Innovative Pathways Evening Program

Overview

The Innovative Pathways Evening Program provides educational services for current students who are seeking to recover credit for missed/failed courses or interested in taking additional classes to advance their studies.

Location and Schedule

All classes will be held in-person at Howard County Career & Technical Education Center (CTEC) – 10920 Clarksville Pike, Ellicott City, MD 21042. Courses are offered Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday during Period 7 ( 5:00 p.m–6:15 p.m.) and Period 8 (5:45–7:00 p.m.).

Fall 2026 Semester for 1.0 Credit Courses: September 29, 2026 – January 14, 2027

Fall Session 1 (0.5 credit courses): September 29, 2026 – November 12, 2026
Fall Session 2 (0.5 credit courses): November 17, 2026 – January 14, 2027

Spring 2027 Semester for 1.0 Credit Courses: February 2, 2027 – May 12, 2027

Spring Session 1 (0.5 credit courses): February 2, 2027 – March 18, 2027
Spring Session 2 (0.5 credit courses): March 30, 2027 – May 12, 2027

Course Information

Course information can be found online. Carefully review all course descriptions, dates, and times before submitting an enrollment request.

Evening Program Course List →

Approved High School Course Catalogs →

Enrollment & Placement

Submitting Requests: Parents/guardians, school counselors, or achievement liaisons can request enrollment via HCPSS Connect Synergy. Please view the Instructions for Evening Program Registration.

Approval Process: Requests are reviewed by the school counselor, then sent to the Evening Program admin team for final placement.

PLEASE NOTE: Enrollment requests and/or request approval does not guarantee placement in the Evening Program, and enrollment requests are not first-come, first-served.

Placement Priority: Priority is assigned by grade level (Grade 12 highest, Grade 8 lowest). Remaining spots are filled via random selection.

Holds: Students with outstanding balances from previous Innovative Pathways evening or summer courses cannot enroll until balances are paid in full.

Enrollment request dates

Synergy requests open and close at 12:00 PM
Registration for Fall 2026 Semester – August 17-September 11, 2026
Registration for Spring 2027 Semester – November 30, 2026-January 4, 2027

Tuition & Payments

Tuition

Original Credit (0.5 Credit Course) – $325
Original Credit (1.0 Credit Course) – $650
Repeating Course (0.5 and 1.0 Credit Courses) – $125
SBWE/CRD II Combined Course Fee- $800

Payments

Once enrolled, invoices will be emailed via MySchoolBucks. Full payment is required prior to the program start date, and after 10 days past due, the enrollment may be removed. If payment is not received in full, the unpaid amount will become a debt and will be entered as an outstanding obligation at your child’s school. All obligations must be satisfied prior to graduation.

Payments can be made in the following ways:

Online: Payment may be made through MySchoolBucks by debit card, credit card or eCheck (there is a 4% non-refundable service fee).

Mail: Download the Registration Payment Form and return the completed form with a check or money order payable to HCPSS to:

HCPSS
Attn: Innovative Pathways
10910 Clarksville Pike
Ellicott City, MD 21042

In-Person: By appointment only. Please contact the program directly for alternate payment options.

Financial Assistance

FARMs Status: Current HCPSS students receiving Free and Reduced Price Meal services automatically receive a 50% tuition reduction upon verification. Apply at hcpss.org/farms.

Financial Hardship: Families not qualifying for FARMs but experiencing documented hardship (unemployment, foreclosure/eviction, medical emergency) may submit a Financial Assistance Application (Online or Mail).

Online: Complete the online form and email the required documentation to IPEvening@hcpss.org
Mail: Download the Financial Assistance Application and return the completed form and required documentation to:
Attn: Innovative Pathways
10910 Clarksville Pike
Ellicott City, MD 21042

Refund Requests

Refund requests will only be processed after a withdrawal request has been submitted online through HCPSS Connect prior to the refund deadline. See details on how to Request Withdrawal from Evening School Courses.

Refunds will not be issued after Friday, September 25, 2026 for the fall semester or after Friday, January 29, 2027 for the spring semester.

Tuition paid by check or money order will be refunded in the form of a check mailed to the issuer once the Refund Form is processed. Refunds by check may take 4–6 weeks to process. Tuition paid by credit card will be refunded to the credit card in accordance with the credit card company’s refund procedure less the service charge.

Attendance

Daily attendance and active student participation directly support student achievement. This is especially important during the Evening Program. Students will be meeting the instructional objectives for a full-year/semester course in a compressed 13-week timeframe.

The following policy outlines expectations regarding tardiness and absence:

Tardiness: Students arriving after 10 minutes of the class start time (5:00 p.m. or 6:30 p.m.) will be marked as tardy.
Accumulated Tardiness: Every two instances of tardiness will be recorded as one unexcused absence.
Missed Class Time: Any student who accumulates 20 minutes or more of missed instructional time, regardless of the reason, will also be recorded as an unexcused absence.
Absences:

0.5 Credit Course: Students who have more than three absences (excused or unexcused) will be withdrawn from the program.
1.0 Credit Course: Students who have more than five absences (excused or unexcused) will be withdrawn from the program.

To report an absence:

Students should message their teacher through Canvas Inbox or email their teacher’s HCPSS email address.
Parents can call the evening program phone line (410-750-8227) or email IPEvening@hcpss.org and include “Absence” in the subject line. Include the student’s name, course name, teacher’s name, and reason for absence.

Students may only earn credit for assignments due to an excused absence. Students may be excused from class or school only for reasons as specified in the Code of Maryland Regulations, 13A.08.01.02, 13A.08.01.03, 13A.08.01.06, and l3AA.10.01.04(A-B).

Transportation

Students and their parents/guardians are responsible for transportation. Students must be picked up by 6:25 p.m. for a period 7 class and 7:55 p.m. for a period 8 class.

There is limited bus transportation available via community bus stops – a central bus stop location. Door-to-door or neighborhood bus stops are not provided. Transportation routes and schedules can be found in the IP Evening Program Handbook. Community bus stops are subject to change.

Additional transportation may be found through the Regional Transportation Agency (RTA).

FAQs

Please access the IP Evening Program Handbook for information regarding parent/guardian and student orientations, important dates, attendance, transportation, withdrawal requests, grading, and student code of conduct.

Contact

For questions regarding course selection, contact the student’s school counselor.

Innovative Pathways Office
IPEvening@hcpss.org
410-313-6627 (M-F; 8:00-3:30pm) for all registration/enrollment questions
410-750-8227 (Tu-Th 4:45-7:45pm) Evening School Front Office

Please note that messages sent via email generally will receive a faster response than calling. Phone messages will be returned within 48 hours during the school week.