Georgia Senator Steve Gooch of Dahlonega is leading a committee to study the economic effects of school calendars on tourism, but the Forsyth County school board said they disagree with the state's attempt to get involved.
Superintendent Jeff Bearden said the current calendar received approximately 85% of resident's approval and added, "Calendars need to be built based upon feedback we get from our community and not, in my opinion, a state decision."
The feasibility study led by Senator Gooch plans to look at the benefits of delaying the start of school until after Labor Day as well as the perks of ending the school year by Memorial Day.
Currently, the Forsyth County school's student calendar starts on August 2, 2018 and ends May 24, 2019. Students receive a week off for Fall break in September, another week out of school in November during the week of Thanksgiving, about two weeks vacation around Christmas and the new year, and a week without classes for spring break in April.
The board discussed several problems with changing the school calendar including the impact of state testing, the schedule of dual enrollment students, and the effects on classroom performance.
"About 6 to 7 weeks is about as long as you can go before you start to see two things happen,," Bearden told the board. "Teacher absenteeism goes up and, number two, classroom management issues increase as well."
The board also noted the increased learning curve for students learning English as a second language if the summer break were to be extended into a full three months.
Bearden told the board he would draft a resolution for them to consider during their next regular meeting on Tuesday, September 18, 2018 at 6:00 p.m. at the Forsyth County Board of Education building on Dahlonega Highway.
Editor's note: The study committee is in the process of setting a schedule for meetings across the state.
