Everett Schools Decide Against Waiver, School Year Won’t End Until June 27th

May 11, 2012

Everett

Here’s the final definitive word direct from the Everett School District on the last day of school this year…

So much for that family vacation in late June...

The last day of school is June 27. Really?  Why? With our recent streak of sunshine, it’s easy to forget those cold snowy school days when school was cancelled in the winter. There were four cancellations in a row, right after the Martin Luther King Jr. holiday in January, when schools were closed Tuesday through Friday. We have a long-standing practice in this district of adding snow days to the end of the school year.

This past winter, when there was the very real possibility of even more snow days in February or even March, the school board authorized the superintendent to apply for a state waiver for some of those snow days.

Because Snohomish County qualified for disaster relief as a result of the snow, school districts in the county were potentially eligible to drop a couple of student days from the academic calendar. In our case, this might have avoided adding all four days to the end of the year. In light of the possibility of even more snow days, the board was willing to consider a waiver of days.

A team of administrators and teacher leaders met to consider alternatives to the usual practice of adding days at the end of the year. The team decided all of the alternatives created additional disruption to families and gave up too much instructional time to make the changes worthwhile.

We were fortunate not to lose more school days to bad weather. With only those four days to make up, Everett Public Schools is continuing its traditional practice of making up snow days at the end of the year. We are honoring that practice as it has been published on all school district calendars at the beginning of the school year, and described in collective bargaining agreements.

The school board and superintendent believe and have said, “Every hour of student instruction is important. Shortening the school year runs counter to what we know is important for students.”

The board and superintendent continue to be interested in alternative ways to make up missed days in future years. On March 27, the school board discussed the financial impact of starting school earlier in the fall as one way to avoid going so late in June. The board presentation is online on the BoardDocs site where you will find materials the board uses in its meetings. The video recording of the meeting is also online.

,

About My Everett News Staff

My Everett News is a hyperlocal news website featuring news and events in Everett, Washington. We also cover City of Everett information and items of interest to those who live and work in Everett.

View all posts by My Everett News Staff