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LAUSD Outlines Recommended Plans For Extended School Year
School zone traffic signs near Mariposa-Nabi Primary School in Koreatown.
(
Chava Sanchez
/
LAist
)
One extra week of class in August, one less week of winter break.
That’s the plan Los Angeles Unified School District leaders will recommend later this week for extending the 2021-22 academic year.
In his weekly video update, Superintendent Austin Beutner said Monday that a longer school year will help LAUSD students and teachers make up for some of the classroom time lost to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Each of these weeks will be split between time for teachers and school staff to plan and participate in additional training, and time for students to process the trauma and anxiety they’ve experienced the past year and work on learning fundamentals.
Last month, state lawmakers approved more than $6.6 billion in aid to entice K-12 schools to reopen campuses in the coming months. The bill specifically empowers school districts to use the extra money to extend their school year, which has long been a remedy for lost learning time championed by Gov. Gavin Newsom.
The superintendent didn’t announce exact dates for the extended calendar. However, LAUSD has surveyed parents on three different options:
- OPTION ONE: Fall semester starts Aug. 10, two-week winter break, spring semester starts Jan. 3.
- OPTION TWO: Fall semester starts Aug. 3, three-week winter break, spring semester starts Jan. 10.
- OPTION THREE: No calendar extension.
School board members have to vote on next year’s calendar. Beutner said district staff will deliver their recommendation for an extended year to the board at their meeting on Wednesday. He told KPCC on Monday morning that LAUSD staff have chosen the first option.
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The board will vote on the proposal at a later date. (We’ll be keeping tabs.)
READ MORE ABOUT SCHOOL REOPENINGS:
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