The Fayette Citizen-News Page

Wednesday, April 10, 2002

BOE votes 3-2 for a 'balanced' calendar

By MONROE ROARK
mroark@TheCitizenNews.com

The Fayette County Board of Education has decided on a compromise of sorts with the 2003-04 calendar, approving the third of three proposals at Monday afternoon's special called meeting.

Superintendent John DeCotis created the third calendar after a number of comments were solicited on the first two proposals last month. The board in March tabled a decision on the calendar to give students and parents some extra time to consider all of the choices.

The 2003-04 academic year will begin Aug. 11, 2003, with a five-day break scheduled for Thanksgiving week instead of the customary three days. A five-day break has also been added for February, with Christmas and spring break taking place as they do now. The school year will end May 28, 2004.

The first proposed calendar called for an Aug. 4 start, with a fall break in late September, in addition to the breaks in the third calendar. The second proposal had no fall break and only three days for Thanksgiving but a sixth day for spring break.

The board followed DeCotis' recommendation in approving the calendar. Janet Smola's motion to approve was seconded by Marion Key,and the motion passed 3-2, with Terri Smith and Greg Powers voting against.

DeCotis said that a number of employers spoke out in support of the first proposed calendar, which lengthens the school year and includes the most breaks. Henry County has adopted a similar schedule which will begin this fall.

Starting a week earlier could affect school construction and actually cause delays if new facilities are not finished on time, DeCotis said. Other possible conflicts could arise in interscholastic activities, he added, and buses could be adversely affected from the summer heat.

Key suggested that a set of criteria be established for future calendars to help the process go better in the future. She pointed out that it might be a good idea to fix a calendar and try it for two or three years, since the current system forces the board to approve a calendar more than a year in advance, before the coming year even starts. "We vote another calendar before we can even try the next one out," she said.