HCPS is once again partnering with the Aberdeen IronBirds to host the End of Summer Fest at Leidos Field at Ripken Stadium during the Thursday, August 25, 7:05 p.m. home game versus the Wilmington Blue Rocks!

This family friendly event will help end the summer in a fun and exciting way as we celebrate the beginning of a new school year with families in our community. There will be many helpful resources available to families during the evening, including access to several community partners, HCPS staff, and our very own 2022 Teacher of the Year Ashley Gereli!

Students will be able to take part in many exciting activities, including a pre-game parade. They may even see Ripcord, the Aberdeen IronBirds mascot! Check out this short video for a message from HCPS Manager of Family and Community Partnerships Mary Beth Stapleton, and Aberdeen IronBirds General Manager Jack Graham.

Be sure to purchase your discounted tickets today by visiting us online at hcps.org or by clicking here.

We hope to see you there and we look forward to seeing all of our students in their classrooms soon!
 

The following message was sent August 16, 2022 at 5:00 p.m. to all Middle School families with an email in our mass communication system:

Harford County Public Schools (HCPS) is excited to announce the start of athletics at our middle schools for the 2022-2023 school year. All HCPS middle schools will offer boys and girls basketball in the winter and boys and girls soccer in the spring.

Middle school athletics will be modeled after the athletics program in our high schools.  It will be student-centered and intended to educate students through participation in Interscholastic Athletics. Participation in middle school athletics requires students to be academically eligible each quarter moving forward. Academic eligibility means students will be required to have all passing grades on their quarterly report card. 

Stay tuned for more details. You will also receive information about tryouts and practices directly from your middle school. 

Thank you,

Mike O’Brien

Executive Director of Middle and High School Performance

Deborah Basler

Supervisor of Interscholastic Athletics
 

BOARD OF EDUCATION OF HARFORD COUNTY
NOTICE OF PUBLIC COMMENT PARTICIPATION
MONDAY, AUGUST 22, 2022

OPEN SESSION:  5:45 PM – 5:50 PM
This meeting will be conducted virtually with no public attendance due to the brief nature of this meeting
and the logistical issues regarding allowing public attendance in advance of the 6:30 PM meeting.
*The only item the Board will consider during this open meeting is consideration of meeting in a closed session.

CLOSED SESSION:  5:50 PM – 6:00 PM

BUSINESS MEETING:  6:30 PM – ADJOURNMENT
This meeting will be conducted in a hybrid fashion and public attendance will be permitted as explained below:

DOORS WILL OPEN AT 6:20 PM AND THE MEETING WILL BEGIN AT 6:30 PM

The Board of Education of Harford County will hold a hybrid Business Meeting on Monday, August 22, 2022, at 6:30 PM in the Board Room of the A.A. Roberty Building with Board Members, staff, and presenters in attendance both virtually and in-person.  Seats will be available on a first come-first served basis.  The meeting will be streamed live and archived for later viewing on the HCPS Website.

Public Comment Participation Call-In Process
Community members who wish to provide comments virtually during the Public Comments segment of the Business meeting are required to register by completing this form Public Comment Registration Form.

Registrations must be received by 9:00 AM on Monday, August 22, 2022.  All fields on the registration form must be completed.

1. First and Last name             
2. Email Address
3. Phone Number
4. Registration forms are limited to one (1) per person

• Registered speakers will receive an email from HCPS with a Call-in Phone # and a Conference ID #.
• Registered speakers are required to call-in and enter the conference ID# at 6:30 PM on Monday, August 22, 2022. 
• Important:  If you are unable to take your phone off mute, you may need to dial *6.
• If you are admitted from the virtual lobby to the meeting, you will be greeted by an HCPS staff member when it is time to begin your public comment.  Expected hold time in the virtual lobby may vary based on number of registered speakers.  The maximum wait time in the lobby is 30 minutes; should you be disconnected please call back.

Public Comment Participation In-Person Process
Persons who are attending the meeting in person, as provided above, may make in-person public comment.  Board Comment cards will be available for Board meeting attendees prior to the Board Meeting for sign-up.  Board Comment Registration forms are limited to one (1) per person.

The Board has authorized public comment as follows:

• Board policy permits speaker three (3) minutes to provide comments.  However, Board policy authorizes the Board to reduce the amount of time allocated to each speaker if allocating 3 minutes to each speaker will impede the Board’s ability to complete scheduled business. 
• The Board will receive in-person public comment first and virtual public comment second. The Board expects that all comments will be submitted with the decorum and respect appropriate to the conduct of public business.
• Topics such as personnel matters, pending appeals, specific student disciplinary matters or which constitute commercial solicitations are not permitted.
• Disparaging comments, personal attacks, and inflammatory remarks about specific schools or personnel are not permitted. Speakers who engage in these comments will be reminded of the rules and the Board reserves the right to remove the speaker.  In addition, public comment is an opportunity for members of the community to address the Board of Education.  Please direct your comments to the Board and not to other members of the public in the audience.
• All public comments submitted will be part of the records maintained by the Board office.

Speakers are reminded that public comments are considered public information and,
as such, are subject to the Maryland Public Information Act.
 

Welcome to the 2022-2023 HCPS School Year! We are excited to see most of you September 6, 2022, for the first day of school. Prekindergarten students will join us September 8, 2022. Please review the HCPS 2022-2023 Handbook/Calendar prior to the start of the school year.

We encourage parents and guardians to visit our Back to School information available on hcps.org. In addition to providing links to required, and optional forms, the Back to School webpage includes the attached checklist and provides links to important systemwide information like the calendar (new this year- a Student Calendar!), permission forms, payment options like MySchoolBucks for school meals, GoFan for athletic event tickets, and new this year, School Cash Online for all other payments can be found on hcps.org. Bus stops and routes are scheduled to be released August 15, 2022 and will be available here. 

If you haven’t completed the application to determine eligibility for free and reduced-cost meals, you can find the link on the Back to School webpage. A copy of the application is also attached and is required to qualify for free and reduced-cost meals. *Eligible students may also be eligible for a free device protection plan, which covers damage to devices and chargers, and free credit bearing courses at Harford Community College.* In addition, this year will see the return of "declining balance" notifications from the Food and Nutrition office. We are required by law to notify parents and guardians when your child's food balance is getting low in MySchoolBucks. You can also set your own notification directly in MySchoolBucks to be notified if your child's account balance for the cafeteria is getting low. This, and other important information from the Food and Nutrition office can be found throughout the school year via the "Menus" button on hcps.org.

We hope you’ll follow HCPS and your individual school on social media (Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and YouTube) for updates throughout the year. After you review the Back to School information on hcps.org, use our new email, AskHCPS@hcps.org for any questions. This email will be available for any other questions throughout the school year. *Stay tuned for information on how to download the new HCPS app this year and get notices and information directly through notifications on your phone!*

We know it can be overwhelming to prepare to return to school. We’ll share systemwide information on HCPS social media channels and send more information via our mass communication system phone and email. Details on school supply lists, and any events to welcome students to each school will come from your home school so be sure to tune into school communications, too.

We look forward to partnering with you and your student for a successful school year!
 

The following message is being sent to all contacts in our mass communication system Monday, August 8, 2022 at 5:00 p.m. 

Good evening. This is Jillian Lader, Manager of Communications for Harford County Public Schools calling to welcome you to the 2022-2023 School Year! We are excited to see most of you September 6 on the first day of school. Prek students will join us September 8. We encourage parents and guardians to visit hcps.org and click the link to additional Back to School information. Links to important information like the calendar, permission forms, payment options like MySchoolBucks for school meals, GoFan for athletic event tickets, and new this year, School Cash Online for all other payments can be found on hcps.org. In addition, if you haven’t completed the application to determine eligibility for free and reduced-cost meals, you can find the link on the website. Eligible students may also be eligible for a free device protection plan, which covers damage to devices and chargers, and free credit bearing courses at Harford Community College. Be sure to stay tuned for information on how to download the new HCPS app this year and get notices and information directly sent through notifications on your phone! We hope you’ll follow HCPS and your individual school on social media for updates throughout the year and after you review all the Back to School information on hcps.org, use our new email, AskHCPS@hcps.org for any additional information throughout the school year. We know it can be overwhelming to prepare to return to school. We’ll share systemwide information on HCPS social media channels and send more information via our mass communication system phone and email. Details on school supply lists, and any events to welcome students to each school will come from your home school so be sure to tune into school communications, too. We look forward to partnering with you and your student for a successful school year! 

The following will be shared with families and staff April 28, 2022 at 5:00 p.m. via our mass communication system phone, email, and text message:

Harford County Public Schools prekindergarten applications, kindergarten registration, kindergarten early entrance applications, and advanced placement to first grade applications will be available Friday, May 6, 2022. Kindergarten registration will be available to complete online on May 6. Prekindergarten applications, kindergarten early entrance applications and advanced placement to first grade applications will be available to view and print at Registering for School, on the Parents tab on hcps.org. To submit your application, follow the directions on the cover sheet of the printed copy. Printed copies will be available at each elementary school on May 6.

Please note that prekindergarten and kindergarten registration is not available at Swan Creek School. This is a result of the Maryland legislature passing House Bill 1163. The bill says we cannot offer prekindergarten or kindergarten instruction as part of our virtual instruction.

Please share this information in your community as we try to ensure families who may not be connected to HCPS are aware that applications and registrations will be available May 6, 2022.
 
Additional information will be available on hcps.org by May 6.