|
|
You are here: Fairfax County Public Schools > About FCPS > Attendance and Enrollment
Individual schools schedule new-student registration dates in early August. However, students may be enrolled by appointment at any time, and parents are urged to enroll their children as soon as possible after arrival in the area. For information regarding school assignment according to geographical residence, call 703-246-6930.
Families can locate their local school by entering their street address at http://www.fcps.edu/boundary or by calling 703-329-983.
Virginia law indicates that:
Student Registration, 703-876-5219, provides school enrollment for students whose home languages are other than English (Multilingual registrars are available to help families with limited English proficiency.); foreign exchange students and students requiring I-20 student visas; all students whose natural parents or legally adoptive parents do not reside in Fairfax County; tuition-paying students; and students in foster care placed by other Virginia counties or by out-of-state agencies.
To enroll a student, the following are required:
Parents can print, complete, and submit Student Health Information (PDF document) forms at the time of registration.
Tuition is charged for students whose parents do not live in
Fairfax County. Contact Student Registration, 703-876-5231, for enrollment of nonresident
students.
Parents may request a student transfer from the student’s base (neighborhood) school to another FCPS school under certain circumstances. Student transfers are made on a space available basis and must meet one of the requirements in regulation 2230: 1) boundary adjustment; 2) family relocation; 3) childcare hardship (elementary only); 4) medical, emotional, social, family adjustment; or 5) sequential curricular program (high school only). For application forms, application guidelines, and further information visit http://www.fcps.edu/ss/Enroll_Info.htm.
By state mandate, the school day is 3 hours for kindergarten and 5 1/2 hours plus a lunch period for grades 1-12.
The opening and closing times for each school are developed by the principal in conjunction with the Office of Transportation Services, which coordinates use of buses and bus routes. Elementary schools, except designated Project Excel schools, close early on Mondays to provide time for staff development, instructional planning, and teacher conferences with parents and students. Project Excel schools may provide full-day kindergarten. Parents are informed through their schools of operating schedules.
Inclement weather or other school emergencies (such as power failures or extreme temperatures) may result in closing, delayed opening, or early dismissal of schools or a change in schedule for adult education classes. Radio and TV stations, including Channel 21, carry the news as soon as such decisions are made. This information is also displayed on the school system home page, www.fcps.edu; and emergency announcement page, http://www.fcps.edu/news/emerg.htm. Parents and students are urged not to call schools or administrative offices for this information. The Fairfax County Public Schools hot line lists closing, delayed opening, or dismissal of schools. The number is 1-800-839-FCPS (3277). Visit http://fcps.medianext.com/fcps/signup.html to sign up to receive emergency announcements (snow closings), calendar information, School Board information, and much more via e-mail. You control what you receive and can change your selections at any time.
In order to be prepared for an unanticipated change in schedule, working parents need to make advance arrangements regarding where their children should go in case of an early closing.
Textbooks are provided free of charge to all students, as is access to computers. A fee, which is determined annually, is charged for the behind-the-wheel phase of driver education. Other fees may be charged for: towel services, gym suits, musical instrument repair, loss of or damage to School Board property, transcripts of student records, enrichment materials, and extracurricular activities such as athletic events, plays, and field trips, and student drivers to park on high school campuses.
Optional student accident and life insurance plans are available at low cost. Policies offered include school-time, 24-hour, and football accident insurance; dental accident insurance; and life insurance. Call First Service Insurance, Inc., at 1-800-422-7722.
A noncustodial parent has the same rights as a custodial parent to review student records and other school information. After submitting a written request, the parent may review or receive copies of information in his or her child’s student records. A reasonable charge may be imposed for postage and photocopying costs. In the case of requests for school system records other than student records, reasonable charges may also be imposed under the Virginia Freedom of Information Act to cover the cost of searching, photocopying, and mailing. Noncustodial parents who want to have notice of school events will find that much of this information is available on school web sites and through the Keep in Touch service. Requests to have copies of such notices provided by mail will be honored if the administrative resources of the school allow. A reasonable charge for postage and photocopying costs may be imposed. Noncustodial parents are welcome to participate in events at the school such as lunches with the children, classroom visits, teacher conferences, and school productions. More specific information about the rights of custodial, joint custodial, and noncustodial parents may be found inthe current version of FCPS Regulation 2240 (PDF document).
Fairfax County Public Schools has specific student conduct rules that are reviewed annually with all students in all grades. Students may be disciplined by school officials, including suspension and expulsion, for conduct while on school property, for conduct while engaged in or attending a school activity, or for conduct that affects students while going to or returning home from school. Students may also be disciplined for acts committed away from school property and outside school hours if the conduct is detrimental to the interest of the school or adversely affects school discipline or if the conduct results in a criminal charge or conviction. Students may be excluded from school for expulsion from another school division or private school.
Policies having to do with dress code, Pledge of Allegiance, cell phones, assault, bullying, harassment, disruption of school activities, threats, gang-related activities, use or possession of alcohol, tobacco, and other drugs, weapons, and school safety can also be found in the current version of Regulation 2601 (Student Responsibilities and Rights booklet). The booklet is available by calling 571-423-4270.
This handbook is written from a parent's perspective to answer questions parents have about the school system and to encourage parents to form partnerships with the schools. The handbook serves as a resource guide to FCPS. The handbook has been translated into Farsi, Korean, Spanish, Urdu, and Vietnamese. For copies of the handbook, call the Minority Student Achievement Oversight Committee’s staff liaison at 703-208-7785.
Fairfax County Public Schools has developed policies
and regulations on student
attendance.
Last update:
March 27, 2008
Curator: Nancy Moy, Nancy.Moy@fcps.edu