Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Academic Calendar topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Union County SPIT committee recommends 2026-27 traditional-school calendar to full board
Summary
The Union County Board of Education SPIT committee voted Oct. 26 to recommend 'Calendar A' for the 2026-27 traditional-school year to the full board after staff reported 87% public support; the committee approved the recommendation by voice vote and will forward it to the Nov. 19 full-board meeting.
The Union County Board of Education SPIT committee voted Oct. 26 to recommend "Calendar A" for the 2026-27 traditional-school year to the full board for final adoption.
Committee staff told members the district solicited public feedback and that Calendar A received strong support. "I am happy to report to you, not necessarily happy, but just pleased to report to you that calendar A received 87% of the feedback from the public in favor of that," said Dr. Blue, staff presenter to the committee. The committee approved a motion to forward Calendar A to the full board by voice vote; individual vote tallies were not specified in the meeting transcript.
The recommendation comes after staff presented two draft calendars, labeled A and B, and summarized constraints that shape the district's academic calendar, including statutory and policy limits and established calendar priorities the district collected via a spring survey. Dr. Blue said several constraints—such as start and end date limits, winter and Thanksgiving breaks, and professional learning-day requirements—leave limited room to alter the schedule. He said draft B was designed to provide a few additional days in June for inclement-weather makeups, while draft A preserves an earlier end date. "Calendar B allows us to... give us a couple extra days really for inclement weather purposes," Dr. Blue said, adding that the public preferred finishing on the earlier Friday in Calendar A.
Board member Mr. Helms asked for clarification on differences between drafts A and B. Dr. Blue responded that the differences were minimal and reiterated the inclement-weather purpose of draft B. Dr. Blue also clarified a recurring public question about half days: the district has eliminated half days and instead uses full professional learning days. He explained the calendar color key presented to the committee: blue days are optional workdays, gold days are school-level professional development days, and gray (silver) days are district professional development days. Staff also noted that Election Day (Nov. 3) falls on a Tuesday in the draft calendar and that the district must be out of school on voting days.
Action and next steps: a committee member moved and another seconded the motion to forward Calendar A to the full board; the committee approved the recommendation by voice vote. Dr. Blue said staff will bring Calendar A to the full board for adoption at the November meeting. The committee's next meeting was scheduled for Nov. 19 at 8 a.m. via Zoom.
Votes at a glance: Motion to recommend the 2026-27 traditional-school Calendar A to the full board — approved by voice vote; mover and seconder not specified in the transcript; individual tallies not recorded in the transcript.
The committee's discussion was procedural and focused on scheduling details, public feedback and the limited options available under district constraints; no budgetary items or new policies were adopted during the meeting.
