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45 °F Forecast | Road Cams Wednesday, March 23, 2005 Today's News | Classifieds | Autos | Homes | Jobs | Tempo | Health | Community | Home Delivery SECTIONS Home Page Local News Sports Business Obituaries Life Opinion Tempo AP News Weather Classified Archives Site Map SPECIAL SECTIONS Since We Asked Outdoor Journal Menu Guide How To Guide Health Readers' Choice Real Estate Showcase Real Estate Guide Joy Magazine Homelife Magazine Wedding Guide Passport to the Rogue Valley SHOP OUR VALLEY AutoFinder HomeFinder JobFinder Classified Place an ad TOP JOBS EXTRA Ashland News NIE Personals Movie Times TV Times E The People Volunteer Moving here? eSouthernOregon CUSTOMER SERVICE FAQ's Advertise with us Home Delivery Employment Contact Us Media Kit Oregon Road Conditions & Cams Email Story to a Friend March 20, 2005 Rogue River will look at four-day schools New committee will examine savings and effect on learning By ANITA BURKE Mail Tribune The Rogue River School District wants to take a look at how a four-day school week might save money. Anticipating a $1.5 million shortfall over the next two years, the district is looking for any way to cut costs, Superintendent Charles Hellman said. "We have to see if this is worthwhile to consider," he said. This week, the board decided to form a committee of parents, teachers and administrators to examine the idea. The committee will take shape in May and most of the study will happen next fall, Hellman said. If the district decides to adopt such a schedule, it would begin in fall 2006. The committee must study how the change might affect teaching and learning, Hellman said. Members will consider parents’ concerns, such as finding child care, and community issues, such as athletic and activities schedules. Savings, resulting from reduced utility, transportation and food service costs, must be measured. Advertisement Hellman estimated having classes just four days a week could save the district about $40,000 a year, primarily in transportation costs. Each school day would be longer to provide a similar number of hours of instruction over the school year, he said. The idea of shortening the school week to save money has floated around for several years, but this month officials decided to take a closer look, board member Trayce Geddes said. Even though the state budget is months off and its final effect on district revenues unknown, the board has adopted a list of possible cuts that could save roughly $805,000. Those changes include shortening the school year by eight days, laying off teachers and other workers, and eliminating pay for middle and high school coaches. "We know the impact and savings of those cuts," Geddes said. "This option (the shortened week) is not something we have experience with. We wouldn’t consider it without careful planning." Rogue River tried a four-day week during the 1983-84 school year, but abandoned the unsuccessful plan after a year as finances improved, said Hellman, who wasn’t at the district at the time. Dori Brattain, director of policy and legal services at the Oregon School Boards Association, said districts in Burns and Cove, both in Eastern Oregon, successfully have adopted four-day schedules to save money. Locally, Prospect and Butte Falls districts also have four-day school weeks. Reach reporter Anita Burke at 776-4485, or e-mail [email protected] Mail Tribune Home | Local News | Sports | Business | Obituaries | Life | Opinion AP News | Archives | Site Map | Community | Classified Copyright © 1997-2005 Mail Tribune, Inc. All rights reserved. Privacy Policy | Terms & Conditions | Website Feedback Student Loan Consolidation Conference Calls - $50/Month Home Security Systems Trunks, Footlocker, Trunk, Footlockers home equity loans helzberg Slippers Student Loans afsa teleconferencing Memory Foam Mattress w2 forms Tatoo Advertisement s