Harrisonburg board adopts parental-leave policy, provides up to eight weeks paid leave and suspends rules for immediate effect

The Harrisonburg City School Board voted unanimously on June 3 to adopt a new parental-leave policy that replaces older maternity, paternity, adoption and foster-care language. Under the adopted policy, eligible employees may take up to eight weeks of paid leave after the birth, adoption or foster placement of a child; eligibility requires six consecutive months of service and applies to regular full‑time and part‑time employees. If both parents work for HCPS, each may take up to the full eight weeks.

The policy also specifies that the district will not require use of the employees’ accrued sick leave before granting the paid parental leave. Employees who qualify for the federal Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) may still use FMLA paperwork to extend leave for medical reasons beyond the eight-week maximum; the district said FMLA eligibility rules (12 months of service for FMLA) remain separate from the new parental-leave eligibility. The board approved a technical clarification during discussion to state explicitly that leave for a stillbirth is not limited to one occurrence in a 12‑month period.

Board members discussed timing and implementation during the meeting. Some members asked whether the district should allow leave to be used within 12 months instead of six; staff said the policy was modeled on the City of Harrisonburg’s recently adopted policy and that administrators would ask the city manager about the six‑month choice and report back. Superintendent Doctor Richards and board members framed the policy as an effort to support families while balancing classroom continuity.

The board voted to suspend its usual practice of approving policies on two readings and adopted the parental-leave policy on a final vote at the meeting so it could take immediate effect for employees with births or placements occurring after the meeting date. Members approved the motion to adopt the policy and suspend the rules unanimously.

The board also directed staff to return with any recommended technical edits, and members signaled willingness to revisit the six‑month limit in a future meeting after consultation with the city manager and further budget review.