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North Bend School District staff propose switching high school from trimesters to semesters to add instruction time
Summary
District administrators recommended moving the high school and middle school calendars from trimesters to semesters, saying the change would add instructional hours, reduce repeated administrative tasks and align schedules across grade levels; the board will consider the proposal in February.
District leaders presented a proposal to shift the district's secondary schools from a trimester calendar to a semester calendar, saying the change would add instructional hours, reduce duplicated administrative work and better align elementary, middle and high school schedules.
Superintendent Vince (speaker identified in the meeting) and district staff described a process of meetings and surveys with staff and counselors. The district said it expects additional instructional time under the sample semester calendar: roughly 15 more hours at the elementary level, seven more hours at the middle-school level and six more hours at the high-school level when compared with the existing schedule.
Why it matters: The district cited state credit requirements and new course mandates (for example, personal finance and career-readiness components) as drivers of the change. Staff told the board the semester calendar would simplify credit accounting, reduce how often counselors must rework schedules each year and give teachers longer blocks of instruction for vocational and elective courses.
Staff and principal feedback: District staff reported broad neutrality or support in a staff survey; the high school staff'level survey responses were largely neutral or supportive, and counseling and career-technical education (CTE) teachers described specific pedagogical benefits. High school administrators said switching to semesters could reduce the frequency of required safety orientations and free up planning time; the district's counseling staff said they would need to perform some manual transcript adjustments for students who transfer into or out of trimester systems, but they judged migration manageable.
Implementation timeline and next steps: Administrators said they will bring the calendar to the board in February. If the board approves the move, the district plans to finalize a master schedule and migrate credit records during the spring and summer so the semester system would be in place for the 2025'26 school year. Staff emphasized special handling for next year's juniors and transfer students and said seniors would not be adversely affected by the change.
Discussion points and concerns: Board members and staff discussed potential transfer and credit-conversion issues, the scheduling impacts on singleton electives and the effect on students who move into or out of the district midyear. Registrars and counselors noted that a minority of students (those with partial credits from other systems) would require case-by-case reconciliation.
Decision and follow-up: The board did not vote at the work session. District staff asked for direction to include the semester calendar on the February agenda; if approved, the district would begin the work necessary to implement the change for 2025'26.
Ending: Board members generally said they supported adding instructional time and improving schedule alignment; they asked staff to return with the proposed calendar and implementation details for formal consideration.
