BY PATRICIA KELLER
West Milford — The Spring season snow storms in West Milford collided with the New Jersey state regulations requiring 180 days of education for children.
After nine closures in the 2017-2018 school year due to weather, West Milford Superintendent of Schools Dr. Alex Anemone announced that only minor changes were needed in order for the district to stay in compliance with state education law.
“The Macopin School graduation [promotion] has been moved to Monday, June 25 and the West Milford High School graduation and Project Graduation have been moved to Tuesday, June 26,” Anemone posted on his blog.
According to New Jersey Statute, “No state aid shall be paid to a school district which has not provided school for at least 180 days during the preceding school year, unless the commissioner, for good cause shown, remits the
penalty.” (SOURCE: www.nj.gov/education).
According to the New Jersey School Boards Association's “The 180-Day Requirement: Guidance on Rescheduling School” (www.njsba.org): “If all efforts to achieve make-up days have been exhausted, a waiver process may be used.”
The process includes a formal resolution passed by the board requesting the waiver, the list of criteria to be weighed by the Executive County Superintendent; and, in cases of natural disasters, details of the steps taken by the school board to acquire physical facilities or other resources to meet the 180-day requirement.
However, according to the state association, “The waiver has been rarely granted.”
Township planned for 7 closuresIn West Milford, this year's school calendar had allotted for seven closures for emergencies, but after the unpredictable Spring weather the days were exhausted by mid-March.
On March 21, The West Milford School District called for its eight snow day, which was eventually made up on Friday, March 30, which had been schedule as the "Good Friday” holiday.
On April 2, snowstorm conditions caused the ninth snow day of the school year and once again left the school calendar in question.
According to Anemone, the district still had wiggle room. Even with the unexpected snow day, there would be 181 scheduled school day; and thus, he decided to leave in tact the district's “Spring recess" days from April 9 through 13.
“As a result, the snow day used on Monday, April 2 (day 181) will not be rescheduled into our calendar," Anemone wrote. "Our district will remain compliant with state requirements and have the necessary 180 student days in this school year.”
However, the calendar did need to be adjusted to meet state regulations for graduation days.
The New Jersey statute state that high school graduation ceremonies cannot take place prior to the completion of 180 instructional days; however, the Department of Education allows promotional exercises (for grades other than grade 12) to be held prior to the 180th day, as long as the students return to complete the minimal instructional days required.
Due to the use of the 181st calendar day as the snow makeup day, adjustments needed to be made for Macopin Promotion and West Milford High School Graduation dates in order to be in compliance with those state requirements, according to Anemone.
Other factorsNew Jersey regulates how districts make up lost instructional days.
“New Jersey School Boards Association recognizes that many districts have had to cancel school days due to the effects of inclement weather. The Association has provided this general information to address some of the districts’ questions and concerns about meeting the 180-day requirement, and revising the school calendar to make up for lost days.”
(SOURCE: “The 180-Day Requirement: Guidance on Rescheduling School,” www.njsba.org)
Department of Education guidanceAccording to the Department of Education, a district must be open for students to be in session for a minimum of 180 instructional days in order for the school district to receive state aid for the following school year.
If all efforts to achieve make-up days have been exhausted, a waiver process may be used in an attempt to avoid penalty of losing state aid for failing to meet the 180-day requirement. In that case, the state education commissioner, for good cause shown, may remit the penalty via this waiver process; however, according to the state association, “The waiver has been rarely granted.”
The 180-day requirement must be met by June 30.
To meet the 180-day requirement, a school day must include four hours of pupil contact time, requires actual instruction, excludes lunch and recess, and does not include travel between classes.
The school must be open and students must be under the guidance and direction of a teacher or teachers engaged in the teaching process.
A half-day class shall be considered the equivalent of a full day’s attendance only if in session for four hours or more, exclusive of recess or lunch periods.
An exception of the four-hour-day requirement applies only for an approved kindergarten program, for which one continuous session of 2.5 hours may be considered as a full day.
Additional instructional hours cannot be added to one school day to create an extra day; however, for half-day kindergarten, allowing two sessions of 2.5 hours each in one day may be permitted only after approval from the executive county superintendent.
A school board may revise its calendar at its discretion to meet the 180-day requirement if it must close due to inclement weather.
The board has the managerial prerogative of extending the school year or opening on days previously designated as closed for students, such as holidays, staff development days or vacation days.
Rescheduling the calendar is a nonnegotiable managerial prerogative. However, case law holds that there is an obligation to negotiate the impact of changes to the school calendar.
Consideration of impact would be to ameliorate the effects of a changed calendar, which may include such factors as compensation to staff for lost employment opportunities, trip deposits and altered family holiday plans.
While there is no need for negotiation of impact for using specific days already designated in the board’s calendar days that are to be used for school cancellations, additional days needed that have not been designated as reserve days would obligate the board to negotiate over the impact of revising its calendar.
A school makeup day can be held on a legal holiday, but school boards must keep in mind that teachers are not required to perform duties on any day declared by law to be a public holiday. Staff may be cooperative in negotiating making up school days on public holidays in order not to go into the summer or spring break, however, an individual teacher still has the right not to come to work on a public holiday.
Boards may consider adding days in June, but the 180-day requirement must be met prior to June 30.
According to the DOE letters, Saturdays may be scheduled only with superintendent approval.
DOE letters indicate that, while it is not illegal to do so, some attendance problems and religious issues may arise in the rescheduling process that includes breaks around holidays.
When a board of education makes a decision to hold school on certain religious holidays, one consideration is the number of teachers that may be expected to be absent and the cost of substitutes.
Sunday will not be approved as a makeup day since teachers/students cannot be compelled to attend.
School days cannot be held after graduation. While DOE letters indicate that promotional exercises (for grades prior to grade 12) may be held prior to the 180 days as long as the students return to complete the minimum required instructional days.
High school graduation ceremonies cannot take place prior to the completion of 180 instructional days.
DOE letters indicate that having a separate makeup schedule for graduating seniors would require approval of the superintendent.
The school board must consider all factors for calendar changes-including the number of staff expected to be absent, the cost and availability of substitutes, the continuity of instruction, labor relations issues, school temperature in June, etc.
A school board must remit its revised calendar as information to the county office.