Rowan County officials pushed back the first day of school to August 31 at this week’s Board of Education meeting. The board granted the superintendent the ability to modify the school calendar. A notice provided to stakeholders cited construction delays at Rodburn and Clearfield elementary schools. Superintendent Mike Rowe said issues around permits, materials, labor, and other unforeseen complications led to delays which made it clear the two schools would not be ready to receive students by August 24.
“So, we decided to start looking at some options, kind of go outside the box. We did find, an option is that if a district agrees to start school after August the 28, we are then allowed to do a Variable Instructional Calendar,” said Rowe.
The Variable School Calendar reduces the number of instructional days, while preserving the number of instructional hours at 1,062. The school will accomplish that by adding 20 minutes to each school day. School will start at 7:55 a.m. and end at 3:15 p.m.
“By doing this, it also allows us to add back the full Fall Break,” said Rowe. “Because when we went to moving it back to the 24th of August, we had to take some days away. So this allows us to give that back and it also allows us to have the full Christmas Break. So, we’re giving that back also.”
Rowe added that the Variable Instructional Calendar includes a full Spring Break and the tentative end date of May 22, 2024 remains the same.
Construction at Clearfield Elementary is set to be complete before the start of school. Rowe said remodeling efforts at Rodburn were always intended to extend beyond the summer break. Classroom renovations will continue through November or December.
“My goal is to make sure first and foremost that we have the best buildings for the safety of our students and staff, trying to protect instructional time and also providing parents and guardians with sufficient time to arrange their schedules as we move these dates,” said Rowe.
The original start date for preschool is staying the same, September 5.
