Giving school districts local control over their calendar year is what Rep. Kim Norton (DFL-Rochester) intends with two bills approved by the House K-12 Education Policy and Oversight Committee Feb. 5.
State statute prohibits a school district from starting the school year before Labor Day, unless a specific exception applies.
HF195, as amended, would impose a moratorium on mandatory post-Labor Day school starts for two years and authorize a study of the impact of repealing the school- start law on Minnesota’s tourism industry. Findings would be reported to the House K-12 Education Finance Division and House K-12 Education Policy and Oversight Committee by January 2011. Supporters say district control over school calendars would help deliver higher quality education to students. “This is one of the top non-economic issues our boards want to see [happen] this year,” said Kirk Schneidawind, Minnesota School Boards Association associate director of governmental relations.
Resort owners testified that allowing a pre-Labor Day start would push school sports practices earlier into August, compounding a trend of declining resort business in the important month. “The Minnesota school calendar defines our season,” said Paul Bugbee, owner of the Bug-Bee Hive Resort in Paynesville. He said “the great Minnesota tradition” of family resort vacations is “going, going, gone.”
HF195 was sent to the House Finance Committee with the recommendation the bill be re-referred to the House K-12 Education Finance Division.
The committee also approved HF194, which would repeal the prohibition of starting the school year before Labor Day, and referred it to the House Finance Committee with the recommendation it be re-referred to the House Higher Education and Workforce Development Finance and Policy Division.
The companion bills, SF22 and SF23, both sponsored by Sen. Chuck Wiger (DFL-North St. Paul), await action by the Senate Education Committee.
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