Parents with students attending school in Aiken County will have the chance to learn more about a proposed modified school calendar.
Town hall meetings have been set for Wednesday, Jan. 19 in the media center at North Augusta High School at 2000 Knobcone Ave. for parents in Attendance Areas two and three. A second meeting for parents in areas one, four and five will be held Thursday, Jan 20 at Aiken High School at 449 Rutland Dr. Both meetings begin at 6 p.m.
Superintendent King Laurence outlined the modified calendar for school board members at the Jan. 11 regular meeting.
The modified calendar would still have students in school 180 days and teachers working 190 days. The change would be how those days are distributed through the year.
The modified calendar shows Aug. 1 as the first day of school. The Thanksgiving and winter breaks remain the same.
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The difference is an additional break in the fall and extending an existing break. The calendar lists a fall break Oct. 3-to-14. It extends the spring break, starting it on March 27 and running through April 7.
Although parents and staff had the opportunity to participate in an online survey, board members felt it important to hold town hall meetings.
Board Chairman Dr. John Bradley supported the idea of a town hall meeting. He also suggested sending a paper survey home with students so parents could give their opinions and ask questions.
“Anytime you use a telephone or computer or something like that to collect a sample it’s biased by definition,” Bradley said. “It means that anybody that does not have access to the computer, or skills to use it or even know where to look is left out of the sample. And unfortunately, those are the people most damaged by it because they don’t have the money and the resources.”
The survey was one question, “Do you support the idea of a Modified Academic Calendar in ACPSD for the 2022-23 school year?” Respondents can choose “yes”, “no” or “undecided”.
It must be returned by Jan. 19. If a parent will be attending one of the town hall meetings, they can return the survey on Jan. 21.
Dana Lynn McIntyre is a Staff Reporter with The Augusta Press. You can reach her at dana@theaugustapress.com
