Schools To Test Four-Period Schedule

Central Valley and University high schools will try a four-period schedule for one week in November.

The pilot project, which will run Nov. 20-27, is part of a year-long study of a four-period schedule at the high schools.

The Central Valley School Board heard an update on the study earlier this week. The board must still approve adoption of the controversial schedule; a vote on the matter is expected to come at the end of this school year.

High school teachers are scheduled to attend a training session next week on preparing lesson plans for the longer classes. That session will occur Tuesday morning at U-Hi.

Parents are welcome to attend that or any of the in-service sessions, said administrator Mike Pearson.

Officials have organized eight committees to work on various segments of the project.

The district also has formed a boundary review committee, which will meet weekly through the school year. Among other things, that committee will work to propose boundaries for the new Liberty Lake Elementary School, which will be under construction next year.

At its Monday meeting, the school board voted to oppose two state initiatives that will be on the general election ballot next week.

Neither Initiative 173, which supports vouchers for private schools, nor Initiative 177, supporting charter schools, is in the best interest of Central Valley’s students, the board said.

The board objects to the vouchers initiative in part because of the lack of public control over tax dollars, and because the initiative doesn’t require teachers to hold a valid teaching certificate or a college degree.

Board objections to the charter schools initiative included the fact that a non-profit board would control the charter schools; and that portions of tax levies passed by the school district would be allocated for the charter schools.

, DataTimes