Students and parents urge CMSD to keep Davis Aerospace on year-round calendar ahead of school board vote

Students, parents and community members addressed Cleveland City Council to urge the Cleveland Metropolitan School District to keep Davis Aerospace and Maritime High School on its year-round calendar. Speakers said the proposed switch to a traditional calendar would jeopardize summer internships, hands-on maritime training and other programs tied to the current schedule.

"Davis is a top-3 rated school," student Xavier Avery told the council. "We have a 3.5-star rating... Our graduation rate is 81 percent while the district is at 77 percent. The average SAT score is 913 while the district is 816." Avery said many programs, including a six-week August immersion for freshmen that includes small-watercraft instruction and swimming, rely on summer months and would be disrupted by a calendar change.

Alisa Avery, who identified herself as a parent and educator, said the school’s partnerships make it uniquely valuable to Cleveland and that those relationships — including with Argonaut, the Port of Cleveland, NASA and the U.S. Coast Guard — underpin internships and job pathways for students. "Our programs provide the hours, experience, and training necessary for the internships that are required by the FAA and Coast Guard," she said.

Councilman Chris Harsh praised the students for organizing and urged the Cleveland Metropolitan School District to delay or reconsider proposals that would shorten the school day or cut extended-year minutes. He said many students in the city depend on program continuity and warned against removing academic time before broader budget and facility discussions are resolved.

Speakers asked the city and district to consider the unique operational needs of career-technical programs that depend on weather, partner availability and summer scheduling. No formal city action on the school calendar was taken; the transcript records a warning that the school board had an upcoming vote the next evening. Council members and speakers urged parents and community members to attend the district meeting.

The comments reflected a broader theme in the meeting: community members seeking to preserve specialized programming tied to career pathways and summer internships. The council did not itself have authority over the Cleveland Metropolitan School District calendar but received public comment and advocacy from students and families.