School lets out for summer. It’ll be different across York County when it returns

School soon will let out for summer. In some areas this fall, and perhaps more to follow, it won’t come back the same.

Some school districts will transition to a modified calendar this fall.

Others will do so next year. Students will come back sooner from summer break. In some places, new week-long breaks will be added during the year. Change could be short-term or, if successful, could alter when students attend school each year.

“We’re all looking for innovative ways to support student learning,” said York School District public information officer Latoya Dixon, whose district starts a modified calendar Aug. 7. “We’ll all be watching to see what the benefits are.”

What is a modified calendar?

For years, area school officials bemoaned a state requirement that school start no sooner than the third Monday in August. Depending on how late that third Monday falls in August, the requirement can complicate schedules particularly at the high school level where classes run one semester. The 2024-25 school year is one such year when it will be hard to balance those semesters on either side of a winter break.

In recent years districts began to look closer at the third Monday rule, which states districts must follow it unless they implement a modified year-round calendar.

“We’ve talked a lot in here about, what is a modified calendar?” Fort Mill School District public information officer Joe Burke said when that district board met Tuesday night. “And my response has been, nobody knows.”

Rather than a full year-round calendar, districts began to look at smaller changes that could keep a shorter but still relatively long summer break while adding time off during traditional school months. Those changes vary considerably.

Burke said he visited websites for the almost 80 districts statewide to see their coming calendars. About 50 of them have modified calendars beginning this fall. Burke said start dates ranged from July 21 to Aug. 14. Some added a week to spring break. Some used off time to help students catch up, while others used it as full breaks from school.

“I saw everything,” Burke said. “So again, there is no standard for what actually would be a modified calendar.”

What are York County districts doing?

York and Clover schools will start with a modified calendar this fall. Fort Mill schools will and Rock Hill schools may start modified calendars for the 2024-25 school year.

York schools run Aug. 7 to May 30. In addition to the typical winter and spring breaks, there are weeks off scheduled for students Oct. 9-13 and Feb. 19-23. Clover schools will run Aug. 8 to May 30. There are slight variations, but Clover schools have the same October and February weeks off as York does.

“While this will be a mindset shift and adjustment for our community,” York superintendent Kelly Coxe said in announcing the change earlier this year, “this calendar provides us with an option that we have not had before.”

York will be able to use additional time off during the year to help students who fall behind in classwork, something discussed in other area districts as well.

The Fort Mill school board voted Tuesday night to adopt a modified calendar for 2024-25. Initially Fort Mill had drafts similar to York and Clover, with extra weeks off during the school year but a shortened summer. Instead Fort Mill will run Aug. 8 to May 23 to shift the calendar earlier. It won’t start as early as other versions, but also won’t have the extra weeks off school.

Teachers having to come back in July was an issue in the feedback process, Burke said, which caused concern with the model more similar to York and Clover.

“Everybody generally sees July as, that’s at least my summer month,” Burke said. “Nothing is going to get taken away there.”

Rock Hill has a more traditional calendar this fall but has been soliciting public feedback for the 2024-25 year. One draft in Rock Hill runs Aug. 19 to June 5 that year. Another runs Aug. 5 to June 5 with extra weeks off for students in October and February.

The Lancaster County School District has a traditional calendar for the upcoming school year. The Chester County School District starts back Aug. 7 and school won’t end until May 31, 2024. Included are full week breaks for students in October, November and February in addition to winter and spring breaks.

Because Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools are so close, school calendars there can impact the Rock Hill region from availability of summer workers at Carowinds to childcare options for parents or teachers who may live and work on opposite sides of the state line. CMS schools traditionally start later than York County ones. For the coming school year, CMS schools run from Aug. 28 to June 7.