A
vote is expected to come next month from the state Board of Education on a
school calendar policy that would give county school boards more flexibility .
That
policy, which was first proposed last month, would require county school
systems to provide at least 180 days of instruction for students each school
year, no matter the weather.
State
Superintendent Jim Phares adds the policy does not require year-round
school, but rather encourages school systems “to drop down those learning gap
times where the loss of learning takes place.”
The changes
to the school calendar are part of the education reform law and will replace
the current policy which Phares argues restricted county officials in many ways
when scheduling school years.
He
said this new policy gives those officials more flexibility to meet the 180
days mark. “I believe it gives each individual county the unique
opportunity to develop a calendar that’s best suited for their county,” said
Phares.
With
it, each county school system would also have to come up with a plan, with the
personalized calendar, to compensate for inclement weather.
“The
core principal is there,” Phares said. “We want them to be in school for
180 days and we want the counties to be able to determine when those 180 days
will be based on that county’s needs.”
With
the proposed policy, county school boards would also have to hold at least two
public hearings before voting on a schedule. Phares said this is another
important piece to the policy.
“The
board still has the sole authority to approve the county calendar, but I still
believe that this is a powerful, not policy driven initiative, that actually
allows engagement of the citizens,” he adds.
Phares
explains that it makes sense to have the public involved because they are
usually the first people school officials hear from when school is closed
or not closed.
The
state Board of Education is currently in the process of considering
feedback received during a 30 day comment period on the proposal.
Board members are
expected to vote on the policy at their next meeting in December, so the change
could go into effect for the 2014-15 school year.
