News and Opinion from Sisters, Oregon
News and Opinion from Sisters, Oregon
Sisters School District officials are trying to make up class time lost to snow closures this winter without reducing spring break period or extending the school year in June.
Superintendent Curt Scholl has met with representatives of the certified and classified unions to discuss the situation. Everyone agrees that mitigating lost time without affecting the major vacations is desirable, he said.
"We have spots on our calendar which are staff work days and students aren't there," Scholl said.
One day was made up last Friday, January 20, which had been scheduled as a non-class workday for teachers but was changed to hold classes instead.
The District has closed on six days due to heavy snow this academic year (see related story, page 18).
Scholl said the District routinely builds in enough class time to exceed the State Department of Education requirements of 990 hours at the high school level and 900 hours at the middle and elementary levels. The District's schedule reduces the seven needed makeup days to six, and last Friday's decision to hold classes further pared the number to five days.
The superintendent added that classes likely will be held on Presidents Day, Monday, February 20, to cut the needed makeup days to four. Scholl said it's about 95 percent certain that will happen, and he will send a notice to families well in advance so they can adjust their schedules accordingly.
The District is trying to avoid affecting spring break, which runs from March 27 until April 7. That's because many parents, and teachers alike, have made vacation plans that would be difficult to break.
"We have a student trip going abroad with two teachers, and they won't even be back if we schedule (classes) over that time," Scholl said.
He explained that while the District schedule surpasses what the State mandates, the Sisters School District policy is what causes the need for further makeup days.
"Oregon has one of the shortest school years in the nation," Scholl said. "We need to get our kids together with teachers."
He noted that Sisters isn't alone in wrestling with the loss of class time this winter, which has brought record snowfall across the state.
"It's not just isolated with us," he said, pointing to the Eugene-Springfield district that is looking at six or seven makeup days.
Meanwhile, winter is far from over and additional snow closures could happen. If that occurs, Scholl said, it will only make the situation worse and possibly require lengthening the school year next spring.
"We are hoping this is it," he said of snow closures for 2016-17.
Reader Comments(0)