Children are constantly moving toward their futures, and it is the role of Chesterfield County Public Schools to nurture the potential within each child. Who knows how high Chesterfield students will soar?

Alumni who not long ago were entering Chesterfield classrooms are now making a difference throughout the world. Chesterfield County Public Schools helped these alumni achieve success and is helping today’s students discover the paths to their futures, developing within each student the 21st-century skills needed to fulfill their potential.

Families continue to choose Chesterfield County in part because of the public school system, which is consistently cited by SchoolMatch as having what parents want.

Recognizing Chesterfield’s appeal, America’s Promise Alliance has named Chesterfield County one of the country’s 100 Best Communities for Young People for three years in a row.

With more than 58,000 students, Chesterfield is among the 100 largest school districts in the nation and the fourth largest in Virginia. The Chesterfield approach to education is working: Chesterfield is the largest school system to have every school accredited by the Virginia Department of Education, and student pass rates on Virginia’s rigorous Standards of Learning tests routinely surpass state averages. For the third straight year, the division made adequate yearly progress under No Child Left Behind.

Striving for continuous improvement, the school system works toward the School Board’s vision of every school as “a thriving, dynamic and inspiring educational environment that produces self-directed learners with 21st-century skills and stimulates citizens of all ages to trust in, invest in and benefit from public schools” by concentrating on the five goals of the Design for Excellence strategic plan:
1. academic excellence for all students
2. safe, supportive and nurturing learning environments
3. knowledgeable and competent workforce
4. community investment
5. effective and efficient system management

Chesterfield has the lowest cost per student when compared to Virginia localities with 100,000 or more residents, according to the county’s internal auditor. Standard & Poor’s compared reading and math proficiency with money spent and determined that Chesterfield schools are extremely effective; the division ranks third among 15 of Virginia’s largest localities.

Attracting and retaining the best teachers and staff members is a priority. Chesterfield has 75 National Board certified teachers and 1,973 teachers with master’s degrees.
Chesterfield schools, students and staff members continually receive local, state and national recognition. Three schools — James River High, Clover Hill Elementary and Robious Elementary — are National Blue Ribbon Schools of Excellence. The Milken Family Foundation has honored three Chesterfield teachers with National Educator Awards worth $25,000.

Of the 4,294 graduates in the class of 2008, 53 percent earned advanced diplomas and 85 percent planned to continue their education. The class earned $15.6 million in scholarships.

The 2008-09 operating budget of $594.5 million (per-pupil cost $9,903) is designed to prepare each student for success and includes these initiatives: a school readiness program for 4-year-olds at several schools; expansion of world language instruction in elementary schools; algebra for every student during their middle school years; encouragement for more high school students to enroll in Advanced Placement and dual enrollment classes or to pursue courses leading to an industry certification; and safety nets for struggling students.

High school students may choose to attend the high school in their neighborhood or apply to a specialty center or regional governor’s school based on their interests and talents. The Chesterfield Technical Center offers a full range of career and technical courses tailored to current workplace needs. To help make large middle schools more personal, students are organized into teams and share the same teachers who have a mutual planning time. Center-based programs in elementary and middle schools help meet the needs of gifted learners, and an expanding English for Speakers of Other Languages program reflects the growing diversity in the county. Middle and high school alternative study options are available in day and night programs.
A coordinated studies program offers online instruction.

Residents have overwhelmingly supported school bond referendums; including the 2004 bond referendum that passed by 87 percent. Almost 6,000 senior residents participate in the school system’s Super Senior Passport program, and more than 300 business and community partners are recognized annually for significant contributions to the school division.

Chesterfield County School Board
Chair Marshall W. Trammell Jr., Bermuda District
Vice Chair David S. Wyman, Dale District
Dianne E. Pettitt, Clover Hill District
U. Omarh Rajah, Matoaca District
Patricia M. Carpenter, Midlothian District

The School Board meets on the second and fourth Tuesdays of most months. Regular meetings begin at 7 p.m. in the public meeting room, 10001 Iron Bridge Road, and are shown live on Comcast Channel 17. The School Board also holds public engagement sessions and quarterly work sessions that are open to the public.

Superintendent
Marcus J. Newsome, Ed.D.

64 schools
— 38 elementary schools (grades K-5)
— 14 middle schools (grades 6-8)
— 11 high schools (grades 9-12) that include 11 specialty centers
— 1 technical center
Directions to schools may be found at chesterfield.k12.va.us in the “schools” section.

Students
— 58,571 students as of Oct. 1, 2008
— Demographics based on 2008-09 enrollment show a student body that is 59 percent white, 28 percent black, 8 percent Hispanic, 3 percent Asian/Pacific Islander and 1 percent American Indian/Alaskan native/unspecified.
— 24.4 percent of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch in elementary and middle schools. High schools do not participate in the federal lunch program.

Residency requirement
Students must reside with a parent or legal guardian in Chesterfield County to attend Chesterfield County Public Schools. Students attend the schools in their attendance areas unless a waiver is granted or they are accepted in a center-based or specialty program. To determine school attendance area, call 748-1666 or go to the “quick links” section of chesterfield.k12.va.us and click on “school finder.”

Entrance age
Children must reach their fifth birthday by Sept. 30 of the school year to be eligible to attend kindergarten, which is a full-day program. There is a preschool program for children with disabilities who must be 2 years old by Sept. 30 to enroll. Full-day school readiness programs for at-risk 4-year-olds are available at several elementary schools.

Test Scores

2008-09 SAT Scores
CCPS SAT Scores
SAT Scores by Ethnicity
SAT Scores by School

SOL Trends ― SOL Pass Rates from 2006 to 2009
(Sorted by School, Test, and School Year)

SOL Pass Rates ― 2008-2009
Grades 3, 4 and 5
Grades 6, 7 and 8
End of Course

Virginia Department of Education school report cards