Not too long ago, we wrote about the 3 Reasons Why Loudoun County Schools are better than Fairfax County Schools [1].
Vote before June 23rd, 2014
In the article, we described how Molly’s family (our clients), had chosen to live in Loudoun County because of one main reason:
- Full Day Mondays
Since Molly and Dan work full time, they could really see the benefit to having a consistent schedule all week long for their son, Ike, which they couldn’t get if he attended Fairfax County Public Schools.
Fairfax County Public Schools (FCPS) currently offers half-day Mondays
All Elementary schools in Fairfax County currently have a shortened school day on Mondays.
For example, the schedule for Wolftrap Elementary School:
- Monday: 8:40 am to 12:50pm,
- Tuesday – Friday: 8:40 am to 3:20 pm
For many families, the shortened schedule on Mondays represents a logistical problem, especially when both parents work outside the home.
The good news is that the School Board for Fairfax County is considering changing the schedule to allow for full day Mondays possibly starting as early as the fall of 2014.
FCPS is considering having Full Day Mondays
The discussion on Full Day Mondays started this Spring, where a committee was formed to make a recommendation to the Board.
In short, the committee recommended to change the current school calendar to include Full Day Mondays, as well as to extend the school day by 10 minutes every day [2].
With these recommendations, the committee hopes to resolve a few issues, including:
- a consistent schedule throughout the week, and
- eliminate the need to add school days in the fall to make up for snow days
Plus, the impact to the current infrastructure would be minimal, and it would save over $1.3 Million next school year. [3]
Some people like to keep the schedule as it is (with half-day on Mondays)
While many people believe this to be a positive recommendation, there are others who relish their half-day Mondays as an opportunity to explore the DC area with their kids.
Other parents worry about the teachers who have used the latter part of Mondays for planning purposes. However, the committee has considered the teachers’ need and has identified ways to keep the teachers’ planning time as part of the schedule (see resource [2]).
If you think that Full Day Mondays and that having a set calendar for the school year (vs. having to make up snow days in the summer), is a good idea, provide your feedback on this short survey before June 23rd, 2014.
Here is your chance to voice your opinion on Full Day Mondays for FCPS
Voice your opinion here by June 23rd, 2014:
FCPS Full Day Monday Survey for Parents
The FCPS Board will vote on this issue at their June 26th meeting.
Resources
[1] 3 Reasons Why Loudoun County Schools are better than Fairfax County Schools
[2] Recommendations to FCPS Master Schedule and Annual School Calendar
[3] Official news from FCPS, recommendations to Master Schedule and cost impact analysis
Image by Rob Boudon on flickr
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