First day hiccups? What schools want families to know

RICHMOND, Va. (WRIC) -- The bell has rung on many Central Virginia students' first day of school this week.

8News checked in with several school districts to find out how the first few days of classes have been, and some districts had reminders for families to make the rest of the year go smoothly.

The new weapons detection system at Chesterfield County Public Schools is a new part of the school routine. Some parents are still left wondering whether reusable water bottles pose an issue for the metal detectors, as district officials haven't included them on the list of things that should be removed from bags and pockets.

The list includes laptops, three-ring binders, musical instruments, umbrellas and other metal containers like lunch boxes.

As for popular reusable metal water bottles, officials said it may depend on the bottle.

Richmond Public Schools (RPS) officials said the first day of school was a success, but 8News heard from at least one parent who disagreed.

This parent told 8News the bus never came to pick up their child and others waiting this morning. RPS said its transportation operations team is looking into our questions about how many bus routes have had complaints related to pickup and drop-off so far this week.

RPS is also reminding students and families of the importance of activating their ParentSquare account. ParentSquare is the district's new text alert system, where it will be sharing important updates like school closures and events happening at school.

RPS said every family will need to register and activate their account. Instructions to do so can be found here.

Henrico County Public Schools has implemented a new, stricter phone policy for this school year. 8News asked how that has worked so far and if it has caused any issues during the school day. As of the time of reporting, 8News has not heard back.