School Schedule Options Debated

Mountain View School Board declined to consider any alternative schedules for next year following a recent survey of staff members.

Supt. Brent Howard told the board Jan. 10 that he was prompted to conduct the survey after the state issued a new ruling that school cannot start more than two weeks before Labor Day. This means school will start on Aug. 22 in 2022, which is about a week later than it has been starting.

It also means that classes might go later into June of 2023, and the calendar might include fewer holidays than the last couple years.

The majority of staff and teachers who responded to the survey, 59.6 percent, were in favor of a four-day week. This was under consideration a couple years ago, and the school polled parents as well as staff but never pursued it.

Nearly 29 percent preferred to stay with the traditional calendar, while 11.7 opted for a so-called “12-month” calendar. With this schedule, students would get almost seven weeks off during the summer and then two-week breaks after each quarter. So they would have a similar amount of break time, but it would be spread out through the year.

Howard said 171 staff members responded to the survey, and he was seeking board input and would then poll the public and set up a public meeting.

See the full story in the Jan. 19 issue.