RICHMOND, Va. — Students across Central Virginia are heading back to the classroom today as the new school year begins in multiple districts.
In Richmond, elementary students along with sixth and ninth graders are returning to school today, including Fox Elementary students who are finally back in their building after a devastating fire in 2022.
The $31 million renovation project at Fox Elementary marks the end of a three-and-a-half-year journey filled with fundraisers, community support, some construction delays, and resiliency.
"When the fire happened, people were devastated. This has been such a fixture on Hanover Avenue. It's the center of The Fan, and people have gone here for years and years and years," said Katie Ricard, Richmond School Board Second District representative.
A fire destroyed the building in February 2022.
The building did not have a sprinkler system then because of the era it was built in, according to Ricard, the school board member for Richmond’s second district. It does now.
The rebuilt classrooms pair historical elements from the old building with new technology, configurations and fresh paint. Safety improvements were a major focus of the renovation to prevent similar incidents in the future.
Meanwhile, students in Chesterfield County, Henrico County, and Hanover County are also beginning their school year today.
In Chesterfield, grades 1-5, some kindergartners, and grades 6 and 9 are returning.
Henrico welcomes back all students, while Hanover sees kindergarten, first, sixth and ninth grade students returning to classrooms.
Colonial Heights schools are also welcoming students back, with new superintendent Travis Ridley expressing excitement for the new year.
"It's always exciting time to see the kids come in, our returning Colonials and the new Colonials to us, and just an exciting time for all getting the kids ready to learn," Ridley said.
Ridley emphasized school safety is a top priority.
"Safety in Colonial Heights schools is our first priority. We have a trained school security officer or school resource officer in all five of our schools, and that's very important, so they're here to support but also to make sure that our students are safe every day," Ridley said.
Ridley also stressed the importance of parent-teacher relationships.
"It's teamwork. It's very important that parents understand that we have open lines of communication. We want to hear from them, and we also want to make sure that we're passing information back, because in the end, it's all about the students," Ridley said.
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