The Oregon-Davis School Corporation is pushing back the start of the 2021-2022 school year by a week. The school board recently approved a calendar adjustment that moves the first day of class to August 12.
“Fair creeps up on people, then State Fair starts,” Superintendent Bill Bennett told board members. “A lot of agriculture kids in our school, a lot of kids are exhibiting 4-H, State Fair, and it just seems like the summer’s getting shorter and shorter.”
Bennett said there will also be two built-in eLearning days, where students will work from home while teachers do more in-depth professional development. “We all know kids learn better when they’re in the seats in the classroom,” Bennett acknowledged. “There’s a lot of research, though, that shows the amount of time teachers can put into planning and prepping, it will increase student achievement. However, it’s such a fine balance, and the reality is you can’t replace an in-person teacher.”
Next year’s calendar calls for two weeks off for holiday break and one week off for spring break, with the last day of class on May 26, 2022.
Meanwhile, Oregon-Davis High School Principal B.J. Awald said plans are moving ahead for this year’s graduation. She said they’re planning to hold an outdoor ceremony again, but it could be moved into the gym, if necessary. It’ll be held Saturday, June 5, 2021 at 10:00 a.m.
