District 203 may delay start of 2010 school year

Naperville Unit District 203 students may get a longer summer vacation in 2010.

The district is considering starting and ending classes a week later next school year to give construction crews more time for renovations at Naperville Central High School.

Tweaking the 2010-11 calendar also could mean winter break won't begin until the day before Christmas.

The draft calendar presented to the school board Monday called for classes to begin Aug. 25, 2010, and end June 7, 2011.

The proposed changes revolve around work at Central, which is undergoing an $87.7 million renovation project. Roughly 165,000 square feet of the building will be torn up during the summer, according to Tim Bickert, a project manager with IHC Construction Company. He estimated having an extra week to work could reduce overtime costs by $200,000 to $500,000.

"There are always some bumps when school opens and a little more time will reduce the number and the size of the bumps," he said. "But it will be a good quality space and it will be done on time no matter what you say about the start date."

While school board members seemed open to moving the start and end dates for one year, there was extensive discussion about when to hold semester exams and winter break.

The original draft of the calendar called for winter break to run Dec. 18 through Jan. 2, with high school exams in early to mid-January. The semester officially would end Jan. 21.

That proposal runs counter to the practice of holding exams before break that has been in place since 2006.

Melanie Raczkiewicz, associate superintendent for operations, said recent surveys have found 73 percent of parents and 74 percent of staff respondents like the way the district has been structuring its calendar in recent years. In a survey of high school students, 90 percent said they prefer exams before break.

Board Vice President Jackie Romberg expressed concern about delaying the exams next year. She suggested keeping students in school though Dec. 23 so they can take exams and finish the semester and then have winter break Dec. 24 through Jan. 9.

Romberg said it is not uncommon for the district to hold winter break after Christmas if the holiday falls on a Monday or Tuesday and it is better academically for students to take exams beforehand.

"The educators thought it was best for student learning and students thought it was best for their educational pursuits too," she said.

Board President Mike Jaensch said if the break starts that close to Christmas, the district will have to expect families who plan to travel for the holiday to be unhappy.

If the break doesn't coincide with that of other high schools in the county, Raczkiewicz said some students who participate in programs outside the district could run into scheduling conflicts as well.

Melea Smith, director of communications, said Tuesday that Raczkiewicz plans to revamp the draft calendar based on Romberg's suggestion to hold exams before break, ending the semester on Dec. 23.

Moving days around can be a complicated task. State guidelines, mandatory testing dates, county institutes, holidays and teacher contract agreements all come into play. Administrators also must try to keep the number of days in each semester relatively equal.

While creating the new calendar, a committee discussed a variety of options, including holding classes on Columbus Day and/or the day after Thanksgiving but did not include those in its draft.

Board member Dave Weeks also asked Monday if it would be worthwhile to shorten or eliminate spring break.

The board could vote on the final calendar at its next meeting Jan. 19.