Public-health officials caution that shutting schools is not a cure-all for the flu epidemic. Under some circumstances, doing so can cause other social problems, they say.

Hurdles remain as the opening of Richmond’s first public charter school nears. Patrick Henry School of Science and Arts, set to open in July, still needs to reach compliance with the American with Disabilities Act and solve transportation problems, Richmond School Board members pointed out last night. “It seems to me, this is late in the process to be talking about how to transport the students,“ said Kimberly B. Gray, vice chairwoman of the School Board. “It is critical to make sure all of our programs . . . are accessible to all children.“

Chesterfield County Public Schools will receive a windfall of nearly $671,000 from savings on bonds refinanced this year by the state. Gov. Timothy M. Kaine announced yesterday that the state will distribute $28.7 million to Chesterfield and 27 other school divisions, as well as the state Literary Fund. The savings resulted from lower interest rates on bonds refinanced by the Virginia Public School Authority.

There are lots of ways to define ethical behavior. Pat Farrell, the CEO of Henrico Doctors’ Hospital, asked students in Jackie Herrmann’s sports marketing class at Deep Run High School yesterday to define ethics. The answers were varied: doing what your grandmother would approve of; doing the right thing even when no one is watching.

Area emergency rooms are seeing an increase in patients with flu symptoms as the swine flu continues to cause unprecedented levels of illness nationally and the supply of vaccine rolls out slower than expected. Local hospitals are taking steps to restrict visitors and prepare for the possibility that emergency rooms at some point may not be able to handle a crush of patients.

This time last year, Hanover County school officials knew they’d be in for a tough budget season; ultimately, they cut $15 million from their bottom line. Some of that was later restored with federal stimulus money, but Superintendent Stewart D. Roberson warned recently that $15 million could be just the starting point for another round of cuts for the 2010-11 budget.

Schools in Hanover and King William counties are dealing with clusters of cases of flulike illness while health officials map out plans to vaccinate thousands of children. “We are having some illness here,“ said Mark Russell Jones, superintendent of King William schools. He said administrators are aware of about 10 students absent because of flulike illness at the county primary school, which has about 600 students.

A Varina District town meeting on infant mortality and H1N1 swine flu is scheduled Monday at 7 p.m. at Henrico Theatre, 305 E. Nine Mile Road. Health officials will be available to answer questions.
The Medical Reserve Corps in the Chesterfield, Powhatan and Colonial Heights communities is looking for volunteers to help with school flu-vaccine efforts. Volunteers such as licensed nurses, doctors and pharmacists are needed but also support people with clerical, data-management and logistical skills.

Most of the state’s elementary and high schools are fully accredited, while middle schools have also improved despite harder math tests introduced four years ago, according to a report released today.

When faced with millions of dollars in budget shortfalls earlier this year, school systems across Virginia searched for ways to ease those deficits. School officials say they weren’t easy decisions to make but necessary ones. “When you’re looking at a reduction of $2.6 million, you have to look beyond fewer pencils and paper products, and you certainly can’t make a great deal of money raising student fees,“ New Kent County School Superintendent Rick Richardson said.

The Chesterfield School Board last night unanimously approved delaying several key measures and eliminating others in its six-year strategic plan because of budget constraints. “For the next several years, we’re going to be in a mode of keeping what we have,“ School Board Chairman Marshall Trammell Jr. said in an interview. He was not at last night’s meeting. “Some of those things that we deem necessary, we don’t see the money for in the horizon any time soon.“

For the second straight year, six area schools placed among the nation’s top 1,500 high schools in an annual survey conducted by Newsweek magazine. James River High School in Chesterfield County was the area’s top-rated school, coming in at 246. Last year, it topped the area list at 210. The schools were ranked based on a formula that combines the number of Advanced Placement, International Baccalaureate and Cambridge tests and divides that by the number of graduating seniors.

National Republican leaders have launched a campaign to improve the party’s image. And little wonder why: The party has been taking a beating in the polls. Americans have been running from the GOP like a herd of gazelles catching wind of a lion. Richmond’s public schools have launched a campaign to improve their image as well. And little wonder why: For years, parents of school-age children have been fleeing the system the first chance they get.

The halls are alive with the sound of music in Henrico County’s schools. For the 10th consecutive year, the school system has been named one of the best communities for music education by the nonprofit NAMM Foundation, which rates schools on funding, graduation requirements, music class participation, instruction time, facilities, support for the music program and other factors.

Universities are taking another look at summer study-abroad trips to Mexico and keeping close eye on students showing up at health centers. Virginia Commonwealth University: About 20 students have signed up for a June 19 trip to Cuernavaca, capital of Morelos, Mexico, said VCU spokeswoman Pam DiSalvo Lepley. “That, of course, could change depending on the situation. We are guided by what the CDC, WHO and State Department say, as well as our contacts at our host institutions, such as the University of Guadalajara and Universidad Internacional in Cuernavaca.“