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Board weighs options to recoup snow days, including holding June 19 or forgiving up to two days
Summary
District leaders presented a menu of options — extend the school year to June 26, hold school on June 19, convert half days to full days, or forgive up to two days — and discussed contractual, payroll and senior-year impacts; staff will consult bargaining units and returning forecasts before a decision.
At the March 9 budget workshop, Superintendent Don O'Leary presented the board with a decision grid outlining how the district might recoup instructional time lost to snow days. Options included continuing the school year to June 26; holding school on June 19 as an instructional and programming day; converting some half days into full days to recover instructional minutes; or subtracting days from spring break. O'Leary said the district “could forgive several days up to 2 because you can't forgive below the mandatory that the state requires of a 180.”
Board members raised multiple practical concerns. Justin, who identified himself as a teacher, asked about a suggested $104,000 loss if days were forgiven; staff explained that from an accounting perspective the district may have paid for work days that would not be provided if days are forgiven, producing a payroll/expense effect even if the calendar changes.
O'Leary said the administration has begun conversations with bargaining units and mentioned that certain arrangements could be handled by memorandum of understanding (MOU). He gave the example of custodial staff: if the board asks staff to come in on a makeup day, custodial representatives could agree to an MOU to swap that work day for another day off. He said the SVEA president was “conceptually on board” with some options but emphasized formal negotiation was still needed.
Members also worried about how moving the last day would affect graduating seniors and AP instruction. Angela asked whether seniors would be shortchanged if the year extended toward June 26; O'Leary answered that historically seniors rarely return to make up days after graduation but acknowledged AP schedules and classroom needs could complicate a calendar change. A proposal to poll families about using spring-break days drew interest from the board as a way to measure community appetite before finalizing any change.
O'Leary recommended waiting for short-term weather forecasts (he referenced March 17 as a near-term marker) before settling on an approach and said he regularly consults with other area superintendents on weather-day choices. The board did not vote and set no immediate calendar changes; staff will continue to explore bargaining-unit implications, survey options, and coordination with sending towns and bus providers if the board moves forward.
