The district serves over 23,000 students, representing the region’sdiverse socioeconomic mix. RPS is comprised of 28 elementary schools,including one charter school, eight middle schools, five comprehensive high schools and three specialty schools. U. S. News and World Report ranked Richmond Community and Open High schools among the state’s top 20 public high schools. And, Franklin Military Academy stands as the nation’s first public military school. The district also operates two regional Governor’s School programs. Gifted and talented students are served by SPACE (Special Program for Academic and Creative Excellence) at the elementary and middle school levels, andby advanced placement and dual enrollment courses at the high school level. Academically advanced students may also earn the prestigious International Baccalaureate (IB) diploma at Thomas Jefferson High School or apply to attend the Maggie L. Walker Governor’s School for Governmental and International Studies and the Appomattox Governor’sSchool for the Arts and Technology.

Did You Know?

• Richmond Public Schools participates in the “Schools for Excellence”initiative, funded by a five-year, $27 million grant from the U.S. Department of Education Teacher Incentive Fund. The program is designed to help schools recruit and retain National Board certified teachers.
• The district’s Middle School Renaissance initiative provides a program of rigorous academics and after-school enrichment opportunities for students.
• Mary Munford Elementary School and Richmond Community High School received the 2012 Governor’s Award for Educational Excellence, the state’s highest performance honor under the Virginia Index of Performance. Bellevue Elementary, Broad Rock Elementary, John B. Cary Elementary, Albert Hill Middle, Open High and Swansboro Elementary received the Board of Education’s Competence to Excellence Award.
• The district recently received one-half million dollars in funding through the Workforce Investment Act (WIA) to establish Career Service Centers (CSC) at Armstrong and Huguenot high schools. The program targets economically disadvantaged youth who are high risk,potential school dropouts.
• As part of our revamped wellness program, Richmond Public Schools recently piloted the “Fit for Life” initiative designed to boost student achievement through an increased focus on health and physical fitness.
• The Middle Years and High School Diploma International Baccalaureate(IB) Programs are located at Lucille Brown Middle School and Thomas Jefferson High School.
• Richmond Community High School is one of only six public schools in Virginia to be named a 2011 National Blue Ribbon School by the U.S.Department of Education. Additionally, Newsweek ranked the Richmond school as the 278th best public high school in the country on its top1,000 list.
• In recent years, the district has launched several programs to address increased academic rigor and 21st Century workplace skills. These include high-level Chinese and Latin classes at the middle school level through the Virtual Virginia Distance Learning initiative, expanding Franklin Military Academy to serve sixth-graders, and launching the Governor’s Career and Technical Education Academy for Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM) at the Richmond Technical Center.
• All RPS elementary schools provide the Elementary Foreign Language Program, instrumental and choral music, art and extra instructional activities.
• As part of the 21st Century workforce preparedness, RPS Career and Technical Education (CTE) offerings include 13 dual enrollment and 14 honors courses; and 76 certification opportunities in the areas of business and information technology, trade and industrial education, health and medical sciences, marketing and consumer services, adult and continuing education, and apprenticeship programs.
• RPS has more than 800 corporate, higher education, community and civic partnerships. Among them is the Micah Initiative, a program comprised of volunteers from more than 50 communities of faith who serves as tutors and mentors students at every Richmond City elementary school.
• RPS is one of 23 school districts in the state of Virginia with a Spanish foreign language program at every elementary school.
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