Elementary leaders recommend ending weekly PLC Wednesdays; propose additional early‑release days instead

Elementary education leaders told the Dorchester County School District 2 board on April 14 they recommend discontinuing the PLC Wednesday early‑release model used during the 2024–25 school year and replacing it with three to four additional scheduled early‑release days next year.

Carrie Ball Hodge, director of elementary education, and Jessica Farnsworth, assistant director of elementary education, summarized surveys of principals and staff and said the district piloted 23 PLC Wednesdays this year alongside 10 scheduled early‑release days. Leaders said the mixed schedule created family confusion and uneven participation by administrators and classified staff who were often required to stay to supervise dismissal.

Hodge said principals and teachers valued teacher collaboration time, data review and professional development but found the current PLC Wednesday cadence left only about 30–45 minutes for meetings and produced inconsistent attendance because of dismissal duties, late buses and family pickup patterns. The district measured roughly 48–50 hours of lost instructional time under the current PLC schedule, Hodge said, compared with other models.

The district offered principals three options; most selected a model to discontinue PLC Wednesdays and add three to four consistent early‑release days, which would provide a total of about 42 hours of time for planning and professional development while creating a predictable schedule for families.

Board members praised the data collection and asked administrators to return with a revised calendar showing the proposed early‑release dates and to consider continuity with middle school scheduling. The board did not vote on a calendar at the meeting but asked staff to bring back a proposed schedule for the upcoming year.