Schools consider 4-day weeks

Hey moms and dads. Have you heard this one yet? School districts all across Florida, including some here in the Tampa Bay area, are looking at running classes on a four-day schedule to save money. And that's not just for the summer months, either.

Nope, as the price of gas and electricity rise and tax revenue slides, leaders in Hernando, Pasco and other school districts are at least raising the prospect of shutting down the schools and idling buses for one more day a week during the academic year, too.

"All 67 districts in Florida are considering it, but no one has implemented it," Bay County superintendent James McCalister told his School Board, which also is considering the idea, according to the Northwest Florida Daily News.

Of course, districts would have to work out details dealing with the state requirement ensuring students get 180 days of school, FCAT scheduling and the like. And they'd have to deal with you, too.

We imagine your work places probably wouldn't be moving to four-day weeks to coincide with the school schedule. So if you like the idea - or more likely, if you don't - you might want to start paying attention to the debate as your local school board talks about its budget plans.

Comments

I voted for the tax cut. Why? You don't need to take money away from the schools, just stop wasting it to begin with. How many lame brained money wasters have you seen in your community? Clearwater is ripe with waste. Cut the taxes even more and lose the fat. If you are unskilled and/or uneducated, don't have so many damn kids...and don't whine about it being tough. You could have kept your pants up and stayed in school.

[Hallie D]

This could be possible if you are a 40 hour week type of employee. I'm a commission worker, and I can't just shift that day to another, its not that kind of work. You show up you work, and leave when its done. What for me then? when my daughter is old enough to go off to school? Just loose a day? While I am valued as an employee, its small business, and they have to do what they need to for them. Tacking an extra hour or two on the end of my day, doesn't make up for the day lost.

While I do not see school as babysitting, I think we need to be realistic as we look at our society. Most famiilies have two working parents, or are single parent homes. I don't think we can make a choice like this, to move to 4 days, with our society running the way it does. If this were the 50s, as so many mentioned, where our money went a little further it would be one thing. But its not reality. And you can only cut personal costs so far. I can't afford to leave my job, as it pays almost the top in my industry, but the cost of gas is really hurting my commute costs! Cut one bill to save, and watch other rise out of our control

[John]

Ray, it has nothing to do with politics. I am a Republican as are most of my technical co-workers. We pitched the idea of a 4 day work week, but the self proclaimed Social Liberal owner nixed the idea. Why? He wouldn't be able to get the extra 10 hours of unpaid work a week out of his technical staff. Learn to think for yourself and not follow some silly ignorant party line.

My concern with a 4-day school week is not my job (my hours would not change but the childcare industry would, that's THEIR job, and there are more choices than the YMCA), but how much my elementary-age kids would really learn those last 1-2 hours of the day. Recess is non-existent, PE is the shortest portion of the day ... even field trips "cost too" much, so there's really no variety at all as they learn, hour after hour, to pass the FCAT. A 10-year-old boy cannot be expected to sit still with only 1/2 hour of physical exercise and 1/2 hour at lunch for what would then amount to about 7 hours of instruction -- and, while I know some wonderful teachers, I couldn't pick ONE who'd want to try to make him (or one upon whom I'd wish the task).

I keep wondering: what's wrong with the way the rest of the country does it? 8:30 - 3:30, lunch, PE, recess ... music, art, field trips to age appropriate museums and historical venues ... So many other counties and states manage it.

As for that big "lottery windfall" everyone looks for in the education $$$: we got it when the lottery began, then it became a replacement of previously budgeted money rather than an enhancement. It's still there, but the money it originally supplemented has been 'reassigned' so we're back to ground zero ... or, frankly, worse.

[James]

The answer is not cut, cut cut... we are cutting to oblivion!
revise the tax structure - we need a tax structure that makes sense and it will cost us more.
We don't mind, if it is also spent properly.

[Chris]

Kitty... Do you think people on minimum wage should be spitting out kids? Minimum wage clearly buys less these days.... that should be plenty of motivation (for people in minimum wage jobs)to NOT have kids.

[Alex]

School ends too early right now. Fill up the day- 10 hours at school. And at work too.

Employers (including school districts) are going to find out shortly that their workers are finding it less profitable to show up.

[kitty]

To put this into further perspective, 4:09PM, When my husband & I married back in the early 80s, the minimum wage was $3.35, but you could rent a nice apartment for $290 a month. Today's minimum wage in Florida is $6.65 an hour - not even twice what it was 27 years ago, but that same apartment costs $950 to rent - more than 3x what it was in the 80s. Add to that the spiraling cost of everything else, you come to realize just how ridiculous your statement is.

[kitty]

04:06 PM, back in the 50s one working parent made enough money to afford the necessities. Then things started to change in the 70s, and the second parent had to go to work. Then by the late 80's/early 90's at least one of the parents had to take a part time job to make ends meet.

Back in 1959, the minimum wage was $1 an hour, and homes in my current n'hood sold for $4,500. Today's minimum wage in Florida is $6.65 an hour 6.65 times what it was 49 years ago, but the minimum price for a home in that n'hood today (and this is AFTER the real estate market tanked) is $189,000, 42x -that's forty-two times what it was in the 1950s. Add to that the spiraling cost of everything else, you come to realize just how ridiculous your statement is.

I've been saying for years that the top 1% can't float the entire economy. Just today the media finally admitted the same thing.

When you give the school no money to operate with. This is the best choice they have. If people are going to continue to expect more out of public education, they are eventually going to have to pay for it. School is not daycare. If it was and the teachers were getting paid by the hour the same amount a babysitter would get paid for each child they were watching, they would be making six figures. Put that in perspective. This is the worst public education has ever been in this state. Are we going to re-elect the same people again in November?

[Susan]

I see this as a great idea if you're heavily invested with a pharmacutical company.Just think about all the extra Ritalin perscribed for attention deficit disorder.Has anyone consider how children might feel about sitting in a classroom even longer with very limited recess, art or music classes..to break up the day. Any empathy here?

This would not be an issue if people would make better choices about having children. No, this isn't the 1950s anymore, but if mom (or dad) were at home, then this wouldn't be an issue. Everyone makes choices in life, and some choices have consequences we don not like. If you are a single-parent only making blah, blah, blah, you made a choice to be in that position. You chose the wrong woman (or man) to create a life with. Deal with your responsibilities that you now have, and quit crying about changes to your routine.

One problem with Amendment 1 is that Floridians don't understand their govt. momof4 thinks that the Counties and School Systems are the same. Counties don't fund the schools and schools don't build roads. Two separate parts of government with two separate taxing streams. You can't take from general government and give to the schools.

teachers salaries are crap. they don't make decent money at all unless they have been teaching for years!! especially in Florida. my family has been in education for years, my mother is a principal.i am all for the 4 days to give the teachers a break on gas and such. it would give me a break on gas too. i drive my kids to school.

[momof4]

I would be fine with a 4 day week. but if the counties would stop doing useless things with the money we would not have to worry about it. the "fix" roads that did not need fixing. and a lot of other things they should not be doing if money is tight. the one thing that they should never take money away from is education. teachers don't make enough money as it is and now they are taking about cutting their pay that is horrible.maybe if there were some intelligent people making decisions we would not have this problem!

Dear tb,

You wondered if any Legislators were invested in charter schools. The answer is YES! It is funny that while funding for public school capital outlay from the state was almost 50% reduced that charter school capital outlay was increased. School districts also saw 12.5% of their local property taxes taken to fund school operations statewide including that of charter schools. Even with these shifts of extra money to charters, many of them will go under this year. Mark my words but most charters are not prepared to make the cuts that will be required because of the State's budget.

[REM]

Ahh...you get what you pay for. That's why I send my kids to Catholic school.

I voted against the amendment to lower property taxes...and this is part of the result..nothing is free.

[cs]

If I made teacher's pay I wouldn't have to worry about paying for child care, but I'm a paralegal in Pasco County (Hillsborough is too far to get back in time to p/u child from after school care)

[Ann E. Mouse]

One major problem that is being overlooked: Schools are funded by the state per diem, based on the number of days they serve lunch. That's why on half days, schools still have an extremely short lunch break before the busses roll. This way, they can claim a full day and get their funding. Close school for one day each week and there goes that day's funding!

[cs]

I don't think teacher's should get another job and your comment is so ridiculous I won't even bother responding - and your a teacher? very sad with an attitude like that

[Another teacher]

People keep telling teachers to get a second job if they need to make more $. Well, to all you parents who say you can't afford child care if your kids aren't in school 5 days a week, take your own advice. Get a second job!

Plus, a 4 day week would save teachers on gas as well as giving us an extra day to work those second jobs that many of us already have. I say lets pilot it and see how it goes!

[get real]

and we wonder why kids are getting worse and worse. Parents suck more and more every day! Every child left behind :( thanks to bush. God save America

[Melb31]

Child care is very expensive. If you cut out a day at work for parents to stay home with their children it doesn't always work out to be convenient or cheap. Cutting a day of work by "extending" the work day may work for some, but, as a bus rider in Hernando County, that would mean I couldn't ride the bus anymore (they stop service from Brooksville to Spring Hill at 5:30) and so I would have to pay for gasoline instead of my bus pass.. Not convenient at all!

[Melb31]

Child care is very expensive. If you cut out a day at work for parents to stay home with their children it doesn't always work out to be convenient or cheap. Cutting a day of work by "extending" the work day may work for some, but, as a bus rider in Hernando County, that would mean I couldn't ride the bus anymore (they stop service from Brooksville to Spring Hill at 5:30) and so I would have to pay for gasoline instead of my bus pass.. Not convenient at all!

[ws]

Is anyone considering how this would impact after school activities and sports these kids are involved in? Fit this in, homework, dinner, etc and you have kids staying up too late and therefore tired the following day and that is counterproductive to a positive and beneficial learning environment.

[Mac]

You are WRONG Parker.The talk is they WOULD extend the school day as well as employers extending the work day.

[Vic]

A 4 day schoolweek,or even a 4 day work week will not be as big a deal as everyone thinks:the 4 school days would simply run longer,and the work days run longer...workers will still get their 40 hours,and kids get all their studies accomplished! I LOVE the idea!

[cs]

To June 06, 2008 at 12:56 PM: Not sure if you're comment was directed at me, but I also pay for before and after school child care which is not cheap and I am definitely not looking for free child care - I also pay taxes. But reality is not all of us are fortunate enough to pay for private schooling in today's economy and remember it is the law (that I totaly agree with)that children attend school.

[Parker]

They wouldn't add the hours to the other 4 days, they instead would make up for them by cutting into the summer and other breaks, which might actually help working parents...

[tb]

Could be an interesting plan. I would imagine the diesel fuel savings for buses would be significant. I wonder if any Legislators are invested in any Charter Schools? Could this be the end of public education as we know it?

[teacher]

Just asking... Does this mean I will make even less money if I work less hours? If so, I'm out. I have to find a career where I could continue to make ends meet. And yes, I am expecting comments from some ignorant die-hard southerners (yes, I am from Florida) who will tell me if I don't like it to get out. You just keep your mouth closed and keep flipping your burgers and everyone will be happy!

[Christina]

The kids in FL have too little time in school as it is (not to mention subpar quality, but I won't even get into that). I doubt the hours added to those 4 days will be valuable as kids will lose interest and a lot (not all, but a lot) of teachers would fluff their way through. And for those with jobs that offer no flexibility that are struggling to meet ends meet, this could really cause substantial hardship. Ideally, yeah, it might sound great. But let's work on fixing the broken, almost hopeless situation we have before taking more risks that could likely make things worse.

[cs]

Payton: I totally agree school shouldn't be thought of as a babysitter (if I could I would home school)but there are a lot of people that have no choice - and at least they are trying instead of giving up and going on welfare. I myself would love 3 days off a week, but to a lot of people this would mean having to find another job or paying a most of a days pay for one day of child care. Right now is an awful time to have to change jobs if you're lucky enough to still have one.

Dear wendy,

Please pass all of the tax cuts that you want to pass but don't expect the same level of services if you do.

Dear cs,

I ask, Did you support Amendment #1? Did you vote for any of the no tax increases under any circumstances Legislators who decided to cut the funding for the public schools? If you didn't get involved before, now is a really good time. 1) Vote down the tax swap amendment. 2) Vote down the both of the school voucher amendments. 3) Vote against any incumbent member of the legislature that voted for the budget (either party). If you don't like the results, you had better change them.

If not, I see a four day school week (with longer hours) as a really good way to preserve a level of instructional service while only cutting administrative expenses.

All of these liberal pinko communist parents who want an entitlement to free child care should move back to Mother Russia. The Legislature has it right. Cut the schools to the just the basic services required. A certain number of hours of instruction instead of number of days should be mandated which would allow for a better work week for teachers and students. Who wouldn't want a three day weekend every week of the year?

[cs]

Merrit - are you kidding me? an inconvenience? I am a single parent (mother) that makes about $27,000.00 per yr. with no child support and no place to leave my child should this go into effect. My employers don't care about "my personal problems" and I would be let go if I could only work 4 days, and if they agreed to it I couldn't afford it... I'm hanging on by a thread now...and I'm sure there are many others in my situation - for us this is far, far from an inconvenience - it could mean joblessness.

[Megan]

That's a great idea. Let's cram all the lessons needed in 5 days in to 4 days. This is the most ridiculous idea.

[Jim]

No. Bad idea. Gulfport did this a couple years back and it was a total nightmare. The teachers don't feel like doing anything and neither do the kids when you add the additional time onto those 4 days to make up for the lost time on the 5th. Really screws up the DOT and causes horrific busing problems. Might work for private schools or something.

[Kenneth]

4-day work week is a great idea. The evenings after work are a wash anyways because you're so exhausted. And how many of us get anything done on Friday? I'm reading pre-season college football predictions right now.

Better for the environment, better for folks' wallets, better for families, and cost saving for employers. Sounds win win to me.

[payton]

We need to stop thinking of schools as free babysitting services. Schools are for learning - not for taking care of your kids while you work. I think it's a great idea. I hope my school district does this. What do parents do with their kids in the summer? How is a 4-day week any different? Daycares will adjust for their clients. LOVE IT!

[wendy]

What a wonderful plan...They probably thought this one up to get people to vote against further tax cuts. but it will backfire Lots of people will actually like it. By the way what happened to the plan that... the Florida lottery was going to give buckets of money to the public school system???

I would love my employer to implement a 4 day work week to help us offset the price of gas. Some could work Monday thru Thursday and others could work Tuesday thru Friday. The employer would still get 5 days of business. Great idea !!!

The Legislature wants schools on the cheap. This is a good way to save 20% of school transportation costs and utility costs. It is such a great idea that the Legislature should mandate it starting with the 2009-2010 school year. That way, they won't have to increase taxes.

Also, the public loves the 65% solution so much and this change would help to shift HUNDREDS OF MILLIONS OF DOLLARS "into the classroom" instead of going to busing or utilities. Brilliant!

[I'd rather Rax]

Proposition 13, Amendment 1. Same thing! You all voted for it. Now these type of things are the price you pay. It will only get worse until Florida takes responsibility and it's priorities straightened out with public education. Pay nothing = you get nothing. Most of the legislature does not care about the shambles they have created of Florida's education system. Just all talk.. Blah.. Blah... Blah. Enjoy the tanning both Charlie.

[Ray]

Republicans won't go for this. It makes Corporate American have one less day a week that they can control the lives of working people but they will have 10 hours a day Mon-Thurs. They won't like that even though it would save them money in the long run.

Governmental Agencies should institute ASAP.

[merritt]

I think it's a good idea to go to 4 days a week. Yes, it will be an inconvenience for many parents. However, I would rather see this option be implemented than see all parents trasport their children, cuts in funding for the arts, or any other option being discussed right now. The 5th day of the week, parents could still have their children at the school through the YMCA or another program, and we could actually see students engaged in meaningful activities that day, like music, art and drama. This could end up being a benefit for the eductation of our chidren, if programs like the arts are offered on the day off. Funding for electricity and possibly buses to transport kids to the site could come from parents paying for the 5th day of daycare for their child.

Unsupervised kids - just another way the Republican Legislature is ensuring Florida's #1 growth industry - private prisons!!!!!

Remember in November!