Five snow days won't be made up

School year at 175 days

Friday, March 12, 2010

St. Mary's County public school students will go to school five fewer days this year now that State Superintendent Nancy Grasmick has granted a waiver after the series of snowstorms this winter.

By state law, Maryland students are required to go to school 180 days a school year, but this year St. Mary's students and others elsewhere in the state will only go 175 days. The state school board last month gave Grasmick the authority to grant waivers on a case-by-case basis as school systems put in requests based on the multiple snowstorms this winter that interrupted school schedules.

St. Mary's public schools have been closed for 10 days so far this school year. There were five days built into the calendar at the end of the year as make-up days that will all be used. The remaining five missed days now will not have to be made up, placing the last day of school Thursday, June 17, as originally planned.

"It was a very, very unique situation for us" to close so many days during the snowstorms, St. Mary's Superintendent Michael Martirano said at a Feb. 24 meeting, where he announced that he would request the waiver.

The school system so far this winter spent $191,132 on snow removal. This includes $148,317 for contractors and about $42,800 for operations and maintenance staff overtime.

Crews must clear snow at 30 school and office sites and put sand or salt down as needed, said Brad Clements, chief operating officer.

Contractors are used for most of the schools, while employees are called in for the office sites. Employees are paid time and a half for weekend work, as well as when schools are shut down completely to 12-month employees, he said.

Clements said the next highest amount he remembers schools spending on snow removal was about $85,000 nearly a decade ago.

The negotiated contract calls for teachers to work 190 days a year.

This year they will only be expected to work 185 days, although the same amount of information will have to be taught and the same tests — including state standardized assessments — given to students.

"The bottom line is that testing schedules will remain in place" for the Maryland School Assessments, Martirano said last month.

The state standardized tests given in reading and math to all students in grades 3 through 8 started this week.

"It's not as simple as changing the [testing] date," he said. Each system has different calendars but the tests have to be given on the same days throughout the state.

Also, the contracted vendors need to receive the tests in time to grade for an appropriate turnaround time, he said.

Spring is approaching, but if further days are missed due to inclement weather, the plan would be as follows: April 30 would be a required day of school for students (currently it is a professional day for teachers) and one additional day would be added to the end of the school year calendar, making the last day of school for students Friday, June 18.

St. Mary's public schools' spring break, which is March 29 through April 5, will remain intact.

Grasmick also granted waivers this week for five days for Kent and Prince George's public schools.

Charles public schools were granted a waiver for three days along with a conditional waiver for two days if school in that county is canceled twice more, according to a spokesperson from the Maryland State Department of Education.

The Charles school board voted 6-1 in favor of approving the waivers for the calendar Tuesday. School board member Jennifer S. Abell cast the lone vote against the waivers. "Rules are put in place for a reason. Just to request a waiver for different circumstances is setting a bad example for children, I believe," Abell said in an interview after the meeting.

jyeatman@somdnews.com

Staff writer Gretchen Phillips contributed to this report.