KISD votes no to four-day week

By Ashley Bankhead-Keenan
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KENNARD –  Many schools in East Texas are considering or have already moved their calendars to a four-day school week. Latexo Independent School district has been on this schedule since August 2020. The shorter week allows for Fridays to be reserved for extra relaxation for students, teachers, and staff, for doctor appointments and deep-cleaning the campus. 

During its regular board meeting on Thursday, Jan. 13, the Kennard ISD Board of Trustees went into closed session to consider adopting a four-day schedule for the 2022-23 school year.

Once the board reconvened in open session, the decision had been made for the district to continue operating as it had been with its five-day, Monday through Friday schedule. The vote was tended to with a 5-1 majority of nays, with only Keith Cole voting in favor of the four-day instructional week proposal.

Last week, a petition on change.org surfaced requesting that the KISD board re-vote. 

The creator of the petition said, “A survey was sent out to the community of Kennard, Texas, asking if they would want a four day week for the next school year. 

The parents and staff voted, and the results were overwhelmingly positive. The majority of the town wanted to make the switch to four days. It has been working well for many school districts around us. We were excited! However, despite the majority of the town answering ‘Yes’ on the survey, the KISD Board of Trustees voted ‘No’ to the change.”

The petition’s creator went on to state: “Many Kennard students, staff and community members were distraught by the news. We are asking that the vote be re-cast and that the needs and wants of the majority be considered.”

At this time, there are 154 signatures on the petition, and it has not been determined whether the board will revisit this topic.