GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF NORTH CAROLINA

SESSION 2017

H                                                                                                                                                    1

HOUSE BILL 203

 

 

Short Title:      School Calendar Flex./Watauga County.

(Local)

Sponsors:

Representative Jordan.

For a complete list of sponsors, refer to the North Carolina General Assembly web site.

Referred to:

Education - K-12

March 1, 2017

A BILL TO BE ENTITLED

AN ACT TO PROVIDE ADDITIONAL FLEXIBILITY TO WATAUGA COUNTY SCHOOLS IN ADOPTING THE SCHOOL CALENDAR.

Whereas, the local board of education for Watauga County Schools should be able to schedule school opening and closing dates for any school located in that local school administrative unit to coincide with the opening and closing dates of Caldwell Community College; and

Whereas, school calendar flexibility would benefit all students in Watauga County Schools who are enrolled in classes through Caldwell Community College by allowing them to align their fall and spring semesters with the fall and spring semesters at Caldwell Community College; and

Whereas, school calendar flexibility would allow Watauga County Schools and Caldwell Community College to meet the workforce development needs in Watauga County more effectively than the current structure by helping high school and college students develop the skills necessary for business and industry; Now, therefore,

The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts:

SECTION 1.  G.S. 115C‑84.2(d) reads as rewritten:

"(d)      Opening and Closing Dates. – Local boards of education shall determine the dates of opening and closing the public schools under subdivision (a)(1) of this section. Except for year‑round schools, the opening date for students shall be no earlier than the Monday closest to August 26, and the closing date for students shall be no later than the Friday closest to June 11. On a showing of good cause, the State Board of Education may waive the requirement that the opening date for students be no earlier than the Monday closest to August 26 and may allow the local board of education to set an opening date no earlier than the Monday closest to August 19, to the extent that school calendars are able to provide sufficient days to accommodate anticipated makeup days due to school closings. A local board may revise the scheduled closing date if necessary in order to comply with the minimum requirements for instructional days or instructional time. For purposes of this subsection, the term "good cause" means that schools in any local school administrative unit in a county have been closed eight days per year during any four of the last 10 years because of severe weather conditions, energy shortages, power failures, or other emergency situations.

The required opening and closing dates under this subsection shall not apply to any school that a local board designated as having a modified calendar for the 2003‑2004 school year or to any school that was part of a planned program in the 2003‑2004 school year for a system of modified calendar schools, so long as the school operates under a modified calendar."

SECTION 2.  This act applies only to Watauga County Schools.

SECTION 3.  This act is effective when it becomes law and applies beginning with the 2017‑2018 school year.