), and that such expungement is irreversible; approved on first reading.

- Alternative paths / world-language credit by exam (policy 7-54): added language allowing local proficiency tests where national or international exams are not available (the district cited Kurdish as an example) and noted the vendor most used for testing is Avant; approved on first reading.

- College and career readiness (7-55): updated to reflect recent state requirements and local practice, including pathways and the division’s work on passport and UCGS options; approved on first reading.

- Advanced/accelerated mathematics: revised to implement recent state legislation that automatically places students in accelerated math courses based on SOL quartile placement when the criteria are met; the policy notes placement is subject to course availability and that parents may opt out. Approved on first reading.

Discussion versus decisions: Board members and staff repeatedly distinguished discussion points, clarifications and direction from formal action. For example, the weapons-policy text was discussed but not approved; staff were asked to clarify disciplinary coverage for non‑firearm weapons. The attendance-area change clarifies practice about semester-end waivers but does not change waiver authority, which remains with the principal and superintendent.

Votes at a glance: Several items were approved on first reading by voice vote during the meeting; the weapons-policy item was left for revision. (Motions and seconds were recorded during the meeting; where the mover or seconder was not announced by name in the transcript, the minutes record a voice vote.)

Superintendent comments and other items: Dr. Richards noted October is Bullying Prevention Month and described the division’s restorative-practices work. Richards reiterated that the CTE advisory committee will present recommendations on Oct. 21 and said the committee will remain in place to advise the division as programs are implemented. Richards encouraged the public to attend the Rocktown–Harrisonburg football game Friday, calling it a community event that showcases students’ work in arts and athletics.

Public comment: No members of the public spoke during the meeting’s public-comment periods; the board chair closed both sessions after no signups remained.

What’s next: The board will receive the CTE advisory committee’s recommendations at an Oct. 21 work session at Bluestone Elementary School; staff will return with revised weapons‑policy language clarifying discipline for non‑firearm weapons.