Stoughton — The School Committee examined draft school calendars on Jan. 14 and discussed formatting, school start and end dates and a new “back page” concept listing family-facing dates such as parent-teacher conferences, bilingual parent nights and back-to-school evenings.

Both formats begin the school year Sept. 3 for grades 1–12 (Sept. 4 for pre-K/K). The key scheduling choice under discussion was whether to return from winter break on Friday, Jan. 2, or on Monday, Jan. 5. Superintendent Doctor Raeta recommended Jan. 5 to avoid low attendance and the operational cost of opening buildings for a single day. "My concern with coming back on that Friday on 2nd is all about attendance, both with staff and students," she said.

Committee members favored revising the calendar layout to make it easier for families to spot early-release days and asked the administration to solicit feedback from student advisory, PTOs and school councils. The superintendent and staff also proposed printing a condensed one-page calendar for refrigerators that would include high-priority events; committee members suggested adding district and town events such as preschool/kindergarten registration and summer-school enrollment dates to the back page if possible.

The committee agreed to circulate the three format options to parents and to ask a parent representative (Amy) and student-advisory channels to vet preferences before the next meeting. The calendars will return for a vote at a subsequent meeting after the committee receives feedback and any required adjustments.