Carlton district considers 4-day school week

Apr. 11—CARLTON — Suffering declining enrollment and facing possible consolidation with a neighboring district, Carlton schools are searching for a solution to make them stand out among the competition: a four-day week.

The Carlton School Board will vote on the proposal Monday, April 15. But before doing so, the board held a series of hearings to gauge public sentiment.

"How are we going to be so big, so different, so unique, so innovative, that kids are going to flock to Carlton?" Superintendent Donita Stepan said during a public hearing Monday.

Declining enrollment

poses an existential threat to the district, forcing Carlton to consider possible consolidation with the Wrenshall School District. To prevent this, Stepan acknowledges that Carlton must do something drastic to attract students and staff.

Minnesota's open enrollment law allows students to enroll in neighboring districts, so to remain competitive, districts must carve out their niche, Stepan said. She hopes a four-day week could lure students back to the district and attract new students.

The current proposal would lengthen the school day by 25 minutes and terminate the district's early dismissal on Wednesdays, allowing the district to cut Monday or Friday for students and create a three-day weekend.

Stepan believes that flexible scheduling is both an innovative and necessary reaction to issues facing youth today.

"Our students aren't the same today as they were 10, 15 years ago," she said. "They're busy, they're tired, they're exhausted. They got so much going on that we believe giving them this time to do some of these other things is going to be really good for their mental health."

Stepan believes the schedule will also be easier for parents, allowing them time to schedule appointments during the three-day weekend, and giving students and their families the flexibility to navigate their lives without conflicting with the district's schedule.

The same also applies to teaching staff, Stepan said. Though students would only have a four-day week, teachers and other staff would continue to work five days a week. However, the new schedule would also allow teachers to schedule appointments on their day without students, negating the need for substitute teachers, which are increasingly difficult to hire in rural districts.

Because of the district's small size, teachers are responsible for more than just their classroom. They often serve as advisers and coaches for multiple activities, which cuts into their classroom planning time. The flexible schedule would give teachers extra time to comfortably plan the week's lessons, Stepan said.

She believes this approach will help the district's teacher retention and recruitment efforts. Because the district can't afford to pay the same salaries as neighboring larger districts, Stepan hopes the new schedule will be attractive for teachers searching for a job.

"One of the things that we can say is, 'I know I can't pay you as much because we're so small, but we've got some other opportunities that are big and different and unique and innovative at Carlton' that might recruit some of the people to stay here," she said.

When Stepan briefed her staff on the four-day school week proposal, she said it was met with nearly unanimous approval.

For families that require the services that a five-day week provides, Stepan said the district would continue to provide child care through its Kids Care program, which she estimates would cost parents around $4 an hour. The district would provide breakfast and lunch for students on either the Monday or Friday school is out.

During a public hearing Monday, April 8, the proposal was largely met with skepticism and disapproval, including by Tyler Psyck, whose daughter attends South Terrace Elementary School.

"Why stay here and have to pay for my daughter to go to school on Friday when we could go to a different district and have her there for free on Friday during school time," he said.

Jeff Herman, who has a child in the district, is concerned about the lack of structure in a four-day school week and how that might impact children's mental health.

"I'm not sure if an extra day of sitting and gaming, sitting on Facebook, sitting in an environment where you can't get away from the cyberbullying is going to benefit any of those kids who are victims of that," Herman said.

If the school board approves the four-day school week, the district will submit its application to the Minnesota Department of Education for approval.

Four-day school weeks are uncommon in Northeastern Minnesota. However, the Lake Superior district, which includes schools in Two Harbors and Silver Bay, has had a four-day week since 2010.