By Wayne Laepple
ELYSBURG -- Come January, students in the Southern Columbia Area School District will get to sleep late one extra day each week. While they snooze, taxpayers could be saving thousands of dollars.
In an effort to save the district thousands in operating costs, the school board last July approved a school calendar with only four school days each week in January and February. Reduced costs of heating, electricity and fuel could save taxpayers $50,000 to $60,000 over the two months, according to Charles Reh, superintendent.
The district, which has about 1,450 students, may be the first in Pennsylvania to experiment with a four-day school week, Michael Race, a spokesman with the state Department of Education, said Monday.
"I'm not aware of any other districts doing this," Race said. "But as long as they meet the required 180 days of instruction, they can do it."
State law requires school districts to provide at least 180 days of instruction, with 990 hours of instruction for high school students and 900 hours for elementary students. Southern already exceeds those minimums, and by making small changes in the school calendar, district officials were able to include snow make-up days in February, March and April. If necessary, other days may be made up at the end of the school year. The last day of school is scheduled for June 5, 2009.
Reh said school board members approached him in May and June, when fuel prices were very high, asking for suggestions about how the district could save money.
$6,500 a day
"We looked at a shorter school week and figured we could save about $6,500 each day by closing school," he said. "We are locked in by our fuel prices, which were high when we bid them in the spring."
Savings would be realized because buildings wouldn't be heated as much, cafeteria workers and paraprofessionals won't be at work and buses won't be running.
Teachers will still be at work, Reh said, participating in professional development workshops, under the provisions of their labor contract.
Some students, particularly those in high school, will be given extended research assignments they can work on at home.
No followers now
Superintendents in other Valley districts said they have no immediate plans to follow Southern Columbia's example.
"I'd like to know what the real savings are," said William Clark, superintendent of the Milton Area School District. "And I'd be concerned about the loss of instructional time."
There could be issues with day care for elementary students, as well as problems with schedules for vocational students and athletic events, he said. He wouldn't attempt such a major revision to the school calendar without doing a lot of outreach to ensure the community agreed with such a change.
"People are used to the traditional system," he said. "The devil is in the details."
There are a lot of other factors besides saving dollars to consider in moving a district into a four-day school week, said Frederick Johnson, superintendent of the Selinsgrove School District.
"What do you do with those kids on that day off?" he asked.
Parents may need to seek day care, or other means to take care of their children.
"Educationally, it is a longer day. Is that the best thing for a 5-year-old?" he said.
The state requires a certain number of days and hours for children to attend school. And though with the proper guidance, a district could end up getting some waivers if it were to move to a four-day week, Johnson said he has reservations about such a decision.
Good for students?
"I would have to look at that long and hard. It might be the best things for dollars, but is that the best thing for kids?" he asked.
On six Fridays in January and February, teachers will participate in professional development sessions while students stay home. The other two days the schools are closed are Martin Luther King Day on Jan. 19 and Presidents Day on Feb. 16, both federal holidays.
n E-mail comments to Wayne Laepple at wlaepple@dailyitem.com. Staff reporter Tricia Pursell contributed to this article.
