Board Adopts Calendar Guidelines

The Coronado Unified School District board approved a set of guidelines for the school calendar at its Thursday meeting. 

Among the principles:

• “Student learning is the focus and attendance must be maximized.” 
• The school year begins in mid- to late-August and ends in early June.
• The Thanksgiving holiday will be a full week. 
• Spring break will no longer be tied to Easter. Instead it will occur mid-semester.

The long wished-for February “ski week” was not included, but whenever possible the district should provide a three-day weekend, the board decided.

There was also an effort to keep the length of semesters consistent, by requiring that they not differ by more than 15 days. The first semester will end before winter break, with a three- or four-day break in October.

. The first was for trustees, the second for staff and the third for the community. All the meetings were open to the public.

Though attendance was sparse, trustees were glad residents were invited to take part in the discussion.

Bruce Shepherd, the board's president, said the process was a “great gift to the community, broadening its vision of how a calender affects everyday life.”

Superintendent Jeffrey Felix had wanted the trustees to adopt draft calendars for both the 2012 and 2013 school years, but the trustees were not comfortable going beyond next year’s calendar.