News & Announcements

Join us for a Community Yard Sale on Saturday, August 24th from 8 AM to 12 PM at Harry E. James Elementary! 1807 Arlington Road, Hopewell, VA 23860
Vendor spots are available for just $15 per parking space.
For more information or to reserve your spot, email Mrs. Jones at [email protected].

The condition of the field and grounds at Merner last evening were not acceptable and we apologize for it not being in the shape that our team and community deserve.
We have typically taken care of the field within our maintenance department and this has often worked out fine in normal weather conditions and when we have full staffing. What occurred last night was the combination of recent wetter than normal weather throwing off the schedule of mowing and weeding and causing us to get behind, and then illness among staff that left us short-handed at the last minute. We will not let this situation happen again.
Already today we have arranged with the company who cuts the grass at our other properties to work on Merner Field to get it back into shape and to start a plan for mowing several times per week to avoid build up of grass and clippings. We plan to continue this going forward.
We know there are other needs for Merner Field in addition to the grounds. Some of those are in the process of being addressed and then there are other needs that have been included in our Capital Improvement Plan, as these are not inexpensive updates.
We again apologize, as we want the focus at our games (and scrimmages) to be on our students/athletes.

We have had concerns expressed by some at the high school saying that the air conditioning is not working and we want to provide facts about the current conditions in the school.

When the rooms were recently reviewed again at 8:30 this morning, 95% of them were running within one degree of set point, which is 73 degrees. This information was reviewed both through the electronic sensors and by physically spot-checking rooms. The 5% of spaces that were not in the low 70s are known issues that we have our contractors working on now and some of those have already been fixed. In cases where those rooms get too warm, we move the class to another location. This is not unusual to happen in a large building in the summer where many of the units are for individual rooms.


Some of the rooms where we had complaints were checked and each of those were confirmed to be 73 degrees. In some cases the humidity levels were higher than preferred but it is part of the issue with the current weather as we pull in fresh air. We have also had some people complain that rooms are too cool when they are also in the low 70s. Ultimately, we aim to ensure every room is within the OSHA standard of 68-76 and as close to the middle of that as possible.


We are continuing to monitor the temperatures as well as look into concerns expressed with any space.

REMINDER: We're now using ParentSquare, a user-friendly platform for school and division-wide communication through emails, text messages, and phone calls (including transportation and attendance updates). We strongly encourage our families and staff to download the ParentSquare app and check their language and notification settings.

Our Hopewell High School staff, coaches, and the entire community continue to mourn the loss of one of our 10th grade JV football players during practice yesterday. Our focus today has been to provide a space for our staff and students to grieve.

We respect the privacy of the family during this time, but do want to share that this 15-year-old young man was considered one of the most genuine and remarkable students our staff have ever worked with. He was considered a “light” to all who met him and left a lasting impact.

What occurred yesterday was that our team was at practice about 40 minutes into light drills, following standard safety protocols. After returning from a water break, the student collapsed about 10 feet from a coach. Two coaches were in the vicinity and immediately performed CPR and called 911. An AED was on grounds, but the paramedics arrived promptly and prior to the AED being used. The paramedics provided additional medical support and transported the student to the hospital right away.

We have been asked about the status of athletic training. We completed the procurement process for securing athletic training services over the summer. The existing contract identifies August 12, 2024 as the starting date.

School will resume tomorrow (Wednesday). The air conditioning issues that caused the closure this morning have now been resolved, with the average temperature in the school now in the low 70s. Grief counseling will be available for all of our students when they return.

Our coaches and team are about much more than just football and are devastated. We respectfully ask that the entire school community be allowed time to grieve the overwhelming loss of this remarkable young man.

We have monitored the air conditioning situation at Hopewell High School overnight and early this morning. While some areas have recovered, other areas have not and we will need time during the day to get them operational. Therefore, school is cancelled today, Tuesday, August 6th for Hopewell High School students.

Grief counseling will be available for students at the school today at 10am, as well as when school likely reopens on Wednesday.

Hopewell High School Staff are asked to come together at the school today at 9am.

Hopewell City Public Schools is devastated that one of our students passed away as a result of a medical situation at football practice this evening. Please hold the family and our community in your thoughts and prayers. We will be providing grief support for our students tomorrow and more information will be provided to our families soon.

On July 29th, the city of Hopewell implemented speed cameras in school zones to protect our children. Drivers exceeding the speed limit by 10 MPH or more will receive warnings for the first 30 days. After that, citations will be enforced beginning August 28, 2024. Fines are $100, but no points will be added to your driving record.

This serves as a notice that there will be a Hopewell City School Board School Board Meeting on Thursday, August 8th at 7:30pm. This meeting is open to the public.

HCPS community, we are excited to announce that we adopted a new form of school-to-home communication called ParentSquare. This unified communications platform is designed to keep parents and guardians informed and encourage greater engagement and connection with HCPS. It provides a safe way for district administrators, school principals, teachers, staff and parents to:

1. Send and receive school and class information
2. Share pictures and files
3. See calendar items
4. Sign up to volunteer
5.Schedule parent-teacher conferences
and much more...all in one centralized place!!!

All district and school, grade level and classroom information will now be sent to your phone computer or phone via email or text STARTING NEXT WEEK (the week of July 22nd). To be prepared you can download the ParentSquare app now. (available for free for iOS and Android devices)