CESU #12
2015-16 School Calendar Update
March 24, 2015
Dear Chittenden East Families,
On behalf of the Chittenden East
Governing Board, we would like to apologize for our failure to effectively
communicate about the two-hour delays included in the 2015-2016 school
calendar. We should have provided more
public information before we approved the calendar and posted the calendar on
our websites.
The new Vermont Education Quality
Standards (State Board Rule 2000) state supervisory unions shall provide
professional learning for staff involved in student instruction that is
embedded into the school day. Requiring
professional development during the school day will force modifications to the
school day and school year calendar. We
will try to make this change as trouble-free as possible.
Like Chittenden East, some Vermont
supervisory unions have delayed start times, while others have early release
days, or half days, or a combination of those options. In some supervisory unions, there are
different delay or start times by school building. Given a number of factors, we decided a
delayed start once a month would be the best way to balance the needs of
students, parents, and staff.
Each school building will have a
safe space available for students on these mornings. Breakfast will be served, and some limited
bussing may be available. Teachers and
staff will be able to collaborate not only within a building, but in other
configurations that will enable us to improve our educational delivery. Technology and planning will allow teachers
from multiple elementary schools to work together on lessons, or teachers from
the middle and high schools to collaborate in order to ensure a smooth
transition for students. Other areas of
focus for staff will include:
- Implementing Personal Learning Plans (PLPs) at Middle Schools and High School (state mandate)
- Implementing Proficiency-Based Graduation Requirements (state mandate)
- Implementation of Common Core (adopted by state)
- K-12 Data Teams (New Education Quality Standards)
- Effective training for Readers and Writers Workshop K-8 (local initiative)
Sincerely,