Cleveland’s school board approved the school calendar for next school year as well as the 2028-29 school year, at a meeting on Feb. 24.
The district initially proposed a draft of the new calendar, which pushes the start of school back by a week, alongside its sweeping restructuring plan, which will close 18 schools and merge 39 schools next year.
District leaders have acknowledged that this plan includes a lot of change. To promote a smooth transition, they proposed tweaks to the existing school calendar next year, including starting a week later and adding an extra professional development day for staff.
The district will also adjust the school start and end times at 13 elementary schools and five high schools to accommodate school mergers. To view a full list of proposed start and end time changes, click here.
Other changes include decreasing the number of open house and parent teacher conference days from two to one.
The finalized school calendar also gives families with preschoolers clarity on whether their student will be eligible for kindergarten next year, following a recent state law change. Students need to turn 5 years old by the first day of school, which next year will be Aug. 24.
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Little calendar controversy this year
Typically, the district allows for a 30-day public comment period on the school calendar. Last year, the comment period was marked by debates over cutting instructional minutes from year-round schools. This year students, teachers and district staff didn’t voice many objections in the lead up to the vote aside from staff at Wilbur Wright Elementary School.
Two teachers from that school shared concerns at a Jan. 13 board meeting about their new later start and end times. They expressed worries that the proposed later time could be a barrier for Muslim students who might now miss class on Friday afternoons for weekly prayers as well as difficult for Newton D. Baker Elementary school students who had recently adjusted to starting school later after their school closed last year.
Ahead of the vote on Tuesday, Cleveland Metropolitan School District (CMSD) CEO Warren Morgan, said that while the district took this feedback into account, it decided not to shift the times because it created logistical challenges.
“We had our transportation department see if we could do a one off change,” Morgan said. “But then there was kind of a spiral, rabbit hole effect about how it would actually impact other schools.”