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Mona Shield Payne/Special to the Sun / file photo
First grader Melina Benavides walks hand-in-hand out of school with her grandmother, Irma Camargo, in August 2009 after the first day of classes at Steve Schorr Elementary School in Henderson. The Clark County School District announced Wednesday that Schorr is one of 55 schools moving to a nine-month calendar.
Wednesday, April 28, 2010 | 4:36 p.m.
Sun Archives
- School Board rejects moving schools to nine-month calendar (3-26-10)
- Year-round schools could face calendar shift to save money (3-16-10)
- Superintendent Walt Rulffes: Schools need plan of action for success (12-27-09)
- Window opens for School District (7-19-08)
- Teachers resist increasing pressure to accept pay cuts (2-5-10)
- Budget crunch puts shorter school year, teacher pay cuts on table (2-4-10)
- Education cuts may never be healed after special session (3-2-10)
Sun Archives
The 55 elementary schools in the Clark County School District operating on year-round calendars will transition to nine-month calendars.
The School District announced today that all of the district's elementary schools will operate on a nine-month calendar beginning this fall.
The change is expected to save the School District about $21.3 million in personnel and operating expenses during the 2010-11 school year.
Based on changes in enrollment, the district had planned to convert 21 year-round schools to nine-month calendars in August. But the School Board voted this month to sidestep regulations, including counting portable classrooms as “regular” seats, to allow more campuses to make the change.
Also making the shift possible will be an increase in class sizes for grades 1-3, approved by the Legislature during the special session as a cost-saving measure.
Many parents have spoken in favor of nine-month calendars at recent School Board meetings, arguing that the year-round schedules hurt participation in extracurricular activities and family vacations.
Nearly all of the year-round campuses had requested to convert, district officials said.
The move could make it easier for the district to schedule professional development for staff, prepare students for state-mandated testing and reduce transportation and special education costs. On the downside, the legislative waiver allowing increased class sizes expires in 2011, and once it does the district would likely have to revert to year-round calendars at many campuses unless lawmakers approved an extension.
Some studies nationally have found that year-round programs are preferable for English-language learners, who account for about 20 percent of the district’s students, because they benefit from continued instruction without a long summer break.
However, there is no significant difference in test scores among the district’s year-round and nine-month campuses — both have standout programs as well as struggling schools.
So when we moved to a year-round strategy, we expected higher scores with our populations. It didn't work.
So we'll save money and go back to what wasn't working before.
Sounds logical. Save money, but continue to provide a failing service in a more concentrated period so kids can see gramma in between wasting time in school.
Year-round, 9 month, summer school, public, private, charter, online; None of em' work if you don't actively participate! And none of em' work for disadvantaged kids who's parents could care less, passing on their own "who needs it" mentality to their children, as their parents passed on to them.
Return the teaching aspect to education. You'll see; it'll help!
CONSTANT "Assesment" of student progress ironically reduces teacher/student contact and retards the learning process.
How goofed up is that???
Gym Gibbons PLEDGED to be Nevada's "Education Governor" in his 2006 campaign, yet he still struggles to write a letter that doesn't sound like a drunken fifth-grader wrote it.
I guess his "fund" to help pay outstanding teachers from voluntary contributions, now standing at around $300,will stand as a monument in history for the LAMEST "Education Governor" ever.
My kid is turning 5 before the school year starts, and so I needed to register him for pre-school.
Found out that my tax dollars don't cover pre-school for a full day. So I'd have to pay for it AND I have to bring in paper and office supplies because the school does not have any? AND the class will have 30 kids in it? 30 toddlers running around? With no choice as to what teacher he will get, no way to find out if the teacher graduated top of her class or at the bottom? A place that has armed police. Thanks Unions, but no thanks.
Sorry, my kid is too important. My wife and I will shell out, in addition to our wasted property tax that goes to the school system, $10k for him to go to a real school. A private school with no armed guards. A school where I have an actual say in my child's education. A place where the teachers are held accountable (I and my wife are accountable too and will make sure my son stays on track).
Thank God!!!! Now my son can spend his summers with his grandmother out of state!!!! and it will save us a ton on daycare!!!!!
My kids goes to private pre-school. There is no full time preschool here. Should have done your homework. I pay much less than 10K and she is more than prepared for kindergarten this coming school year.
This also means 3 months reduction in school zone traffic ticket revenue.
Wonder how they plan to make THAT up...
now run some remedial programs for struggling elem. students over the summer. Pay the idle teachers some $22/hr. money to tutor small groups and get them back on track or pointed in that direction. Implement intervention programs with the early elem. students who are struggling (first / second grade) before the failure gets ingrained to the point of irreversibility.
Oh yeah. this is nevada. no one would kick in any $$$ for this sort of thing. nevermind.
Gee Test Guy-those cheap real estate taxes aren't cuttin it, eh? You think your child should have free full time pre school in a state which has the lowest dollar per student ratio in the nation?
Where did you move from-California?
@jpc...since most 9-month teachers get their pay spread out over the entire year, it'd probably cost less than $22/hour to get them to come in part time over the summer. Sad part is it still won't happen.
@vegasm...the increased revenue (taxes, gas, etc.) from summer camp enrollments and the need for more metro officers to investigate and crack down on grannies running illegal day camps will more than make up for the lost ticket revenue.
"However, there is no significant difference in test scores among the district's year-round and nine-month campuses -- both have standout programs as well as struggling schools."
It appears that, while times were good, the school district was able to spend 21 million plus more per year. Now that things are tight, they have decided to stop spending the additional 21 miliion a year.
Thanks CCSD.
I am sure that no other wasteful programs or policies have been implemented over the years.
Yep ...... that's the only one!!