Schools decide make-up schedule
By Phyllis Moore
Published in News on March 14, 2014 1:46 PM
Out of snow make-up day options, Wayne County Public Schools is calling for a Saturday make-up day to keep graduation and testing schedules on time, officials said Thursday.
This is the third time in recent weeks the school system has been forced to juggle the calendar because of inclement weather.
District schools have experienced nine school closures due to snowy and icy conditions between Jan. 28 and March 4. Wayne Early/Middle College High School and Wayne School of Engineering actually experienced 10 snow days over that same period.
"This winter, school districts across the state of North Carolina have experienced more snow days over the course of a six-week period than is typically accrued over a number of years," Superintendent Dr. Steven Taylor said. "Despite the unusually high number of snow days, Wayne County Public Schools has worked diligently to maximize instructional time for students for the remainder of the school year.
"Because of the strict confines of school calendar law, our district has exhausted nearly every calendar option available for make-up time and has opted for a Saturday make-up day in May to help protect graduation and state testing schedules."
The latest interruption to the schedule came March 3, when students were dismissed three hours early due to inclement weather and WEMCH and Wayne School of Engineering closed. The next day, all schools were closed for students and staff due to icy conditions.
Administrators announced the following plan to make up the lost time:
Schools on the traditional calendar and Dillard Middle School will now attend classes for a full day on April 18, rather than the original early release day. The make-up day, which will now be an early release day, will be Saturday, May 31.
For WEMCH and Wayne School of Engineering, April 18 will be changed from a teacher workday to a full instructional day. The second snow day will be waived in accordance with the state calendar flexibility waiver, which the two special programs operate under annually.
A full schedule for make-up time, along with printable copies of the three revised school calendars, are available online at waynecountyschools.org.