16 South Dakota districts opt for 4-day weeks

SixteenSouth Dakota school districts--most in rural areas west of the Missouri River--are on a four-day-a-week schedule. They are among more than 100 districts nationwide in 17 states that have gone the same route. If the curiosity of administrators from around South Dakota is any indication, the number of districts reworking their calendars could increase dramatically in the years ahead. Most national experts say rising transportation and fuel costs are the sole rationale for districts that opt for four-day weeks. To read The Sioux Falls Argus-Leader article, click here.
EARLIER: The Conestoga school district in Murray, Neb., a farming town 25 miles south of Omaha, stopped having school on Mondays two years ago in a last-ditch bid to pare expenses and dig out of debt. For the same reason, four-day weeks could be coming to some Iowa school districts. Iowa lawmakers will consider in the next session whether schools will be given the authority to operate on four-day weeks. The state's 180-day school calendar doesn't allow it now. To read The Des Moines Register article, click here.