The final full week of August has arrived in Josephine County, bringing families across Grants Pass and surrounding communities to the doorstep of another school year. Classrooms are being prepared, teachers and staff are returning to their buildings, and students are approaching their final days of summer vacation as local schools move toward the opening of the 2026–27 academic year.
Grants Pass School District 7 will begin welcoming students back Monday, August 31, using a staggered opening schedule designed to introduce younger students and those entering new schools before the entire student population returns.
At the elementary level, students in grades one through five begin classes August 31. The opening week includes shortened school days as elementary schools transition students into their new classrooms, routines and academic schedules.
The return will also be staggered at North Middle School and South Middle School. Sixth-grade students begin Monday, August 31, giving incoming middle school students their first opportunity to navigate a new campus and school schedule before the remaining grades arrive. Seventh- and eighth-grade students return Tuesday, September 1.
Grants Pass High School will follow a similar schedule. Freshmen begin their high school year Monday, August 31, while the full student body returns Tuesday, September 1. Counseling activities are also scheduled at the high school August 26 and 27, ahead of the beginning of regular classes.
While students still have several days of summer remaining, the school year begins earlier for the adults preparing for their arrival. District 7 teachers and staff have professional development scheduled August 24 through August 26, followed by clerical workdays August 27 and 28. Those days provide time for classroom preparation, staff training, scheduling and the administrative work required before students return.
The approaching school year reaches well beyond the Grants Pass city limits. Three Rivers School District serves much of rural Josephine County and communities outside the District 7 boundary, including Cave Junction and the Illinois Valley, Merlin, North Valley, Williams, Applegate and rural areas surrounding Grants Pass. Its schools include Hidden Valley High School, Illinois Valley High School, North Valley High School and numerous middle and elementary campuses spread across the county.
The return to school also brings familiar changes to daily life throughout Josephine County. School buses will again be traveling rural highways, neighborhood streets and city routes as students return. Morning and afternoon traffic will increase around school campuses, while designated school zones will once again become part of the weekday commute for thousands of local motorists.
Families preparing for opening day can use the remaining days of August to review individual school schedules, transportation arrangements and campus information. Start times, orientation activities and opening-week schedules can differ by grade and school, particularly during staggered opening periods.
The beginning of classes will mark the return of more than academics. Fall athletics, extracurricular programs, music, clubs and other student activities will begin filling school calendars as campuses return to their regular rhythm. High schools throughout Josephine County are also moving into the fall sports season as student athletes prepare for competition.
For younger children entering a new school and older students moving from elementary to middle school or middle school to high school, the opening days provide an introduction to new teachers, classrooms, schedules and expectations. The staggered start in Grants Pass gives students entering middle and high school an opportunity to become familiar with their campuses before returning students join them.
August 31 will bring the first major wave of students back into Grants Pass District 7 classrooms, followed by additional middle and high school students September 1. With teachers returning this week and families making their final preparations, summer vacation is rapidly approaching its conclusion.
Across Grants Pass and Josephine County, backpacks, school supplies, buses, classrooms and early morning routines are about to return. Back to school is just around the corner, and the 2026–27 school year is nearly here.