The Board of Education has voted to keep tax rates the same for 2025-2026.
The real estate property tax rate will remain at 68.2 cents per $100 of assessed valuation. Also unchanged are the personal property rate at 68.2 cents per $100 valuation and the motor vehicle rate at 54.7 cents per $100. This rate is not subject to hearing or recall.
Hopkins County Schools tax rate has stayed the same since 2019.
We rank 126 out of the state’s 171 public school districts for the levied equivalent rate, which includes all forms of taxation. Only 27% of Kentucky districts have rates lower than HCS.
|
Join us for Bowl for FRYSC’s Sake, which will be held on Saturday, October 25, 2025, at Melody Lanes Bowling Center in Madisonville.
We encourage school groups and community members to form teams for this fundraiser! Each team will bowl one game. The event starts at noon, and teams will be contacted with their specific bowling time.
There will be five bowlers per team with a minimum registration fee of $100 per team.
Teams are encouraged to raise additional donations! The extra funds will be accepted on the day of the event. The team that raises the most money will receive an award.
Funds raised will be used by Hopkins County Schools’ Family Resource Youth Services Centers for student and family needs, including Christmas assistance.
The event has a Halloween theme. Additional awards will honor Best Costume, Best Team Theme, and Highest Scoring Team. Door prizes will be given away and concessions will be available to purchase.
The online registration form is available at the following link: http://bit.ly/4p533qs. Please note that the form provides a link to pay the registration fee through SchoolCash Online.
Registration closes on Monday, October 13.
|
Hopkins County Schools is excited to launch the Color Counts Initiative, a district-wide effort to provide students with a vibrant selection of fresh fruits and vegetables during lunch each day.
“We eat with our eyes, and a wide variety of fruits and vegetables appeals to students on a daily basis,” said Scott Moore, Director of Child Nutrition. “People like color and people like to eat. Why not combine the two while enjoying fresh produce?”
Through this initiative, HOPCO Cafes are tasked with maintaining a colorful assortment of fruits and vegetables throughout the entire school year. Each school chooses its own offerings, ensuring that students enjoy variety and choice. This year, we also have had fresh produce from the FFA at Hopkins County Central HS and will soon experience their fresh corn in our cafeterias too.
In addition, the Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Program at every elementary school complements this initiative, giving students daily opportunities to experience nutritious, flavorful produce. The Color Counts Initiative is designed to make healthy eating fun and engaging. By combining nutrition with visual appeal, Hopkins County Schools is committed to helping students build lifelong healthy habits!
|
To help your child succeed in school, build the habit of good attendance early. Attending school regularly helps children feel better about school - and themselves. Start building this habit in preschool so they learn right away that going to school on time every day is important. This skill will help them continue to succeed in high school and college.
Learn More:
|
Mindful Parenting is a resource that parents may use to promote child well-being and resilience at home. Benefits include improvement of parent-child communication, strengthened parent-child relationships, improvements in parenting satisfaction, and a boost in stress management.
|
Thanks to a prize-winning salsa recipe, state officials took part in learning activities in several classrooms during a visit to Hopkins County Schools on Sept. 16. They saw students solve math problems before starting to build a model house, determine pH levels of hydroponics, learn about baby chicks, and more.
Kentucky Commissioner of Agriculture Jonathan Shell and Commissioner of Education Robbie Fletcher visited Madisonville North Hopkins High School and Pride Elementary School as part of their All In for Ag Education Week Tour. The visit was related to MNHHS FFA winning the Kentucky Department of Agriculture School Garden Salsa Contest. Their recipe includes sweet corn from the school’s test plot and honey from their hives. The state officials were among the contest judges.
While at MNHHS, visitors got to tour the medical clinic that’s under construction in a shipping container behind the school. This is the second project like this completed by ag classes and other students at the school. About 420 students helped complete the first Freight Box Challenge project, and they’re hoping for more participation this time around. That clinic was shipped to Liberia, Africa.
At Pride Elementary, 5th graders were introduced to baby chicks by North FFA members. They learned about parts of the egg and how chicks hatch. The session ended with the chicken dance! Pride, which has been home to the Courtyard of Curiosity program for nearly 15 years, was also recognized for student participation in the salsa contest. Thanks to all the special visitors who came to our district!
|
Hopkins County Central’s agriculture program is putting together the building blocks for a new program that will offer students hands-on experience with cattle farming.
The project started when trying to come up with ideas of how ag students could produce additional food for school cafeterias beyond the corn, watermelon, and cantaloupes that are already reaching kids’ trays. Ag teacher Ben Prevette received confirmation that locally produced beef could be served in cafeterias provided a USDA-approved facility was used for the slaughter. The Board of Education approved a plan for a small herd of cattle to be raised on nearby property owned by Darwin Rideout.
With the high cost of cattle, the school needed help. Rideout, who used to raise cattle himself, has some of the needed equipment. Then, four big cattle producers in Hopkins County were approached, and each agreed to donate a 400-to-500 pound feeder cow. The program will also receive one longhorn steer. Through Career & Technical Education Supplement Funds, the department purchased a Priefert cattle working system with a corral, alleyway, and squeeze chute. This is now being set up. CTE funds also covered a 3-ton Conrad feed bin, which was assembled in Matthew McIntosh’s Ag Structures Class.
Prevette hopes to pick up the cows by Oct. 1.
|
|
Congratulations to the Hopkins County Schools’ district winners who posted the highest attendance at their level on Kentucky High Attendance Day! This is an annual statewide event sponsored by the Kentucky Directors of Pupil Personnel. The day serves to emphasize the critical link between regular attendance and academic success. |
HCS staff and students welcomed First Responders, military members, and veterans to many of our schools on Sept. 5 and 11 for the annual Heroes Walks! These walks commemorate 9/11 and honor those who have served our nation. We hold them in conjunction with the 9/11 Heroes Run that is part of our community. |
Hopkins County Schools participated in a fundraiser to benefit the Patrick Rudd Project in coordination with the local Travis Manion Foundation/911 Heroes Run. Flags were sold for $1 each, giving students the opportunity to honor a hero. District-wide, more than $3,000 was raised!
The traveling trophy for the top school will stay with Hopkins County Career & Technology Center, which raised $1,532.25. In second place was James Madison Middle School with $680.96, and third was Southside with $221.
|
With pieces of colorful chalk and a lot of heart, students spread hopeful messages of encouragement and resilience for the Chalk the Walk activity! The September 12 event, sponsored by Baptist Health Deaconess Madisonville, was intended to promote suicide prevention, mental wellness, and stigma reduction. |
Middle schoolers at West Hopkins get hands-on experience while learning about future job possibilities when they go to the new Career Lab. All of our middle schools have career labs that opened this fall. This gives students earlier exposure to career fields such as welding, sports medicine, nursing, electrical, plumbing, hospitality and more by using equipment and tools that are found in our high school programs and the workplace. |
HCS students in 5th, 8th, and 11th grades visited the Traveling Vietnam Wall and Cost of Freedom Tribute that was set up in Madisonville City Park. Thanks to the City of Madisonville for sponsoring this opportunity for our students! |
Hopkins County Central will host STORM FEST on Friday, October 3, from 4:30-6:30 p.m.! This free event is open to all HCCHS students and families, as well as all elementary and middle schools that feed into HCCHS.
The event includes live music, a free chili supper, games and activities, a petting zoo, free hayride, and inflatables. HCS students receive free entry to the football game that follows, with Rotary Football players being recognized during the game.
|
We want to celebrate Hopkins County Schools staff members who embody “Great Futures Start Here!” HCS Superintendent Dr. Damon Fleming is starting a new recognition program to honor staff members who go above and beyond to create opportunity, inspire greatness, and remove barriers so all students and staff can thrive.
Honorees will be recognized publicly at an upcoming Hopkins County Board of Education meeting. Nominations may be submitted by staff, students, families, or community members.
|
|
Kirsten Mendoza, an art teacher at James Madison Middle School and colorguard coach for the Marching Maroons, received the Great Futures Award during the Board of Education meeting on Sept. 22. She embodies the heart, dedication, and vision reflected in all of the award’s guiding values!
She prioritizes the success, well-being, and growth of her students. Whether in the classroom or on the field, she builds trusting relationships that make students feel supported and valued. She creates a welcoming environment where students can take risks, grow in confidence, and express themselves authentically.
She steps in to help a member of any section of the band with any skill, offering patience and encouragement. As an art teacher and coach, she thrives on innovation. She introduces new tools, strategies, and creative approaches to engage her students. She encourages creativity and individuality within the colorguard team, inviting students to be creative in their own ways and to leverage those strengths so that the entire guard family and band can succeed.
|
|
Cindy VanCleve, a CIA in the autism unit at Browning Springs Middle School, was honored with the HCS Great Futures Award during the Board of Education meeting on Sept. 8. She demonstrates excellence in both Student-Centered Impact and Service & Dedication.
Mrs. Cindy goes above and beyond her job title to make the unit a special place. She always has the heart of the kids in mind when helping with the students. She is known to bring them desserts and treats to celebrate successes in the classroom. She is an important part of what makes the Autism Unit feel like a family.
She has devoted 20 years of her career to the unit, which speaks volumes about her dedication and commitment. The work is incredibly challenging, yet she continues to serve with passion, strength, and unwavering care.
|
|
Two Madisonville North Hopkins HS FFA teams were honored by the Board of Education on Sept. 8 for winning state championships!
The Small Power Team, created through the Small Power Equipment class, qualified for state by winning the regional in April. Students applied skills related to single-cylinder engine repair and showcased related content knowledge. Team members are Westyn Miles, Will Blake, Andree Boggess and Ari Fisk.
MNHHS also placed 1st in the Kentucky Department of Agriculture School Garden Salsa Contest. The team created a recipe related to ingredients grown at school. Two main highlights were sweet corn from the school’s test plot and honey from their hives. The team cooked on the big stage at Kentucky State Fair, where they were judged by culinary experts for proper technique and food safety. The salsa was later judged for taste by Commissioner of Agriculture Jonathan Shell, Commissioner of Education Robbie Fletcher, and Lt. Gov. Jacqueline Coleman. Team members are Lilli Norman, Riley Peyton, Alex Garrott, Keeley Peyton, Kelcie Greer, and Hadley Webb. The team and MNHHS agriculture teachers also provided tasty samples of the salsa!
|
June Johnson was honored at the Board of Education meeting on Sept. 8 for winning the AARP Grandparent Essay Contest for Hopkins County as well as the District! June, who wrote the piece last year as a 5th grader at Jesse Stuart Elementary, read her moving essay aloud to those in attendance. The contest is administered by the Kentucky Retired Teachers Association. Susan Weatherford and Ann Hale, representing Hopkins County Retired Teachers Association, led the presentation. |
|
The Board of Education honored two HCS students on Sept. 8 who were named finalists in the statewide “I Voted” Sticker Contest! Jesse Stuart Elementary School students Jaidin Adkins, a 5th grader, and Rylan Bowman, who’s in 4th grade, created artworks that were among 9 finalists selected statewide. The contest was sponsored through the Kentucky Secretary of State’s office and voting took place at the Kentucky State Fair. Congratulations to these two talented students! |
|
320 S. Seminary St.
Madisonville, KY 42431
|
|
|
Additional settings for Safari Browser.
