Rosette Elementary presents community-backed proposal to test four-day school week; board asks for academic, childcare details

Rosette Elementary Principal Travis Seidman told the Campbell County School District #1 Board of Trustees that community surveys and two posted public meetings produced strong initial support for a possible four-day school week but left key implementation questions unresolved.

Seidman said a January survey of 94 community members and stakeholders — out of a school population of 225 — showed 88.7% in favor of pursuing an alternative four-day schedule, and he reported roughly 90% staff support in an anonymized internal check. “We had 94 community members and stakeholders participate in that survey … In support of the 4 day alternative schedule that came in at 88.7%,” Seidman said.

The proposal calls for lengthening school days by about an hour — moving a typical start to about 7:45 a.m. and ending about 3:45 p.m. on school days — and for district staff to maintain tier 1 instruction and intervention systems if the schedule changes.

Why it matters: trustees and the principal framed the idea through the district’s top strategic goal: student achievement. Trustees repeatedly pressed for evidence that a four-day week would not reduce instructional outcomes or harm vulnerable students who rely on school meals, special education services or after-school supervision.

Trustees asked for specifics. Trustee Christiansen said he needed academic data to support a schedule change and asked Seidman to email the board the survey statistics and comparative school outcomes. Trustee Steiger asked whether failing students would receive on-campus support under a new schedule; Seidman said options such as recovery sessions on the fifth day or mirrored plans used by other four-day schools would be examined but no final model was chosen. Trustee Williams suggested the district consult Bighorn (another local district on a four-day schedule) and other nearby districts with K–12 four-day models.

Board members and staff also identified operational issues that must be resolved before any vote: transportation routing and bus-route lengths, impacts on ESP/classified staff hours and pay, and care for students on the fifth day. Seidman said he had discussed options with district transportation and HR. He said HR indicated reductions for some support staff could be less than a straight 20% cut but details will depend on contracts and staffing decisions. On childcare, Seidman said the school would reach out to Boys & Girls Club and other local providers and consider grant options to support Friday supervision or programming.

Superintendent Dr. Ayers and Trustee Eisenhower voiced skepticism and caution. Eisenhower said he values more instructional time rather than less and noted mixed results from other four-day schools in the district. “I believe in more school, not less,” Eisenhower said, expressing concern about lost instructional minutes and Friday absenteeism reported elsewhere.

What’s next: trustees encouraged Seidman to gather more comparative outcome data from nearby four-day schools, to produce a detailed proposal that addresses curriculum coverage, recovery/remediation for struggling students, transportation changes, HR implications and childcare supports, and to return with those details for board consideration at a future meeting. No formal motion or vote was taken on the Rosette proposal at this meeting.

Ending: Seidman told the board he would compile the requested information, including survey summaries and examples from other district schools that use four-day calendars, and present a packet for board review before any formal decision.