Sean C. Morgan
The District 55 School Board will continue discussing Monday night whether to switch Sweet Home schools to a four-day week.
The move could save roughly $400,000, while increasing both instructional time and professional development time, according to Supt. Don Schrader.
The board is scheduled to receive more information about what a four-day week would look like, said Chairman Jason Redick. The board consensus last month was to hold off on a decision until February to make sure it has as much information as it can, but that could change if a board member moved to take action.
Schrader and the board would like to hear more from the community and will likely set a date for a community forum during January.
“It’s a big question that’s out there, and it’s not an easy one,” Redick said, but district administrators will need direction on it before they can begin preparing budgets for review next spring.
Numerous other districts have gone to a four-day week in Oregon, and Schrader has talked to representatives of several.
Among them is Glendale School District, with an enrollment of 376 students. The district went to a four-day week because it was already on a 4.5-day week, Schrader said. The district’s early release day on Wednesday was not being used for instruction, so Glendale increased hours and closed on Friday. The district has no professional development on Fridays, and the teachers work an eight-hour day, which will be a topic at the bargaining table.
Coos Bay School District, with an enrollment of about 4,500 students, went to a four-day week this year primarily to provide professional development activities, Schrader said. The district is anticipating a savings of 2 to 4 percent.
In the first three months, that district has saved $20,000 in substitute costs; student attendance is up a little; teacher absence is down some 42 percent for professional development and 100 percent for coaching time lost; and personal illness was down 25 percent, Schrader said.
Mapleton School District, with an enrollment of 172, went to a four-day week to save money, Schrader said. The district estimated savings of $65,000.
With actual savings at about $55,000, it is saving close to that projection, Schrader said. Parents and staff have given much positive feedback.
Central Point School District, with an enrollment of about 4,500, went to a four-day week three years ago for budgetary reasons only, Schrader said. The district switched to a 4.5-day school week after one year.
Central Point made a 10-percent reduction across the board – classified, certified and administrative staff, Schrader said. That really amounted to furlough days since it was a 10-percent work reduction as well. The district added two weeks to the calendar and 15 minutes per day.
The parents liked it, and the community supported it, Schrader said, though the licensed staff did not like the extra weeks added to the calendar, and it became a bargaining issue.
Mill City School District, with an enrollment of 600, has been on a four-day schedule for three years, Schrader said. It went to a four-day week for financial savings. Teacher staff members work every other Friday except to accommodate a Monday holiday. Custodial staff members work on Fridays but have non-work days throughout the year. One secretary works in each building when teachers work.
Central Linn School District, with an enrollment of 721, went to a four-day week about nine years ago, Schrader said. The superintendent is looking at going back to a traditional five-day week because it’s the only way he can raise the amount of instructional time.
Over the past few years, Central Linn has bargained out professional development days, so the district has only six Fridays where teachers come back for professional development, Schrader said.
Halsey resident Marty Leopard’s son is a senior in Central Linn. He’s been in the district all 12 years, while Leopard’s oldest son graduated in 2002.
“I think we just started there not long before,” Leopard said of the four-day week. He doesn’t know how scores were affected, but the district has gotten pretty good results.
School is in session on Fridays during weeks with holidays, so the students don’t miss any days, Leopard said. The students make up snow days on Fridays.
“I think there’s a huge convenience factor for families,” Leopard said. The school day is 40 or 50 minutes longer, but students and their families have three-day weekends.
“I personally like it,” Leopard said. “But I’m more easygoing. Of course, all of my kids were overachievers, scholastically.”
The most irritating argument against four-day weeks was about what to do with the children on Fridays, Leopard said. That argument tells him that parents are using the schools as a daycare, but that’s not a school district responsibility.
Overall, he thinks it would take a compelling argument to convince him the district should return to a five-day week, he said.
Elsewhere in Linn County, Harrisburg switched to a four-day week this year.
“It’s really early in the game here,” said Supt. Brian Wolf. After the end of the first semester, the district is planning to do a survey and take a look at academic data in late January.
“We had a number of public meetings last school year,” Wolf said. Issues included a longer school day and child care on Fridays. The biggest concern was probably the impact on the classified union and wages. The district is still bargaining with classified over the change.
The driving factor in Harrisburg was the savings, Wolf said. The district expects to save $100,000 to $110,000 from the four-day week.
“It was either do this or we have to make reductions elsewhere,” Wolf said. “It was decided this was the least onerous of a number of options.”
The district is on track to meet its expectations in savings, he said. “In that sense, it’s achieved the goal it was meant to achieve.”
As far as the other concerns, the district will see how they work out while it plays out during the school year, he said. District officials visited other districts and found research that shows improvements in academics and attendance. Students miss less school and have fewer discipline referrals.
There are other benefits, Wolf said, but finances were the driving force. The recommendation of the committee was that it was doable although not desirable.