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Henrico board reviews 2026–27 academic and career planning guide with new electives, dual‑enrollment expansion and a 'life ready' diploma seal
Summary
HCPS proposed course catalog updates for 2026–27 including new middle‑school electives, expanded AP and dual‑enrollment offerings, weighted credit for advanced CTE courses, a new life‑ready diploma seal (80 hours of experiential learning), and a Jan. 5–19 student course request window; board asked for clarifications on access and staffing.
Henrico County Public Schools staff presented proposed edits to the 2026–27 academic and career planning guide on Thursday, asking the board to approve additions designed to expand student pathways to college, career and military options.
Amy Johnson, student director for student support and wellness, introduced the guide and the implementation timeline. Taylor Snow, director of secondary teaching and learning, described new middle‑school electives including "Mind Over Math" and a cornerstone elective designed to foster project‑based skills, and proposed new high‑school offerings such as AP comparative government, honors sociology, and dual‑enrollment biomedical engineering and art history.
Mac Beaton, director of workforce and career development, said Career and Technical Education (CTE) has added 34 new career‑focused course options over the past five years and noted duplicate enrollment figures rose from about 25,000 in 2020 to nearly 30,000 last year. He described steps to weight advanced work‑based learning courses to reflect their extra requirements and highlighted employer partnerships used to staff some programs.
The board asked detailed questions about access and implementation. Taylor Snow said the division aims to offer at least one dual‑enrollment course at every high school and is exploring asynchronous dual‑enrollment partnerships (for example, with Reynolds) that would be supported by HCPS facilitators so students can participate during study halls or outside the school day. Snow also said level drops historically remain permitted throughout the year, subject to scheduling and available seats.
Other updates: a new "life ready learning" diploma seal will permit students to earn recognition for 80 hours of community service, externships, job shadowing, student leadership or school‑based enterprises; JROTC credit may count as half of a health/PE credit for graduation; the course request window will open Jan. 5 and run through Jan. 19 (two full weeks and weekends).
Why it matters: The guide shapes course access and pathways for students entering grades 6–12 in 2026–27, affecting availability of dual‑enrollment options, CTE opportunities and elective offerings across the district.
What’s next: Staff will provide additional clarifications requested by board members (JROTC availability at specific schools, costs of licensure support programs, and presentation of development and enrollment projections) and return the planning guide for final board approval.
