Students in the Winston-Salem/Forsyth County school system will be heading to class on Monday, a day that originally had been set aside for a teacher work day.
Last night, the Winston-Salem/Forsyth County school board voted 8-1, with Jane Goins opposed, to turn Monday -- Presidents Day -- into a make-up day. If the potential bad weather forecast for today doesn't keep students out, that would restore one day to spring break for the moment.
The calendar for this school year has four days set aside as make-up days -- June 9 and 10, and March 29 and 30, the last two days of spring break. With students having missed four out of five days last week, all those days would have been used.
More missed days may lie ahead, Superintendent Don Martin said.
"I think tomorrow is going to be another difficult call," Martin said last night.
He said he doesn't like to use Saturdays as make-up days because some employees have to be paid overtime and because attendance is poor. Only 64 percent of students came the last time a day was made up on Saturday.
With that in mind, Martin suggested that board members convert the teacher work day to a regular school day. In discussing the matter, board members expressed reservations about giving parents and students such short notice and about creating unexcused absences or other problems for those who had made plans.
Martin also pointed out that, although teachers had been planning to come in, cafeteria workers and bus drivers weren't scheduled to work.
Despite reservations, the majority of the board thought that holding school Monday was the best choice.
"I think it is probably the right thing to do," board chairman Donny Lambeth said. "If it snows five more days, we will be thankful we did this."
In other business, the board voted unanimously to approve contracts with the Winston-Salem Police Department to provide resource officers at four middle and high schools at a total cost of $321,440, and with the Forsyth County Sheriff's Office to provide resource officers at 22 schools for a cost of $1.87 million.
kunderwood@wsjournal.com
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