Key Insights for Charlottesville City Schools
School is back in session for the 2025-2026 school year in Charlottesville City. Here are some of the insights and news from Charlottesville City Schools for the month of August.
A Back-to-School Message from Dr. Gurley
Dr. Royal Gurley, the superintendent of Charlottesville City School, welcomed back the staff of 800 at the beginning of August with an inspirational speech about supporting all students at CCS and the importance of closing the achievement gap for Black students.
Said Dr. Gurley, “Yes, we have Black students who achieve at high levels, but we need more of our Black students to achieve at even higher levels. Now is the time to raise our expectations and the bar for our students. To demonstrate urgency. To commit, collectively, to doing better for all of our kids.”
Upcoming Charlottesville City Schools Meetings and Events
September 8th is Charlottesville 12 Day, which celebrates the group of 12 African American students who, in 1959, first attended the previously all-white Charlottesville public schools.
September 8, 2025, 4:00 pm
School Health Advisory Board meeting
September 9, 2025, 8:00 am
School Resource Officer (SRO) informational meeting via Zoom
September 15, 2025, 5:00 pm
School Resource Officer (SRO) informational meeting at Westhaven Community Center
September 25, 2025, 12:00 pm
School Resource Officer (SRO) informational meeting via Zoom
September 30, 2025, 12:30 pm
School Resource Officer (SRO) informational meeting via Zoom
School Name Changes
Charlottesville is in the process of updating the names of several schools according to the recommendations and input of the community. Here’s a cheat sheet of the previous and current changes:
- CATEC became the Charlottesville Area Technical Education Center
- Clark Elementary became Summit Elementary
- Venable Elementary became Trailblazer Elementary
- Buford Middle School becomes Charlottesville Middle School
- Burnley-Moran Elementary becomes Sunrise Elementary
- Johnson Elementary becomes Tall Oaks Elementary
School Board Updates
The school board passed the rezoning plan as recommended at the beginning of 2025. Partial implementation begins in August 2027, with full implementation scheduled for August 2029. Exemptions include allowing families to apply for early or delayed implementation.
The Board will meet in a closed session on September 11, 2025.
Community members can sign up to receive notices of School Board meetings. Staff and Cville Schools families will automatically receive notices.
Charlottesville Middle School
The new academic building of Charlottesville Middle School is open and in use this year. Current students and their parents had a chance to tour their new school during back-to-school events. Members of the community, including future students and their parents, are invited to schedule tours of the new facility using this form.
School Resource Officers (SROs) Return
On March 27, the School Board voted to restore school resource officers (SROs) beginning in Fall 2026. The school system has developed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the Charlottesville Police Department to outline the roles, responsibilities, procedures, and values that this safety model will follow.
The Charlottesville City school system is now soliciting community input and feedback through a series of in-person and Zoom meetings. Find more information about SROs, including answers to frequently asked questions.
Teacher Innovation Grants
In August, non-profit Public Education Foundation of Charlottesville-Albemarle (PEFCA) awarded Teacher Innovation Grants to fifteen projects. These grants will go to K-12 classrooms in Albemarle County Public Schools and Charlottesville City Schools. Funding for each project ranges from a few hundred dollars up to $2,000, and PEFCA estimates that they will impact more than 4,000 students across different classrooms and programs.
See the full list of grant recipients, including their schools and projects.
For more educational topics, resources, and school news, be sure to bookmark CharlottesvilleFamily.com.
Read more school and education stories in the Education section of our site. For even more wonderful learning in our community, read about Charlottesville City Schools, Albemarle County Schools, and area Private Schools.