The Lawrence school board on Monday approved the 2025-26 calendar that mostly aligns elementary, middle and high schools, increases instructional time, and adopts a new approach to inclement weather days.
“It is, frankly, the prettiest calendar I’ve seen in the — in my opinion — in the seven years that I’ve been on the board,” board President Kelly Jones said.
Board members voted 7-0 to unanimously approve next year’s districtwide calendar, which maps out instructional days, no-school days, planning days for teachers and more.
Previously, grade levels would have some varying days off, and Superintendent Jeanice Swift said families shared that they experience difficulties coordinating their students’ different schedules. There were four non-holiday days in this year’s calendar that either only elementary school students or only elementary and middle school students had off. The calendar for next year reduces that number to two.
The calendar also includes increased instructional time, adding five minutes to each day. Swift said the purpose is to advance student achievement as part of the district’s “critical mission, particularly at elementary school.”
Inclement weather days will not appear on the public 2025-26 calendar. James Polk, director of data and assessment, said this different method is meant to create more flexibility next year.
Four inclement weather days will be indicated on the Superintendent’s Organization Report that the district submits every October to the Kansas State Department of Education. Those four days can be placed on any in-session days in the calendar and are designated as staff and teacher planning days.
“One of the things that we obviously are living right now are those instructional days lost to inclement weather,” Polk said. “And so we’re really excited that we’re going to be building an even larger cushion into next year so that we can withstand even more.”
Because the KSDE forgives local districts the same number of inclement weather hours or days they build into their calendars and use, one canceled day technically equals two forgiven, according to Polk. He told the board that the calendar essentially has eight buffer days built in, but if snow days aren’t used, nothing changes and days in session are counted toward instructional hours. Swift said unused snow days can’t be “cashed in.”
Polk said the KSDE has verified the approved calendar is in accordance with state requirements.
“And so we feel very confident that we can put this forward with that, but we’ll continue to ask questions and make sure that we are doing things the way that we should,” Polk said.
Winter break will be slightly longer next year and instead of returning on a Monday, school will be back in session on Tuesday, Jan. 6, 2026. Graduating seniors will get out on May 15 next year as opposed to their last day this year on May 16.
Board member GR Gordon-Ross said a community request for several years has been to develop a multiyear calendar. Polk said it’s been difficult to consider that in the past because of the future unknowns if the district were to attempt planning details out years in advance. But based on its recent work, the calendar committee plans to look into that this year, Polk said.
Jones said a two-year calendar could be possible next as contract agreement language with the teachers union is currently being updated. She said she’d be interested in a 2026-27 and 2027-28 joint calendar next.
Here’s the approved community calendar:
2026-26-USD-497-Community-CalendarIn other business:
• Snow days makeup plan: District administrators updated the board on their plan to make up snow days this year by tacking minutes onto the end of school days and adding a day and a half to the end of the year. Read more about the plan in this article.
• Superintendent contract: The board approved a negotiated contract with Swift with an annual salary of $235,000. See that at this link.
• Contract for nurses: As part of their consent agenda, board members unanimously approved a contract increase to hire more substitute school nurses. The three current substitute nurses for the district have sporadic availability, according to the meeting agenda item, and student needs cannot be fully met.
An additional $25,000 will be added to the current $32,000 contract with Favorite Healthcare Staffing Services, for $57,000 total. Costs to carry out the contracted services are fully covered by the State of Kansas K-12 Infectious Disease Management Funding Grant, according to the agenda.
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Maya Hodison (she/her), equity reporter, can be reached at mhodison@lawrencekstimes.com. Read more of her work for the Times here. Check out her staff bio here.
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