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Sanford School Committee approves switch to four-block semester schedule for 2026–27
Summary
After hours of debate and a public plea to retain the five-block day, the Sanford School Committee voted to move Sanford High School to a four-block semester schedule beginning in the 2026–27 school year; year-long AP, band and chorus will remain on alternating-day schedules.
The Sanford School Committee voted on Nov. 17 to change Sanford High Schools schedule to a four-block semester model beginning in the 202627 school year, with year-long alternating-day provisions retained for Advanced Placement courses, band and chorus as well as certain gym/health offerings.
The decision followed a lengthy presentation by Superintendent Matt Nelson and more than an hour of discussion among committee members about impacts on career-technical programs, electives and student learning. Nelson said his review of usage data, staffing implications and neighboring-district practices led him to recommend a four-block format that administrators believe will better align with regional schools and provide scheduling flexibility.
"There is no perfect schedule," Nelson said, summarizing the committees multi-month study and the trade-offs the district weighed. He told members the committee looked at enrollment patterns, the Sanford Regional Technical Centers program needs and the difficulty some students faced with the existing five-block structure.
Public comment preceding the vote included a parent, Elizabeth Neto, who urged the committee to keep the five-block day. "A 4 block schedule . . . can lead to long gaps, potentially a full year, between subsequent levels of a course and could result in forgotten material," she said, arguing the five-block daily schedule supports continuity for math, foreign language and music.
Committee members voiced differing perspectives. Some said the five-block model expanded elective access and benefited programs such as the Sanford Regional Technical Center; others, citing survey results and classroom experience, argued the five-block schedule had not functioned as intended and limited course participation for many students. Members discussed hybrid options that would keep certain classes year-long while moving the general schedule to four blocks.
Following procedural discussion and amendments, the committee moved and approved the motion to adopt a four-block semester schedule for 202627, while explicitly preserving "oddity" (every-other-day) scheduling for AP courses, band and chorus and specifying how gym/health offerings would be scheduled. Committee chair announced the motion passed after a roll-call style hand vote; members recorded in the affirmative included Lisa, John and Amy; Paula registered opposition; Melissa was recorded as abstaining during the sequence of votes and procedural motions.
The committee directed staff to proceed with implementation planning, including communications to families, master-scheduling work for the high school and professional development to support longer class periods. Administrators said they will return to the committee with detailed scheduling guidance, staffing implications and the master schedule prior to final implementation.
The vote concludes the committees formal decision process on the schedule; members left open the ability to refine which electives run year-long versus semester-based as master scheduling proceeds.
What happens next: staff will finalize master scheduling details and present implementation information to the committee, including any adjustments needed to accommodate music, AP and technical-education programming. The change is scheduled to take effect with the 202627 school year.
