No 4-day weeks for local schools

Green Valley News

Schools looking to save on transportation and utility costs are increasingly moving to four-day weeks, but the Sahuarita Unified and Continental districts say a move is far in the future, if it happens at all.

The two districts met in a joint session last week --— the first in 15 years — to talk about aligning curriculum and other issues.

Continental board member Peter Schmerl said studies have shown that attendance increases with a four-day week because parents schedule doctor appointments and vacations for the day off instead of pulling kids out of class. He added that more students in class would bring more money into the district.

Schmerl suggested that the boards study rural districts that have opted for the dropped day, such as the Bisbee Unified School District, which will make the transition this fall.

But SUSD Superintendent Jay St. John saw several down sides to the switch, including parents needing to find childcare for the extra day off; community groups such as churches and sports clubs that use the school during the week that would be crowded out by longer school days; and later classes that would put students from distant communities home later in the evening. St. John said some Arivaca students, after a long bus ride, walk several miles home from the bus stop. He said that could be dangerous in the dark winter months and would be exacerbated by later school days.

St. John said SUSD wouldn’t have time to seriously consider a four-day week before the start of the 2009-10 school year, and said if they did pursue the change, it would involve extensive outreach to gauge community reaction.

Continental Superintendant Jim Nelson said Continental wouldn’t consider dropping to four days unless SUSD also made the change because it would be difficult for families with children in both districts, and because one of their goals — saving money on transportation costs — wouldn’t be achieved if SUSD still bused students 5 days a week.

Aligning curriculum

The boards also discussed aligning curriculum to make it easier on students transferring from Continental’s K-8 school into Sahuarita High School.

Continental will send more than 60 students to Sahuarita this fall to join the incoming freshman class of about 400 students, Nelson said. About 160 former Continental students attend SHS.

A handful of students attend high schools in Tucson, though most prefer to stay within the community, he said.

St. John said students need to be on track to take certain Advanced Placement classes, such as Senior AP Calculus, by as early as the sixth grade, so it is important to coordinate curriculum between the districts. Continental officials said they hadn’t realized planning for some high school classes had to be done so early.

Board members also discussed the possibility of sharing teachers, which would help Continental students keep updated on specialized SUSD courses.

SUSD hopes for smaller class sizes after next year after the completion of a portion of a new high school west of Sahuarita Park. It would hold an additional 863 students, St. John said. Construction is expected to start by the end of the summer.

St. John said the districts hadn’t held a joint board meeting since he has worked in Sahuarita. He, Nelson and the 12 board members didn’t make any official decisions or cast votes at the meeting, but said the discussion got the ball rolling on what they hope will be improved communication between the districts.

Continental will hold a regular board meeting at 6:30 p.m. on Monday, at the school, 1991 E. Whitehouse Canyon Road, where they will discuss the possibility of hiring a business manager and installing solar panels.

jrichardson@gvnews.com | 547-9726