Cover storyUm, When is It OK to Be Late? Can I Turn on My Cell Phone Now? Where Can I Get Information Online? ANSWERS

1. b. A total of 49. There are 35 elementary, nine middle, five high schools. Norfolk has other academic programs and alternative schools as well.

2. c. Students enrolling shall have reached their fifth birthday on or before Sept. 30. Children who turn 5 between Oct. 1 and Dec. 31 may enter if, a), space is available; b), they demonstrate readiness; and c), that a tuition fee is paid.

3. d. Tardiness is not a core value at Norfolk schools. Probably not at any other school system either. Speaking of tardiness…

4. c. A written excuse from the parent or guardian must be presented when a student is tardy or absent from school.

5. d. To be considered in attendance, students must be in school a minimum of three hours during the regular day.

6. b. In secondary school, a student must attend 75 percent of a class to be considered present for that day.

7. b. Azalea Gardens.

8. b. The official Web site of Norfolk public schools is www.nps.k12.va.us. There, students, teachers and parents can find information or links to other helpful sites.

9. d. The fourth seal offered is the Standard Diploma seal. Class clowns wind up with all the other out-of-work comedians.

10. a. Stephen C. Jones, who came here from Syracuse, N.Y., where he headed that citys schools system since 1999. He began his career in education in 1970 as a social studies teacher. (If you got this answer wrong, please return to superintendents guest essay on Page 2 of todays Compass.) The others: Stuckwisch is superintendent of Portsmouth Public Schools; Fraim is Norfolks mayor; Simpson was Norfolks superintendent for six years until he retired last September.

11. c. Cell phones are prohibited during school but OK during extracurricular activities.

12. d. Dexter Reid, a defensive back for the NFLs New England Patriots, graduated from Granby High School in 1999 and the University of North Carolina. His father, Dexter Reid, played basketball at Granby and Virginia Tech.

13. a. The progress report includes the scale O (outstanding), V (very good), S (satisfactory), N (needs improvement). Letter grades include A, B, C, D, E.

14. d. Students will be assigned 30 minutes homework per subject. This will represent 5 percent to 10 percent of the semester grade.

15. a. 1 percent. On Sept. 30, 2003, the date of the latest figures, Norfolk had 14,312 students and 143 dropouts for grades 7 through 12. Dont be in that 1 percent!