Hotter August days push some schools to delay start dates

[marmar]

Owen Driscoll, a 17-year-old senior at Rufus King International High School in Milwaukee, was skeptical about starting school after Labor Day this year, three weeks later than before. But he is beginning to see the advantages.

“Last year when we were on the old schedule, we had a few heat days [off in August] because it was so unbearable,” he said, noting that few classrooms are air-conditioned. That made it hard to get into the rhythm of school, he said.

By delaying the start date and extending the school year into June, heat days are more likely at the end of the year, Driscoll acknowledged. But by then, he said, students are ready to be done and appreciate the unscheduled time off.

Higher summer temperatures, driven by climate change, are pushing more school districts around the country to start the school year later. It’s contrary to a decades-long trend toward moving up start dates. In addition to the change at some schools in Milwaukee, school officials in Philadelphia and in Billings, Montana, also have cited heat as a reason to push back their start dates. ...................(more)

https://michiganadvance.com/2024/09/13/hotter-august-days-push-some-schools-to-delay-start-dates/

[House of Roberts]

1. Fifty years ago we used to start school the week before Labor Day,

have school for three days, then off for a three day weekend, then a four day week, and settle into the routine of five days a week. Now the kids start school the first week of August, so they finish the first semester at Christmas break, and they still get a week off in the fall, as well as the Spring Break week in March.