Schools
Bartow County Schools Adds 2 Days to Calendar for Students
Beginning Friday, county schools will dismiss elementary, middle and high school students 5 minutes earlier.
Despite some debate and a close vote, Bartow County Schools has added two instructional days back to its academic calendar.
That means Oct. 11, 2013, and March 14, 2014, previous teacher furlough days, will be regular school days for all students, according to the system's Facebook page.
And due to that change, another begins Friday, Aug. 23.
Elementary, middle and high schools will dismiss students 5 minutes earlier, which means those who ride buses will arrive home 5 minutes earlier.
New Dismissal Times for Bartow County Schools
Elementary: 2:33 p.m.Middle: 3:43 p.m.
High: 3:43 p.m.
Opining instructional time is not the same as instructional days, Superintendent John Harper, who recommended moving to a 177-day calendar, said the system needed to support its teachers by allowing them more time to prepare students for the Criterion Referenced Competency Tests, The Daily Tribune News reports. Half of a teacher's evaluation will be based on student growth based on CRCT scores, according to Harper.
Citing the costs of $800,000 or more, board of education rep Matt Shultz called the addition of two days "financially irresponsible at this point in the budget process" in a Cartersville Patch blog and, along with Fred Kittle, who tried to table the recommendation, voted no during Monday night's business meeting.
But the votes of board members Davis Nelson, John Howard and Anna Sullivan were enough to pass Harper recommendation, according to the Tribune.
The system is operating at deficit and may be looking at staff cuts next year, according to Shultz. But Harper said adding two days would not put the school system in financial jeopardy.
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