Four Day School Week
Overview
Legislation
Research & Reports
State-Specific News Articles
National News Articles
Overview
With strapped state budgets and alluring promises of significant reductions in overhead and transportation costs, the four-day school week has been an increasingly attractive option for legislators seeking to cut education costs. According to the National School Boards Association (NSBA), a handful of states, with mostly rural school districts, are experimenting with altering their school calendar. For small, remote school districts, instituting a four-day school week may provide considerable savings by reducing transportation, heating, and other overhead costs. Supporters of the shortened week also boast of improved morale and increased attendance (by both students and teachers), open Fridays for sporting events and doctor appointments, and more time to spend with loved ones. Opponents of the four-day school week cite problems with long, exhausting class days and finding day care for children whose parents work outside the home. Additionally, educational experts worry that increased time outside of the classroom could lead to a digression in learned concepts while also making it more difficult to offer elective classes. However, the jury is still out, as there is a lack of comprehensive studies.
Legislation
2004 Legislation
California
SB 1138
Status: Signed by the Governor 9-10-2004
Authorizes specified school districts to operate one or more schools in their districts on a 4-day school week, so long as the school district complies with specified requirements; revokes the authority of a school added by the bill to operate a 4-day school week if a school fails to meet its growth target on the Academic Performance Index.
AB 1820
Status: Signed by the Governor 9-10-2004
Authorizes the Death Valley Unified School District to operate one or more schools in the district on a 4-day school week; provides that if a school of that district that is operating on a 4-day school week fails to meet its Academic Performance Index growth target, the authority of that school to operate on a 4-day school week would be revoked commencing with the beginning of the following school year.
2003 Legislation
According to the 2003 National School Boards Association (NSBA) Data:
-Nine states currently have school districts (with schools) operating on a four-day week.
-These states include: Arizona, Colorado, Kansas, Louisiana, New Mexico, Oregon, South Dakota, Wisconsin, and Wyoming.
-There are 108 school districts that host four-day school week programs.
-Usually, these programs are in small, rural districts.
-Four-day school weeks can help ease transportation costs and maximize overhead
savings.
-The policy was first initiated 20 years ago to cope with the energy crisis.
-Wyoming is the most recent state to adopt this policy.
Legislative proposals to allow the four-day school week were defeated in Massachusetts, Michigan, and Montana. Utah repealed its Modified School Week pilot program in March. All said and almost done, Virginia was alone in enacting legislation to allow the four-day school week in 2003.
More States Have the Policy than Use it
There are states other than those mentioned by NSBA that have provisions relating to the four-day school week. NCSL research indicates that states other than those reporting to NSBA have provisions to allow the four-day school week. In 2003, these states included: Arkansas, California, Minnesota, and Illinois.
Massachusetts
SB2010
Status: Amendment34 to allow the four-day school week was rejected in June 2003.
Provides that any city, town, or school district by vote of its school committee may operate the schools on a 4-day school week, providing that the committee submit to the board of education its plan to fulfill the required hours of instruction.
Michigan
SB364
Status: Vetoed by Governor 6-30-03
Allows school districts to operate on a four-day school week. Amends the State School Aid Act to remove the requirement that schools provide a minimum of 180 days of pupil instruction, or forfeit a percentage of their state aid allocation; and delete the provision that at least 75 percent of a district’s membership must be in attendance on any day of pupil instruction, or the district will forfeit a percentage of its state aid. Provides that districts still would have to provide a minimum number of 1,098 hours of pupil instruction. Permits the first 15 instructional hours lost due to circumstances out of control of a district, such as severe storms, fires, epidemics, or heath conditions, to be counted toward the 1,098-hour requirement; replaces the current two “snow days” for which the Act provides.
HB4453
Status: Referred to Committee on the Whole 6-30-03
Changes the requirements for teacher retirement from days to hours. Amends the Public School Employees Retirement Act (PERA) to require the retirement board to grant one year of service credit to a member who had been employed and remunerated for services performed for not less than 1,020 hours in a school fiscal year. (Currently, the act requires granting of the service credit for services performed for not less than six hours per day and for not less than 170 days in a school fiscal year.)
HB4452
Status: Referred to Education Committee 7-03-03Changes required school days to school hours to allow the four-day school week. Amends the state School Aid Act.
HB4114 (Bill inactive)
Status: Referred to Committee on Senior Health, Security and Retirement 5-13-03
Helps to implement a four-day school week program authorized under state law which allows the state Superintendent of Instruction to issue a waiver to a requesting district. Changes the Public School Employees Retirement Act; provides that if services performed are for a member who is employed by a reporting unit operating for less than 170 days in a school fiscal year, the retirement board should grant one year of service credit to a member who has been employed for not less than 7.5 hours per day and not less than 136 days in a school fiscal year. (The same bill was introduced in 2001.)
Montana
SB96
Status: Died in Standing Committee 4-26-03
Amends law to eliminate the requirement that a school district conduct at least 180 school days during each school fiscal year. Requires school districts to conduct school for a minimum number of aggregate hours each school year. Directs school district trustees to set the length of the school term, school day, and school week; and to make necessary revisions to reflect the elimination of the requirement for 180 school days. Directs the Superintendent of Public Instruction to prepare a fiscal note for submission to the board, using criteria and assumptions developed by the board. Directs trustees, when proposing to adopt changes to a previously adopted school term, school week, or school day, to negotiate the changes with the recognized collective bargaining unit representing the employees affected by the changes; and to solicit input from the employees affected by the changes but not represented by a collective bargaining unit."
Utah
HB39
Status: Signed by the Governor 3-19-03
Repeals the Modified School Week Pilot Program.
Virginia
HB2806
Status: Signed by Governor 3-19-03
Provides that schools may request and local school boards may approve,
pursuant to guidelines developed by the Board of Education, school-proposed
alternative school schedule plans, including those providing for the
operation of schools on a 4-day weekly calendar, so long as a minimum of 990
hours of instructional time is provided for grades 1 through 12 and 540
hours for kindergarten. Specifies that no alternative plan that reduces the
instructional time in the core academics will be approved.
Research & Reports
Four-day School Week? (2003)
State Legislatures
By Greta Durr
“With promises of a 20 percent reduction in overhead and transportation costs, the four-day school week is growing more attractive to legislators seeking to cut education costs—especially in energy, transportation, and classified personnel salaries. But while some states are looking at the four-day school week as a way to save money or as a creative option for rural areas, other have found it impractical.”
Alternative School Calendars: Smart Idea or Senseless Experiment?
Ed World
"If American students are to compete effectively in a global economy, do they need to spend substantially more time in school? Would increasing the length of the school year or school day raise students' achievement, or would it be more advantageous to alter how we use the time we currently have? Many school systems are experimenting with alternative instructional schedules in an attempt to find out. Included: Year-round schools, later start times, the four-day week, trimesters, and more!"
Is the Four-Day School Week Coming Your Way?
Ed World
"Test scores were on the downswing; unfunded state mandates were on the rise. There was not enough money, not enough time. What is a superintendent to do? Lewis Diggs, Superintendent of Schools in Saratoga, Arkansas, might have found the answer for his system in the four-day school week."
Four-Day School Week What's It All About? (1997)
The Northwest Regional Educational Lab
"The motivating force behind a school changing to a four-day week is quite different than that which causes a school to adopt a block schedule. Faced with dwindling financial resources and declining enrollments, many small school districts have adopted a four-day school schedule (Grau & Shaughnessy, 1987; Koki, 1992; School Fits, 1983; Richberg & Sjorgren, 1983;
Blankenship, 1984). By extending the time spent in school for four days, (by approximately 25 percent or 75 minutes per day) they are able to close the school on the fifth. Instead of cutting art, music, or other activities that often fall prey to budgetary shortfalls, the four-day week gives schools the opportunity to preserve these classes and still save money. Generally schools that use a four-day week are small, rural schools. In the Northwest, Oregon is the only state with schools using a four-day schedule. More than a dozen districts there currently observe a four-day week. Other states, including Washington, Idaho, and Montana do not have legislation that permits four-day week schedules."
The Uses of Time and Teaching and Learning (1996)
U.S. Department of EducationState-Specific News Articles
California
Four-day School Draws Fans
The Sacramento Bee
By Jim Sanders
December 24, 2004
“Three-day weekends are nothing special for students in two California school districts - they're never more than a few days away. Students work four days, then rest three, taking Fridays off. The extra time at home is used to sleep in, shop, attend medical or dental appointments, catch up on chores, complete homework, or just have fun with family and friends.”
Colorado
Colo. Schools Give High Score to 4-day School Week
Montana Associated Technology Roundtables
June 14, 2004
“Aimee Kroneberger's three daughters didn't go to school on Fridays this year. And they don't have to make them up in summer school. Along with about 1,300 other children in the East Grand school district in the Rocky Mountains west of Denver, the Kroneberger sisters attend classes just four days a week. Kylie, Tracie and Sydnie have longer school days than when they lived in Denver, but every weekend during the school year is a three-day pass.”
Idaho
Rural Schools Try Longer Days, Four-day weeks
The Christian Science Monitor
By Kathy Hedberg
March 23, 2004
“The sun is just beginning to glint over hills where coyotes prowl and deer nibble at wheat stubble when 13-year-old Jordan Damron boards his school bus. It's 5:30 a.m. He won't return home for almost 12 hours. This seventh grader's 10-mile commute is an ordinary part of life in this tiny farming community in north-central Idaho - but this year his long school day got even longer. The town of Orofino has instituted a four-day school week as a way to trim costs in an era of bare-bones budgets. Classes run longer each day, but on most Fridays the school is dark, school buses are idle, and kids stay home.”
Kansas
Teacher’s Group to Suggest Four-Day School Week
LJWorld.com
By Tim Carpenter
February 7, 2004
“Good news for Lawrence public school students: Three-day weekends could be on the way.
But it's a desire to avoid bad news -- teacher layoffs, too-large class sizes and program eliminations -- that's behind proposed school schedule changes from the city's teachers union.”
Michigan
U.P. school district wants a 4-day class week
Capital News Service
Michigan State University School of Journalism
By Matt Frust
October 25, 2002
"Rep. Steve Adamini, D-Neguanee, said he introduced a bill in April that would allow teachers to work fewer days, but still be eligible for retirement. He said the bill came out of committee with unanimous support in May, but is still waiting in the House for second reading."
Nebraska
Brady Proposes a Four-day School Week
Kolngin.com
AP
December 21, 2004
“A budget crunch has led the board for the 175-student Brady School District to approve a proposal for a four-day school week. The 4 to 2 vote Monday night will start kindergarten through 12th grade classes on a Monday through Thursday, 7:45 a.m. to 4 p.m. schedule next semester. The plan will save the school up to $1,300 a week on transportation, janitorial and food services. Supt. Pat Cullen says the action resulted from an $80,000 cut in state aid last year and a school loan drained its cash reserves.”
Ohio
Ohio Drops Four-day School Idea
CenturyTel.com
January 11, 2005
“City schools in Elyria, Ohio, have dropped the idea of a four-day school week to save money and is considering laying off teachers and administrators. Interim Superintendent Roger Lulow had suggested a shorter school week to save about $650,000 a year in transportation costs and to cut some 80 positions, but he said he rejected the idea because it would require negotiating a new teachers contract, the Cleveland Plain Dealer reported Tuesday. Also, under current Ohio law, the district would still have to be open five days, even if students only attended four days, Ludlow said.”
Oregon
Oregon Plans to Slash School Year: Budget problems cited
CNN
AP
January 2, 2003
...."But a loophole in Oregon's laws allows its districts to deviate from the requirements for a maximum of two school years, and that's led superintendents around the state to consider chopping as many as 15 days from the academic calendar for a quick budget fix....
"Most districts aren't planning to end the school year early. More likely, students would miss selected Fridays through the end of the year, saving districts from having to pay staff unemployment benefits, which are required after five straight days of no work. The option has angered the teachers' union.
"Such a cost-cutting option is possible because Oregon's state legislature requires only that districts adhere to a "standard school year," Evans said. The definition is left up to the administrative state board of education, which mandates 810 instructional hours for grades one through three, 900 hours for grades four through eight and 990 hours at the high school level -- about 165 days, allowing for six hours of classroom time.
"Districts can apply for a waiver to offer fewer hours this school year. In dire circumstances, the waiver can be extended for another school year, through June of 2004. But starting in September of 2004, Evans said, the district needs to restore the hours, or face serious consequences. Those could include a loss of state funding and graduation accreditation."
South Dakota
More Districts Dabbling in Four-Day School Week
Aberdeen News.com
AP Wire
February 22, 2004
“As four-day school weeks gain popularity in South Dakota, some administrators have discovered that instead of big financial savings, the schedule change has given students and teachers more time to concentrate on education.”
Wisconsin
Editorial: Four-day School Week Is First Step in Descent (May, 2003)
Madison Daily Leader
By Jon M. Hunter, Publisher
May 15, 2003
"Will students really learn as much in four days -- even with an extra hour per day -- as they do in five? Do we really think the authors of the No Child Left Behind Act intended less classroom time for students?"
National News Articles
Small schools save money by switching to a four-day week (2002)
National School Boards Association
By Carol Chmelynski
October 22, 2002
"School districts in Arizona, Arkansas, Colorado, Louisiana, New Mexico, Oregon, South Dakota, and Wyoming also have switched to a four-day week–most of them small, rural districts....
"In rural areas requiring lengthy bus rides, the downsides probably are countered by the savings," she says. "But in metropolitan areas, a four-day week raises the issue of child care. It also raises the perception–not the reality, but the perception–that kids aren't spending enough time in school."
"Morrow County School District 1 in Lexington, Ore., turned to a four-day school week eight years ago to lower expenses. The district is saving an estimated $250,000 in a $14 million budget, says Duane Yecha, principal of Riverside High School. "But unfortunately, some of the savings have come on the backs of some of our employees, such as the cooks, bus drivers, and teacher aides."
In Rural Areas, the Four-Day School Week Is Growing in Popularity (2002)
The Christian Science Monitor
By Greg Toppo
"Annie Bergeaux and her high school classmates in Midland, La., will be taking most Fridays off this year, spending the time swimming, shopping, baby-sitting, playing basketball, or just hanging out with friends."
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