School District 27J will become the first metro Denver area district to implement a four-day week.
Starting in August, students will be off Mondays, but Tuesday through Friday school days could be extended up to an extra hour and a half to ensure students receive the same classroom time.
Parents in need of childcare for Mondays can send their younger K-5 children to a district-run daycare. They will have to find other options for older kids.
Officials expect the shortened school week to save the district between $1-2 million due to reduced transportation, substitute teacher and utility costs.
“I realize this will be a significant change for our students, their families, and the communities we are so fortunate to serve, but our district can no longer be expected to do more with less financial resources,” 27J superintendent Chris Fiedler said in a statement.
“We are one hundred percent committed to providing our students with the necessary skills and competencies that will enable a future far beyond graduation,” the statement continued. “To that end, I believe it is in our students’ best interest to provide high quality, engaged teachers using 21st Century tools for learning four days a week rather than not have them five days a week.”
More than 55 percent of the Colorado’s 178 school districts have four-day school weeks, but most are in rural areas. District 27J is the largest district in the state to implement this change.
School District 27J serves about 18,000 students primarily from Adams County, but also including parts of Broomfield and Weld Counties.