The Board will annually adopt a school calendar that will provide for 1,044 hours of pupil attendance with no minimum number of school days. The beginning of the school year will not be earlier than fourteen (14) days prior to the first Monday in September.
The length of the school day will meet State Department of Elementary and Secondary Education requirements for six (6) clock hours of instruction. A school year and school day in excess of the state required minimum may be recommended by the Superintendent and approved by the Board. The planned calendar adopted prior to the beginning of the school year must be reported to DESE on Core Data Screen 10 by August 15 of each year and cannot be changed after that date.
The District will only be required to make up the first thirty-six (36) hours of school lost or canceled due to inclement weather and half the number of hours lost or canceled in excess of thirty-six (36) hours up to twenty-four (24) hours of additional lost or canceled hours. Thus, the maximum number of hours that must be made up is sixty (60) hours. Days missed in the District’s half-day education program will only be made up if required of the District due to “inclement weather on a proportional basis.” For purposes of this Policy, “inclement weather” shall mean ice, snow, extreme cold, flooding, a tornado, or excessive heat.
The District will not be required to make up any hours of school lost or cancelled due to exceptional or emergency circumstances during a school year, if DESE has approved an alternative method of instruction plan submitted by the District. (See Regulation 1210).