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School officials plan next year's calendar
By Derek Hodges
Jackson County students will get a few more weeks of summer break next year, but they could lose part of their spring break if the weather takes an inclement turn.
While students will get a bit more summer break, they'll end next year later, according to a proposed 2005-06 school year calendar. This year students will be dismissed on May 23, with make-up days extending to June 6. Under the current plan for next year, however, students will be in class until June 5 with possible make-up days continuing through June 14.
Work began last Tuesday (Nov. 30) on the calendar for students and teachers. An overview of a draft calendar was given to several teachers, principals, parents and school board members by Superintendent Sue Nations. The group spent about two hours reviewing the proposal, making suggestions and changes as they considered each month.
This year's calendar planning session was made more difficult by recent action of the N.C. General Assembly.
House Bill 1464, signed into law Aug. 9 of this year, dictates "that schools shall open (for students) no sooner than Aug. 25 and close no later than June 10." The proposed calendar would give students, who started school Aug. 10 this year, an extra two weeks vacation, bringing them back to class Aug. 25.
The start date set by the legislature presents a problem for high schools across the state. Currently most schools divide their year into two 90-day semesters. Starting on Aug. 25 doesn't leave enough time before winter break to finish one of those semesters, Nations said.
That means that schools will have to give exams in January on material taught mostly in the fall. That break between instruction and testing "causes trouble," Nations said.
To help alleviate that problem, the calendar Nations proposed includes two weeks of class time after the break and before exams, a plan that will hopefully allow enough time to review material, she said.
Another problem is that, because the N.C. High School Athletic Association has not yet adjusted play dates to fit the new statewide calendar, Smoky Mountain High School could have at least two football games before the school year begins. While that issue has been raised before, no decision has been announced as to how the association will deal with the problem, Nations said.
Another notable change has occurred in the annual spring break. While the plan now calls for the regular one-week vacation for students, only three of those days are guaranteed, while two will serve as possible make-up days.
Officials originally thought they would not be able to "save" holidays to be used later. However, the current plan calls for Martin Luther King Day and Memorial Day to be holidays for students, but workdays for teachers. This will allow teachers to claim those holidays during the spring break to assure those two days will be holidays for both them and the students.
Additionally, spring break next year is now scheduled for the week just before Easter. Since Good Friday is a holiday for teachers, that means the last three days during the break are certain to be holidays.
However, because of the lack of other opportunities to schedule make-up days, the first two days of the break may be used as make-up days.
"We don't want to have to take those days, but right now we just have to hope for good weather," Nations said.
Next year's calendar will also include teacher workdays at the end of each 45-day grading period. This will give teachers the opportunity to compile and submit grades and prepare for the next grading period. Additionally, on the four exam days for the high schools, tentatively scheduled for Jan. 12-13 and June 1-2, all county schools will dismiss early.
In the past only the high schools have allowed students to leave early when exams were finished. This caused a problem for high school students who rode buses that also transported elementary students, Nations said.
Under the new proposal all schools would dismiss at 1 p.m. on exam days. The remainder of the afternoon would be used for parent-teacher conferences at the elementary schools and processing exams at the high schools.
Despite the changes, normal breaks during the year will remain essentially unchanged. Thanksgiving break in 2005-06 will include the usual Wednesday-Friday holidays. The winter break will be spread over two weeks, lasting from Dec. 21 through Jan. 2, with the first day of the break serving as a potential make-up day for school missed due to weather.
More work will be done to address other concerns before school board members make a decision on its final form. That vote will probably come during the board's January meeting, Nations said.
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