Due to the threat of inclement weather, including a forecast of 1–3 inches of snow in the morning along with freezing temperatures, we have made the decision to close schools tomorrow. The safety of our students and staff is always our top priority, and current weather predictions indicate potentially hazardous travel conditions during arrival hours.
All school-related activities, including after-school programs, will also be cancelled for Friday. At this time, Saturday events and activities will continue as scheduled. We will continue to monitor weather conditions and communicate promptly if additional cancellations or adjustments become necessary. We encourage families to stay safe, use caution if traveling, and enjoy the day at home.
Thank you for your understanding and continued support.
Byrd Elementary lit up the stage last night with A Cartoon Christmas! ⭐️🎶
From Frosty to the Heat Miser, audiences enjoyed musical moments inspired by classic Christmas cartoons. Students shined with drums, boomwhackers, solos, duets, and full choral numbers that filled the room with holiday cheer.
A special thank you to music teachers Ms. Gayle Oberacker and Mr. Joshua Stone for their creativity, passion, and countless hours of preparation that made this magical performance possible. ❤️🎼
What a festive way to kick off the season! ❄️🎄
From Frosty to the Heat Miser, audiences enjoyed musical moments inspired by classic Christmas cartoons. Students shined with drums, boomwhackers, solos, duets, and full choral numbers that filled the room with holiday cheer.
A special thank you to music teachers Ms. Gayle Oberacker and Mr. Joshua Stone for their creativity, passion, and countless hours of preparation that made this magical performance possible. ❤️🎼
What a festive way to kick off the season! ❄️🎄
Weather is on our mind in Goochland! Our team is closely monitoring the forecast for Friday that includes a strong chance of snow. Safety is always our top priority, and our decision to open, close, or delay opening is a result of communication among our school division leaders, Virginia Department of Transportation, Goochland Sheriff's Office, and Goochland Department of Fire-Rescue and Emergency Services. We also stay in close contact with neighboring divisions.
Our preference is to give families as much advance notice as possible so that work and child care arrangements can be made, but sometimes, despite our best efforts, decisions have to be made the morning of a weather event. Thank you in advance as we work to make the best decisions to keep everyone safe and to create the least disruption possible to teaching and learning.
Stay tuned to our social media, school website, email, text, and app alerts, and we will have more information soon!
Our preference is to give families as much advance notice as possible so that work and child care arrangements can be made, but sometimes, despite our best efforts, decisions have to be made the morning of a weather event. Thank you in advance as we work to make the best decisions to keep everyone safe and to create the least disruption possible to teaching and learning.
Stay tuned to our social media, school website, email, text, and app alerts, and we will have more information soon!
✨❄️ Goochland Elementary Shines! ❄️✨
Last night’s winter performance, “The Big Chill Adoption Day,” was an absolute hit! From the excitement backstage to the final bow, our GES students truly brought down the house.
Under the wonderful direction of music teacher Mrs. Kim Watts, students lit up the stage with their talent, teamwork, and big smiles.
We are so proud of their hard work and the magic they shared with our school community! 🎶
Last night’s winter performance, “The Big Chill Adoption Day,” was an absolute hit! From the excitement backstage to the final bow, our GES students truly brought down the house.
Under the wonderful direction of music teacher Mrs. Kim Watts, students lit up the stage with their talent, teamwork, and big smiles.
We are so proud of their hard work and the magic they shared with our school community! 🎶
Join us on Thursday, February 19, 2026, for an exciting night celebrating innovation, creativity, and student learning across GCPS!
Our students will take the lead as they showcase hands-on projects, meaningful learning experiences, and real-world problem-solving happening in classrooms every day.
📅 Thursday, February 19, 2026
⏰ 5:30–7:00 PM
📍 GMS/GHS Cafeterias
✨ What to expect:
- Food trucks
- Student exhibits
- Interactive displays
- A division-wide celebration of learning
Bring your family, invite your neighbors, and come see the incredible things GCPS students are creating and accomplishing!
Our students will take the lead as they showcase hands-on projects, meaningful learning experiences, and real-world problem-solving happening in classrooms every day.
📅 Thursday, February 19, 2026
⏰ 5:30–7:00 PM
📍 GMS/GHS Cafeterias
✨ What to expect:
- Food trucks
- Student exhibits
- Interactive displays
- A division-wide celebration of learning
Bring your family, invite your neighbors, and come see the incredible things GCPS students are creating and accomplishing!
GCPS wishes everyone a warm and joyful Thanksgiving! 🧡
We are so incredibly grateful for our students who inspire us, our dedicated staff who give their best each day, and our supportive community that makes GCPS such a special place to learn and grow.
From our GCPS family to yours—Happy Thanksgiving! 🦃🍁
We are so incredibly grateful for our students who inspire us, our dedicated staff who give their best each day, and our supportive community that makes GCPS such a special place to learn and grow.
From our GCPS family to yours—Happy Thanksgiving! 🦃🍁
📊🛒 Budgeting for Thanksgiving Dinner!
This week, students in Economics & Personal Finance and Entrepreneurship took on a real-world challenge: planning a full Thanksgiving meal on a budget.
Teams compared grocery ads, used coupons, tracked costs in spreadsheets, and presented their strategies for making smart financial decisions.
This hands-on project helped students build practical skills in budgeting, collaboration, and problem-solving. Proud of their hard work—and grateful to Ms. Boehm, Ms. Dewey, and Mrs. EYP for bringing this engaging lesson to life! 🦃👏
This week, students in Economics & Personal Finance and Entrepreneurship took on a real-world challenge: planning a full Thanksgiving meal on a budget.
Teams compared grocery ads, used coupons, tracked costs in spreadsheets, and presented their strategies for making smart financial decisions.
This hands-on project helped students build practical skills in budgeting, collaboration, and problem-solving. Proud of their hard work—and grateful to Ms. Boehm, Ms. Dewey, and Mrs. EYP for bringing this engaging lesson to life! 🦃👏
Last week, our fifth graders from RES, BES, and GES spent the day exploring the James River and learning what it means to be true watershed stewards! 🌊🌿
Students teamed up with educators from the Chesapeake Bay Foundation to dive into hands-on science—testing water quality, examining river biodiversity, and playing interactive games to understand how our watershed works. They also hiked the river trail, packed donation items for Goochland Cares, and completed a nature scavenger hunt along the way.
It was an incredible day of learning, teamwork, and connecting our classroom science units to the real world💧📚✨
Students teamed up with educators from the Chesapeake Bay Foundation to dive into hands-on science—testing water quality, examining river biodiversity, and playing interactive games to understand how our watershed works. They also hiked the river trail, packed donation items for Goochland Cares, and completed a nature scavenger hunt along the way.
It was an incredible day of learning, teamwork, and connecting our classroom science units to the real world💧📚✨
Goochland Middle School National Junior Honor Society (NJHS) students spent the day spreading joy and lending a helping hand at Byrd Elementary! 💙🦅
Our students jumped into a variety of activities across the school—supporting kindergarteners with a Thanksgiving project (and some hot chocolate!), assisting with learning activities like escape rooms and reader’s theater, creating holiday crafts, and spending time with Pre-K students during play, art, and lunch.
We are so proud of their leadership, kindness, and commitment to service!
Our students jumped into a variety of activities across the school—supporting kindergarteners with a Thanksgiving project (and some hot chocolate!), assisting with learning activities like escape rooms and reader’s theater, creating holiday crafts, and spending time with Pre-K students during play, art, and lunch.
We are so proud of their leadership, kindness, and commitment to service!
Last week, Randolph Elementary fourth graders teamed up with 4-H for a hands-on lesson all about weather! 🌦️
Students explored different tools used to measure and predict weather conditions—and then put their new skills to the test. A great mix of science, curiosity, and real-world learning!
🎳 Our Goochland High School Unified Bowling team had a blast bowling at Short Pump Bowlero last week! 🎳
Students enjoyed spending time together and showing off their skills. A big thank-you to Short Pump Bowlero for hosting us and to Eternal Stoneworks for their support of our team!
Students enjoyed spending time together and showing off their skills. A big thank-you to Short Pump Bowlero for hosting us and to Eternal Stoneworks for their support of our team!
Our Randolph Elementary third graders are getting creative in Mrs. Ware's art class! Students are using chalk and pastels to design colorful monster portraits, showing off their imagination and artistic skills. 🎨👾
🏃♀️ Girls on the Run!
This fall, students at all three of our elementary schools have been building confidence, teamwork, and perseverance through the Girls on the Run program. Last week, our teams completed a “practice 5K” at their schools in preparation for the big event — a regional 5K taking place this weekend with Girls on the Run teams from across the area.
We’re so proud of these girls and their coaches for all of their hard work and dedication! 💪💜
This fall, students at all three of our elementary schools have been building confidence, teamwork, and perseverance through the Girls on the Run program. Last week, our teams completed a “practice 5K” at their schools in preparation for the big event — a regional 5K taking place this weekend with Girls on the Run teams from across the area.
We’re so proud of these girls and their coaches for all of their hard work and dedication! 💪💜
Our Goochland Elementary 3rd graders just finished the 6-week Teaching Kindness program with Goochland Pet Lovers. Over the past six weeks, students learned how to safely meet a dog, what shelter animals need to feel safe, how to care for pets responsibly, and how kindness and empathy impact both animals and our community.
During our trip to the animal shelter, students saw those lessons in action and met some very sweet adoptable friends! 🐾💛🦦
During our trip to the animal shelter, students saw those lessons in action and met some very sweet adoptable friends! 🐾💛🦦
🎉 Celebrating Student Leadership!
Congratulations to Will Hyer and Ryan Johnson, who were appointed by the Goochland County School Board to serve as student representatives! ❤️💛🐾
Will and Ryan will begin their terms in January 2026, sharing student perspectives and helping guide the future of GCPS.
We’re so proud of these outstanding students and grateful to their families for supporting their leadership journeys! 👏
Fifth graders at Randolph Elementary let their creativity run wild with spooky stories inspired by The Mysteries of Harris Burdick! ✨👻 Focusing on figurative and sensory language, students crafted eerie expositions that truly set the scene. The best part? They got to share their chilling tales with classmates—flashlights in hand, reading in the dark—bringing their stories to life in the perfect spooky setting. 💡📖
📢 We Want to Hear From You!
Goochland County Public Schools is beginning the 2026-2027 budget planning process, and your input matters.
Take a few minutes to share your priorities, ideas, and feedback to help ensure our budget reflects the needs of our students, staff, families, and community. The survey is brief, confidential, and open through November 21.
Complete the survey here: goochlandschools.org/community-budget-survey-2025
Together, we’re shaping the future of Goochland schools!
Goochland County Public Schools is beginning the 2026-2027 budget planning process, and your input matters.
Take a few minutes to share your priorities, ideas, and feedback to help ensure our budget reflects the needs of our students, staff, families, and community. The survey is brief, confidential, and open through November 21.
Complete the survey here: goochlandschools.org/community-budget-survey-2025
Together, we’re shaping the future of Goochland schools!
🏺✨ Step back in time with Mr. Rorrer’s Quest II students! After studying ancient civilizations, students created their own artifacts and transformed the classroom into a museum exhibit.
From a sarcophagus and artwork to games inspired by ancient cultures, each display showcased their creativity and deep understanding of history. "Visitors" toured the museum as students proudly shared their knowledge and handmade pieces from civilizations long ago! 🌍📜
From a sarcophagus and artwork to games inspired by ancient cultures, each display showcased their creativity and deep understanding of history. "Visitors" toured the museum as students proudly shared their knowledge and handmade pieces from civilizations long ago! 🌍📜
📚 Families had a wonderful time at Randolph Elementary’s Family Literacy Night! Students and parents enjoyed fun, hands-on activities that promoted a love of reading and also had the chance to shop the book fair. ✨ It was a great evening celebrating learning and the school-family connection!
Virginia Launches Emergency Food Assistance to Support SNAP Recipients During Federal Shutdown
Governor Glenn Youngkin has announced the creation of the Virginia Emergency Nutrition Assistance (VENA) program to ensure that families continue to have access to food support during the ongoing federal government shutdown.
The VENA program will use Virginia’s state budget surplus, not federal funds, to temporarily replace federal SNAP benefits and help families in need. Virginians currently receiving SNAP benefits will automatically receive VENA assistance using their existing EBT cards.
Key details about VENA:
• Provides weekly benefits instead of monthly (approximately one-quarter of the monthly amount each week)
• Uses the same EBT cards and beneficiaries as SNAP
• Funded entirely by Virginia’s state budget surplus—no federal dollars
• Distributes $37.5 million per week to support families across the Commonwealth
• Includes an additional $1 million for Virginia’s food bank network to help ease the transition
Benefit Distribution Schedule
Benefits will be distributed each week in November according to the schedule outlined in the graphic below. Payments will occur on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays.
Virginians are encouraged to keep their EBT cards secure and monitor their accounts through the ConnectEBT app.
For more information and detailed FAQs, visit DSS.VIRGINIA.GOV.
Governor Glenn Youngkin has announced the creation of the Virginia Emergency Nutrition Assistance (VENA) program to ensure that families continue to have access to food support during the ongoing federal government shutdown.
The VENA program will use Virginia’s state budget surplus, not federal funds, to temporarily replace federal SNAP benefits and help families in need. Virginians currently receiving SNAP benefits will automatically receive VENA assistance using their existing EBT cards.
Key details about VENA:
• Provides weekly benefits instead of monthly (approximately one-quarter of the monthly amount each week)
• Uses the same EBT cards and beneficiaries as SNAP
• Funded entirely by Virginia’s state budget surplus—no federal dollars
• Distributes $37.5 million per week to support families across the Commonwealth
• Includes an additional $1 million for Virginia’s food bank network to help ease the transition
Benefit Distribution Schedule
Benefits will be distributed each week in November according to the schedule outlined in the graphic below. Payments will occur on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays.
Virginians are encouraged to keep their EBT cards secure and monitor their accounts through the ConnectEBT app.
For more information and detailed FAQs, visit DSS.VIRGINIA.GOV.
