Over the past decade, some school districts have explored and transitioned to a 4-day school week. Since the beginning of the school year, the Snyder ISD Board of Trustees and Superintendent have been asked about exploring this as an option for Snyder ISD. During the week of February 7th, Superintendent Bob Rauch asked the District Education Improvement Committee (comprised of teachers, parents, and community members) and the Snyder ISD Board of Trustees if the possibility of a 4-day week was worth exploring. Based on their feedback, we began researching the pros and cons of implementing a 4-day school week at Snyder ISD.

A survey was released on Monday, February 13th, to gather input from parents, guardians, staff, and 6th-12th grade students. The survey closed on Sunday, February 19th, at 11:59 pm.

Before spending time and resources to research a 4-day week extensively, we wanted to hear from you to see if you're interested. We conducted surveys February 13th-19th. Many of you provided great reasons for or against a 4-day week, while others remain undecided and seek more information before making a decision.

You will find more survey results later in this report, but in summary, we heard from 1,091 parents, guardians, staff, and students, and most of you favored a 4-day school week. We also checked the submissions to ensure our school population was well-represented across multiple demographic points.

No decision has been made at this time as we are in the information-gathering stage. We do not take this decision lightly; like you, we need many questions answered. However, because most of you indicated you favor looking into a 4-day school week, we will move into the next phase of our research. Our goal is to present an academic calendar, either a 4-day or 5-day week calendar, to the Board of Trustees at the April board meeting.

Childcare for the 5th day:

• 17% unsure about childcare

• 17% would alter their work schedule

• 10% would use paid childcare

• The remaining 56% listed that no childcare was needed or that the child would stay with a family member or a friend.

• Hold calendar committee meetings: These troubleshooting meetings include representatives from each department and campus at Snyder ISD. Our goal is to uncover internal issues in each department and find solutions.

• Host community resource discussion groups: We will meet with community organizations, childcare centers, and churches to find resources and opportunities to help families and students.

• Research and analyze districts with a 4-day school week: Not only will we continue speaking with other school districts, but we will also research academic performance, recruitment and retention, absences, and overall performance data.

• Seek guidance and resources from professional organizations: We will seek out resources and best practices from organizations such as the Texas Association of School Administrators and the Texas Association of School Boards.

• Provide more opportunities for questions and answers: We will continue to listen to our stakeholders and welcome your feedback. We will compile a Q&A list to share with our community along the way—email questions to questions@snyderisd.net.

2022-2023 Received inquiries from parents & staff about 4-day trend

2/7 Consulted with DEIC about the possibility of exploring a 4-day calendar. DEIC consists of teachers, staff, parents, & community members. DEIC wished to research.

2/9 Consulted with the Board of Trustees about the possibility of exploring a 4-day calendar. Board wished to research possibilities.

2/14-2/19 Surveyed Snyder ISD Parents/guardians, Staff, and 6-12th grade students to determine interest for exploring 4-day calendar.

2/21 & 2/28 Held Calendar Committee meetings with representatives from each campus and department to discuss pros, cons, problems, and solutions to 4 day week.

3/7 Held community discussion group with child care providers, churches, and other youth service organizations to discuss 4-day week possibility and explore options for the community.

3/30 Community Town Hall Q&A with Snyder ISD Board of Trustees & Administration from 6pm - 7pm at Snyder High School, Worsham Auditorium

4/3-4/8 Calendar option survey released to School Community through ParentSquare

4/11 Present findings to the DEIC committee. DEIC members consist of teachers, staff, parents, & community members

4/13 Academic calendar option presented to Snyder ISD School Board at the regularly scheduled school board meeting at 6pm in the Snyder ISD Administration Building

Ongoing - Research & consult with other school districts who have implemented a 4-day calendar.