Waterloo Local holds public hearing on two-year school calendar that would start 2026-27 on Sept. 2

Dr. Clark opened a public hearing on the district's proposed two-year school calendars, required by Ohio Revised Code section 331.1348, and said he will recommend formal adoption at the board's January organizational meeting. "The public hearing on these calendars is now — this is the time to do that," he told the board.

The superintendent said the district is proposing to plan two years at a time to provide families and staff more stability and to allow vacation and event planning. He emphasized the proposal complies with the state minimum instructional-hour requirements: "the Calenders provide 116 hours of instruction [K–6] which is 196 hours over the minimum and in grade 7 to 12 it's 105 hours over the minimum requirement," he said.

A notable scheduling anomaly in the proposal affects the 2026–27 school year. Because the Portage County Fair occurs late that year, Dr. Clark said the start date would be Sept. 2, 2026 — later than the district's usual start. That late beginning shortens winter and spring breaks in 2026–27 so the district can complete the required days by early June. "The start will actually be in September," he said, explaining that moving the start is driven by the fair's timing.

Board members and administrators discussed tradeoffs to preserve instructional minutes while giving families planning certainty. Options included counting parent-teacher conference and teacher in-service days toward the minimum or shortening a traditional break in 2026–27. "We could maybe take Christmas the 23rd start at the 24th ..." one member said during the discussion about tradeoffs.

Dr. Clark said he plans to recommend formal adoption at the January meeting but welcomed additional feedback before then. The board took no final action at the hearing; the district will hold the formal adoption vote at the January organizational meeting.