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Katy Citizen Watchdog$ |
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Classes Could End Next School Year After Memorial Day/Board Expected To Vote Tuesday On Proposed Calendar |
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The summer bell won't ring until June 2009 for Katy ISD pupils if the school board adopts a proposed instructional calendar for 2008-09. District spokesman Steve Stanford said administrators have been reviewing options for several months and collected community comments before choosing from two final options. Parents had the chance to view and examine the two scenarios on the district's Web site in December. The proposed schedule accommodates 177 instructional days, a Thanksgiving break Nov. 26-28 and a winter break Dec. 22-Jan 5, 2009. Spring break would be March 16-20 and a two-day Easter break would begin April 10. The biggest change in the calendar is that the final dismissal day would be June 4, meaning students would have to return to school after a May 25-26 Memorial Day holiday. The proposed timetable has classes starting on Aug. 25. Students would get several early dismissal days and other holidays throughout the year. Trustees are expected to vote on the calendar at the Tuesday board meeting. It begins at 6:30 p.m. in the Education Support Complex, 6301 S. Stadium Lane. Stanford said the district based options on several factors, including state law and testing dates plus comments collected from a committee of administrators, teachers and parents. The major difference between the final proposals was that one model had students taking first-semester exams after winter break. Commenting on the proposed calendar, parent Lisa Kenny said, "As far as the calendar is concerned, I just want the finals to be before the Christmas break. A day here or there is not that important to me." Kenny also said getting out of school after Memorial Day could put a strain on local families who traditionally take early vacations. "Getting out after Memorial Day is kind of a bummer for Texas families that try to go on vacation right after school's out to beat the summer crowds in places like Orlando. Fla.," she said. Other proposed changes include a four-day weekend for President's Day, Feb. 13-16. This year's calendar instead has time off at Washington's birthday, Feb. 22-25. At Thanksgiving, students would get the Wednesday before Thanksgiving off. Under the 2007-08 calendar, students had an early dismissal day the Wednesday before the two-day Thanksgiving break. The district also strives to establish a schedule that is in sync with neighboring school districts, Stanford said. "We don't always have it identical, but we try not to have too many conflicts," Stanford said. Part of the challenge in assembling an instructional calendar is complying with a recent state law that took effect in 2006-07 that prohibits Texas schools from starting classes before the fourth Monday in August.
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Helen Eriksen, Houston Chronicle |
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Date: 01/24/2008 |
