School District Asks for Input on School Calendar

Parents, staff and community can weigh in on priorities

PHILADELPHIA – The School District of Philadelphia is beginning the process of developing the Academic Calendar for SY 19-20 and 20-21, and is asking for feedback from families and staff to help guide the decisions that will go into making the schedule final.

The short, 4-question survey asks readers to rank, in order of importance, the various factors that come into play when deciding when to start and end school, how religious holidays and professional development are accounted for, testing dates and other concerns for both students and educators.

The survey will be available to the public until November 6. Anyone interested in participating can find it here: https://www.research.net/r/SDPcalendar.

A Calendar Committee, made up of union leadership, parents, students, and community members, will meet later in November to review the survey data, and draft possible versions of the calendar. The Board of Education’s Student Achievement and Support Committee will review the options at their meeting on December 6, and the new calendar is expected to be finalized by the end of December.