Early Release Days May Be a Curveball for Working Parents: Okaloosa Students Will Be Released Early Nine Days for Teacher Training
By Rachel Kyler, Northwest Florida Daily News, Fort Walton Beach
May 23–FORT WALTON BEACH — Summer has just begun, but thousands of Okaloosa County elementary school parents may need to plan on adjusting their schedules next year.
The Okaloosa County School District has designated nine early release days for elementary school students during the 2007-2008 school year.
Students will be released from school about two hours early on the second Wednesday of each month except October. Schools will have early release on the third Wednesday of that month.
“Staff development is the number one factor,” said Superintendent of Schools Alexis Tibbetts. “It’s really important that elementary school teachers have time.”
Elementary teachers have been receiving training at odd or inconvenient hours, said Okaloosa teachers union President Sheila Olsen.
“Five a.m. in the morning or 10 p.m. at night is never good for professional development,” she said.
Olsen added that substitutes are costly and “no school has a lot of money laying around for substitutes.”
Santa Rosa County has early release days scheduled for Dec. 25 and June 5 for high school exams. Both Santa Rosa and Walton County have planning days for teachers in which students get a holiday.
Although Tibbetts knows it may be a “slight inconvenience” for parents, she reminds everyone that it benefits all students.
“It’s really important that elementary school teachers have time,” particularly with the addition of a science chapter on the Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test, she said.
Olsen believes parents “will rise to the occasion,” because they know it’s a worthwhile investment.
It’s a matter of preparing ahead, educators say.
“When you plan for something, then it’s successful,” Olsen said.
Daily News Staff Writer Rachel Kyler can be reached at 863-1111, Ext. 440.
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Copyright (c) 2007, Northwest Florida Daily News, Fort Walton Beach
Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Information Services.
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