Attleboro Considers School in August or School on Saturday

Several snow days during the 2010-2011 school year has Attleboro's School Committee considering a change in schedules for next year. On Monday night the Attleboro School Committee discussed two possibilities that would address future concerns of having more than five snow days in one school year after the multiple snow days this year pushed the end of the school year from June 16 to June 23. 

One of two proposed schedules for the 2011-2012 school year would have students returning from their summer vacation on August 31 and ending school year on June 18.

A second proposal is to have students return on September 6, the day after Labor Day, and continue until June 21.

Each school calendar is required to have five snow days built into it at the end of the year, however, schools are also prohibited by Massachusetts law from keeping students past the end of June.

With the start date of September 6, the five built in snow days would bring the end date to June 28 and give only two extra snow days before the days would need to be made up on either Saturdays or during scheduled vacation days.

With this past severe winter causing five days of school to be cancelled, the concern, according to the committee, is justified.

Michael Levinson backed the concern with a reminder that there were also severe storms occurring over the schools’ winter recess, and had the storms been during the school year even there would be additional make-up days. 

“I’m actually in favor of the August start,” Levinson said. “I don’t think any students are going to be checked in on Saturdays.”

One concern members of the committee had was on the disruption of family vacations that have been planned with the later start in mind.

“We’re going to hear a lot of people say ‘you messed up our vacation,” Chairman Ray DiCiaccio said. “That’s the feedback I’m hearing.”

Teachers also wouldn't mind an earlier start to the year according to a survey given to the teachers that showed 67 percent of them were in favor of the earlier start, Director for Teaching and Learning Excellence Nancy Sprague said.

Another point of contention on the proposed schedule was over the placement of the six, half-day professional days.

Each of them occurs on a Wednesday and committee member Jim Stors questioned why they weren’t on Fridays, which would be more convenient for the parents. Stors, who is actively involved in the  PTO, said he had heard complaints from parents about having to take days off in the middle of the week.

Others, however, disagreed with Stors including Superintendent Pia Durkin who said that she had not heard complaints from parents about the Wednesday half days. “What the parents ask is for us to be consistent,” Durkin said.

DiCiaccio said he had not heard any such complaints, but admitted that it could be a result of his children being in high school and able to walk home.

“I think it’s been this way for so long that people are just used to it,” DiCiaccio said adding that the Wednesday half-day policy had been in place for a few years.

Helen Johnson raised a question of student attendance on Friday half days, saying: “I’d like to see the amount of kids that show up on a half-day Friday. Probably 50 percent.”

Committee Notes:

• Voted to accept the donation from the Social Security Administration of 12 vinyl chairs with two six seat metal frames ($100), one metal bookcase ($50), one metal TV cabinet with wheels ($125), one executive desk ($1000), 25 HP dc7700 desktop computers ($215 each), APC 2200 UPS computer battery ($334) and one Dell Power Edge 2950 server ($1200).
• Voted to accept $176.40 from Kiducation for deposit in the Briggs Corner School gifts/donations line.