KSD approves 4-day schedule

KELLOGG –– The Kellogg School Board voted unanimously to adopt a pilot four-day schedule for the 2024/25 school year during their meeting on Tuesday night. 

Kellogg now joins 97 other districts in Idaho that have made the change from the traditional five-day week. 

During a special workshop in April, the board was presented with a proposed plan composed by a special committee of district staff and patrons. The plan detailed how the changes would affect students, staff, and scheduling. 

Along with the decision to adopt the four-day schedule, the board also voted in favor of adopting the amended calendar as it was laid out in the previously proposed plan – with one significant change. 

Initially, the plan called for teachers to have one Friday each month specifically for professional development – the adopted plan mandates that the certified staff will have two contract Fridays each month they are to be present for. 

During these days, teachers will participate in professional development, staff collaborations, meetings discussing individualized education programs (IEP) and 504 plans, as well as many other administrative meetings that routinely pull teachers from the classroom during the day. Currently, the certified staff working at Kellogg operate on contracts of 190 days – under the new schedule, they would be under contract for 179 days with no changes to their salary or benefits. 

A survey conducted among the district’s certified staff detailing the additional contract day yielded an 85% positive response – which helped the board feel more comfortable with their decision to adopt the four-day schedule. 

The district reportedly surveyed at almost every level before coming to their decision – including asking both certified and classified staff, families of the students, and the students from grades six through 12. 

The responses were overwhelmingly in favor of adopting a four-day schedule. 

Board chairwoman Alexa Griffin said that while she feels strongly that this was a positive move for the district, the adoption is in a pilot phase and the board will be keeping a close eye on the situation to make sure that operating in such a way remains in the best interest of the district’s students and staff. 

“The board is excited for the positive impact we believe this will have on our staff and students,” Griffin said following the meeting. “We believe that our staff will benefit from the scheduled days each month that will be used for professional development, collaboration, and focused curriculum planning. Mental health is a focus for us, and we have seen and heard the positive effects this type of schedule has had. We intend to follow this closely to be sure that this works for our district.”

As for the district schedule, a fully detailed version will be released in the coming days, but the basics are as follows:

The first day of school for the 2024/25 school year will be Tuesday, September 3. 

Instead of a full week off of school, students will attend class on the Monday and Tuesday before Thanksgiving. 

Christmas and spring breaks will remain the same length. 

The final day of school will be June 12, 2025, one day later than the previously approved calendar. 

The early release schedule on Wednesdays, fall and spring professional days, the end-of-quarter/semester grading days, and conference days before Thanksgiving and spring break will be eliminated.

School day lengths would be increased by 15 minutes at each of the four buildings in the district, and the schedules would be as follows: 

Canyon Elementary: 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. 

Pinehurst Elementary: 7:45 a.m. to 2:55 p.m. 

KMS: 7:55 a.m. to 3:20 p.m. 

KHS: 8:05 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.