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Texas
schools could save millions of dollars if given the power to add a few
minutes to the school day and shave a few days off the school year
through a proposal I plan to make either during the next special
legislative session, if one is called, or the 79th session.
State Comptroller Carole Keeton Strayhorn, at my request, conducted a
study showing that Texas could save more than $35 million in gas and
electric utility costs if 12 days were cut from the school calendar.
Currently, the Texas Education Code requires that schools offer 180 days
of instruction for seven hours a day. I want to give Texas schools the
option to hold classes for a maximum of 180 days or a minimum of 1,260
hours of academic instruction – the equivalent of seven hours for 180
days.
At first glance, my proposal looks very similar to existing law. My plan
does not force schools to take on additional costs and places no mandate
on them. They can opt to keep the daily and yearly calendar schedule
they currently follow. But my plan would give districts a powerful new
decision-making capability that could drastically impact their financial
and academic progress.
By adding 15 or 30 minutes to a school day, districts could still
achieve the 1,260-hour yearly instructional minimum while cutting the
calendar year by six to 12 days. Considering daily food, transportation
and utility costs, the potential for savings to public schools is
enormous.
The plan I have developed is very much in the spirit of local control.
It provides greater flexibility and control to school boards and
superintendents when deciding on a school calendar and schedule. And the
results of the Comptroller’s study certainly encourage me to give
schools an option of extending their seven-hour days if they deem it in
the best interest of their students, with the added bonus of saving
money.
The Comptroller determined, based on a study of utility costs at 43
school districts and 59 schools in various areas of the state, that
reducing the required 180-day school year by one day could save Texas
schools $2.8 million; by six days $17.6 million; and by 12 days $35.3
million.
In preparing for the current special session on school funding, we
legislators have listened to countless hours of testimony from teachers,
school administrators and public education advocates. It has become
clear that the dramatic rise in non-instructional costs for public
education shows no sign of slowing down. The people of this state and
their elected representatives demand that our children receive a
top-quality education, but we also demand that our taxpayer money be
spent wisely.
This option could help schools reduce not only electric costs, but also
busing expenses, substitute teacher pay and building wear and tear.
The benefits may also translate into a better quality education in the
classroom, since savings in non-instructional costs could be diverted
into instructional expenditures. I am still gathering information about
the potential impact of this plan and will continue to work with the
Comptroller on more extensive data.
Teachers will still be teaching the same number of hours during the
school year, and even if a district chooses to hold class for fewer
days, their contracts and pay would not be affected. Support staff would
also work the same number of hours. Instructional days could be swapped
for staff development days by requesting a wavier.
The plan also offers other benefits. School districts with large numbers
of migrant students, who often miss the first weeks of school because
they are with their families harvesting crops, could choose to start the
school year more than a week later than their current schedule allows,
simply by adding a half hour to the class day. This would make it easier
for migrant students to make the academic transition once they return to
campus.
I am also envisioning the possibility of a decrease in juvenile crime.
Law enforcement statistics show that juvenile crime rates are higher
during the after-school hours. Keeping children in school, even for just
a few minutes, may positively impact those statistics.
The potential impact of giving schools greater options, expanding
instructional funds and reducing utility costs should bode well for
Texas. As always, if you have any input or questions regarding
these or other matters, please do not hesitate to contact my office in
Austin at 512-463-0127, Brownsville at 956-548-0227 and Weslaco at
956-968-9927.
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