Clover, SC, schools go to a modified year-round calendar. Shorter summers. Longer breaks.
Summer will end sooner next year for Clover students. More, longer breaks will make up the difference. Teachers will get more time as students, on select days, will head home earlier.
Those changes highlight a new calendar adopted Monday night by the Clover School District.
The district turned to a modified year-round calendar to address an issue in Clover and neighboring school districts for years. Districts have wanted to start school earlier than state law allows.
A 2006 law sets a uniform start date for public schools in South Carolina. It can’t come before the third Monday in August unless schools operate on a year-round modified calendar.
Next year, school will start on Aug. 8 in Clover. The last day of school and graduation will come May 30, 2024. In addition to typical Thanksgiving, winter and spring breaks, the district will have two “intercession” breaks on Oct. 9-13 next year and Feb. 19-23 of 2024.
The district also will have four early release dates. Students will get out of school two hours early on those days to allow time for teacher planning. All Fridays, those dates are Sept. 1 and Nov. 17 of next year, and Feb. 9 and April 26, 2024.
The calendar changes come with considerable community and staff input.
A district survey generated more than 3,500 responses. About 2,500 of those responses were parents, the remainder district employees.
About 1,700 overall responses — nearly half — picked the chosen calendar from three options. Fewer than 170 responses listed that calendar as the worst option.
The survey found 78% support the intercession breaks, compared to 11% who disagree. Among listed concerns within that smaller group were the disruption to learning, childcare availability, impact on band or athletic teams and a summer that’s too short.
About 71% of responses favor the early release dates, something that already is utilized this year in Fort Mill schools. About 12% of responses disagree with early release. Childcare was the main concern.
Superintendent Sheila Quinn said childcare is a concern, and she met with principals to address the issue for parents who can’t accommodate the two hour difference.
“The early release days are two hours early,” Quinn said. “The principals all assured me that they would have childcare available in their school. We’re going to have to do that for staff children anyway.”
School districts in the region have stated in recent months that time for teachers to plan is critical, and that concern led to changes like early release dates in Fort Mill and now Clover.
“We just felt very strongly that the early release was important to our staff,” Quinn said. “It was the number one thing our teachers asked for, is time.”
The district also swapped a professional development day for a teacher work day to allow more classroom planning time. Quinn said now that the new calendar is approved, information will come in January on calendar plans for the following school year.
