WASHINGTON — The school year for students in Montgomery County, Maryland, just got longer due to this week’s winter weather.
June 12 was scheduled to be the final day of the year. But it will now be June 13, following the cancellation of classes Wednesday due to icy conditions.
In a post on Facebook, Jill Ortman-Fouse, a member of the county’s board of education, explained why classes were called off.
“As our 7 a.m. school closure decision grew closer, roads in the northern and western parts of the county were beginning to freeze in localized areas,” she wrote. “These icing conditions, combined with the continued forecast for additional icing, gave us concern that conditions would worsen.”
Some residents only saw rain Wednesday morning, but other parts of the county experienced icy roads and sidewalks.
“We need to make decisions not just for buses, but for teen drivers, walkers and bus stop safety,” Ortman-Fouse wrote.
The move to extend the year follows a recent letter from the school system’s superintendent Jack Smith, who said that the calendar was at a tipping point.
According to Smith, June 14 and 15 are available as makeup days if there are more weather cancellations.
After that, if even more days are needed, schools could use Mar. 26 and 27. Those are currently scheduled to be the first two days of spring break.
Under state law, Montgomery County is not able to extend the year into late June because of Gov. Larry Hogan’s executive order, telling schools to start their calendars after Labor Day and end by June 15.
“Developing the school calendar is an increasingly challenging process,” Smith said during a board of education meeting in November.
Citing Hogan’s order, Montgomery County education officials adopted a new academic calendar that gives students a shorter spring break next year.
The 2018-2019 school year cuts four days from the break, shortening it from 10 days to six.
Hogan’s office has dismissed the county’s complaints about the executive order, saying it is disingenuous to threaten spring break.
“Most jurisdictions have managed to adopt a common-sense calendar that prioritizes what students and families want, and Montgomery County could easily do the same,” said a Hogan spokeswoman.
