One calendar option reasonable.

The other calendar option is mind-numbingly foolish.

Lets go foolish ! - CSISD

An absolute slap in the face to the working parent. Develop your staff over the summer on your own time.

Let me help with your calendar:

The day after Labor Day to Memorial Day.
Week at Thanksgiving
2 Weeks at Xmas
Week at Spring Break
Every other non-weekend day should be a school day.

Starting school August 15th, lengthening the school year for all these random days off is ridiculous ! The tax paying parents should be the only votes that matter on setting school calendars !

SARATOGA said:

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The tax paying parents should be the only votes that matter on setting school calendars !

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Your argument would make more sense if it didn't fly in the face of facts:

Quote:

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The College Station school district's 2019-2020 school year calendar was unanimously approved at Tuesday night's school board meeting.

Board members and administrators acknowledged a burden for working parents having to provide child care.

That was noted in the vote of elementary school parents, where 835 (or 51.9%) favored the option that was adopted, compared to 775 (or 48.1%) who voted for the other option.

The adopted calendar was supported by 55.5% percent of parents of CSISD intermediate students, 59.1% of the parents of middle school students, and 58.1% of the parents of high school students.

CSISD teachers overwhelmingly supported the adopted calendar, by a margin of 471 to 86 (or 84.6% to 15.4%).
So did other CSISD employees, by a margin of 233 to 49 (or 82.6% to 17.4%)

About one percent of CSISD students also participated in the online survey. The adopted calendar was supported by a margin of 100 to 34 (or 74.6% to 25.4%)

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If the parents are the only vote that matters then the bolded section above seems to indicate that the will of the people was held up by the School Board.

So, if it's a burden for working parents to have to deal with Childcare when there is no school, but then you say "That's an awfully short summer"

Short summer = less childcare to pay for in the summer.

Parents voted for the schedule they wanted and the board approved it, sounds like things are working the way they are supposed to. Additionally, I take serious issue with the fact OP seems to think the school district is there for child care. School is there for education and related activities, our tax dollars are not to provide your childcare. And for the record, both my wife and I are working parents, have young children and voted for the other schedule. [Edit]
ETA: you want to have a different calendar AND change the times to make things work for your schedule? Please tell me you are trolling

[This is the last post of yours that we will edit for being insulting toward other posters without removing the entire post and giving you a ban. -Staff]

[We are very strict on this board about being respectful when giving opinions and taking shots at teachers is not going to be allowed. -Staff]

cslifer said:

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Parents voted for the schedule they wanted ...

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This was in no way a scientifically-accurate poll or voting process. Only parents who were aware of the survey and chose to take it did so. This is classic selection bias. The results are basically meaningless.

Also, who do you think the least likely people to vote were? The ones where there is a single parent, perhaps lower-income, or two working parents, who are more likely to end up having to lose income by taking days off (or cutting it close by leaving kids alone younger than they should) due to all the nice days the staff have off during the year.

And before you argue with me that Staff Vacation Development Days are work days and not days off for staff, drive by the school staff parking lots on those days and tell me if you need to use your toes in addition to your fingers to count the number of cars at any given time.

[We have warned you repeatedly about giving your opinion on this board in a respectful manner. -Staff]

Of course you have to be aware of it to vote for it, by being involved in your kids education and staying update on what is going on with the schools you would be aware of it. If someone can't spend a few minutes a week doing that I seriously doubt they would have voted anyway.
Second, why are you assuming that certain groups wouldn't have voted? It was a simple online survey, it isn't like you have to take off work to go vote.
So far as the staff work days go, just because every teacher isn't in their assigned parking spot doesn't mean anything. I know that sometimes they rotate meetings (1st/2nd grade in the morning, 3rd/4th afternoon) or all meet for training in one place.

The poll results are completely meaningless and the board should stop using biased, unscientific polls as the basis for their decision making. It's pathetic. Sadly the families who will be most adversely affected by the board's adoption of this calendar are clearly the least likely to have the time or means to participate in the poll. I guess what disgusts me most is that the board is comprised of a bunch of blow-hards who claim to be looking out for the little guy, particularly the economically disadvantaged. Then they use a meaningless, biased "poll" as basis for approving a calendar that hurts families in our district who are economically disadvantaged more than anyone else. Those of you on here who are excited about the calendar and/or hurling insults about "school is not daycare" should try to walk in the shoes of the families in our district who live paycheck to paycheck. Take a step back for a change and think of other people who are struggling to get by. Bottom line is that the CSISD board has shown once again they have no regard for the families in the district who are struggling the most.

It isn't an insult, it is the truth, school isn't a daycare. I cannot find any definition of "school" that includes "to look after kids while parents are at work so they don't have to hire a babysitter".
If you don't like the "unscientific polls", how do you propose they gather people's opinions? Put it on a ballot during an actual election?
And please explain how the poll was "biased", it had calendars and you chose one.

I understand how teachers are paid. I also see what the school staff parking lots look like on staff development days. They don't look the same as they do on regular school days.

Even so, if you read my earlier post, I didn't take away any of those development days. I just moved them around a bit to give the kids a bit longer summer and a more regular school 9-month (not 9.5 month) schedule.

Of course it looks different. You don't have parents, volunteers, visitors, students, kitchen staff ect there. If all you have is that the parking lot looks kind of empty as your argument I would just drop it.

At a time when the board approves a calendar that hurts so many of the most disadvantaged families in the district and at a time when parents of high school students are being asked to bring proof of residence to school in preparation for the big shuffle of students all over town to different high schools next fall, what is with the obviously coordinated effort across many CSISD campuses to post "We love the CSISD school board" messages on marquis in front of multiple schools?? It's manufactured and it's nauseating. Who mandated this messaging? Did it come from Ealy? What's-his-name, the president of the board? How sad that our schools are doing the bidding of higher ups who want to promote a politically elected group of individuals and portray that the school board is "loved" by the community at large, at a time when we're all being reminded of how the board has divided our community again and again and continues to trample on those who are the "least" among us.

I saw those popping up too. Such a slap in the face to the kids being forced to switch schools - that reality is setting in due to the new "verification of residency" process the admin (or board?) has now implemented to check on everyone.

I hear it's school board appreciation month (we certainly have a month for everything!), but not sure what we are thanking the trustees for at this point (the new calendar?) given the challenges about to hit a bunch of Freshman kids at both high schools. Wish the admin or board or whoever is behind the celebration of our board would be a bit more sensitive and not throw salt in that wound.

edit: typo

91_Aggie said:

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So, if it's a burden for working parents to have to deal with Childcare when there is no school, but then you say "That's an awfully short summer"

Short summer = less childcare to pay for in the summer.

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School =/= child care.

school = child care

Here we go....School Board made a decision they have to make one way or another....had parents and staff VOTE....and then chose the winning option.

Clearly they did this to hurt people.

SMH.

91_Aggie said:

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SARATOGA said:

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The tax paying parents should be the only votes that matter on setting school calendars !

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Your argument would make more sense if it didn't fly in the face of facts:

Quote:

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The College Station school district's 2019-2020 school year calendar was unanimously approved at Tuesday night's school board meeting.

Board members and administrators acknowledged a burden for working parents having to provide child care.

That was noted in the vote of elementary school parents, where 835 (or 51.9%) favored the option that was adopted, compared to 775 (or 48.1%) who voted for the other option.

The adopted calendar was supported by 55.5% percent of parents of CSISD intermediate students, 59.1% of the parents of middle school students, and 58.1% of the parents of high school students.

CSISD teachers overwhelmingly supported the adopted calendar, by a margin of 471 to 86 (or 84.6% to 15.4%).
So did other CSISD employees, by a margin of 233 to 49 (or 82.6% to 17.4%)

About one percent of CSISD students also participated in the online survey. The adopted calendar was supported by a margin of 100 to 34 (or 74.6% to 25.4%)

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If the parents are the only vote that matters then the bolded section above seems to indicate that the will of the people was held up by the School Board.

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Looks like they put it to a vote and are going with the results. I suggest anyone who doesn't like it should consider voting next year.

Way I see it in this case it is a no win situation. Some will like and some will hate it. With all of the things the board and administration have done over last couple of years a lot of distrust exsists within the community; maybe more than any community I have ever lived. It will take time to heal and many good faith efforts to speed this up.

For those that say get out and vote I think that happened the last round if I remember right. Hope the next round more of same to achieve balance for the whole district. The last high school rezone felt more like living in Russia than College Station. Never thought I would ever hear a school trustee tell kids they were not people but just a number to him.

As for the signs I had no idea why they were up and made me scratch my head as well. Kind of one of the unspoken things you think happens. Seemed directed and less sincere when they all popped up at same time. Not sure the message came across as genuine to many as they had wanted. I heard about them at church as well.

I hope we can heal as a school district. Not sure it will happen any time soon. Maybe we should go back to being less like our government and doing what is best not what small groups want. Using balance as an excuse to disrupt a bunch of kids while all trying to appease a neighborhood has backfired badly. I hope in 24 months I can say thanks to board but at this time the jury still remain out on this group.

I know school isn't daycare, but there should be consistency to a reasonable schedule. Lots of people in this town work for the University, and are used to running lives by REASONABLE school calendars. But many elementary kids have 20 days off throughout the year that the working parent doesn't. And the kids have a 3 day weekend every 3rd weekend practically. Staff development (VACATION) days should happen in the summer. If A&M doesn't take the day off, neither should the other schools. Summer is a separate issue, people are used to arranging for summer.

Did anyone even look at my proposed school calendar ? It is fantastic.

Also, this isn't a zoning thread. That is another issue (and another example of our head in the sand school board). I've proposed everyone goes to the school closest to them, build schools where the people are (HINT: the SOUTH), and divide the SES kids EQUALLY among the schools. This is not hard. Not sure why we continually are forced to accept choices of several bad options without ever looking outside the box to obvious common sense solutions.

What is the major issue people are having ??

We got a couple of "five day vacation" possibilities for families to make a solid trip during the school year and we added a couple of days at the beginning of school. Starting on a Thursday seems a bit weird but that also gives teachers two days to get general rules and procedures out of the way and start focusing on actual teaching come Monday

How can you seriously argue that "if A&M doesn't get the day off the school district shouldn't either"? I hope that you realize that TAMU students start and finish their semesters at significantly different times than the ISDs.
Your schedule you came up with would require lengthening the school day by your own admission. Why should my kids have a longer school day simply because you don't like the schedule?
It comes down to the fact that the district asked for input, they received input from those that chose to give it, and they acted on the information they were given. I know it is fun to kick the school board but seriously what do you want them to do?
Lastly, get over the teacher work day is vacation thing. Seriously, please stop, it just sounds ignorant. We all know it is for work, training and parent teacher conferences.

Quote:

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How can you seriously argue that "if A&M doesn't get the day off the school district shouldn't either"? I hope that you realize that TAMU students start and finish their semesters at significantly different times than the ISDs.

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Agree. This is a terrible, terrible argument to make.

Please spend one day with a local teacher during one of those inservice days, and I promise you will say that it is the least like vacation day you've ever spent.

GiveEmHellBill said:

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Quote:

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How can you seriously argue that "if A&M doesn't get the day off the school district shouldn't either"? I hope that you realize that TAMU students start and finish their semesters at significantly different times than the ISDs.

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Agree. This is a terrible, terrible argument to make.

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Horrible argument!

CSISD sent the calendar vote email to all parents. You had the option to vote like the rest of us.

I support the calendar that was chosen. My husband and I support this option and both of us are working parents. Our family likes to take vacation in fall/winter so it's a better option for us.

I don't like the calendar. I agree with the OP that the number of days off during the school year seems excessive. Yes, I voted. I accept that we are the minority and our opinion doesn't matter to those who want to vacation in Oct, Feb or April instead of Nov, December, January, March, June, July or August. Everyone is entitled to an opinion.