HORRY COUNTY (WBTW)- Horry County Schools leaders approved a make-up plan on Monday, following school calendar disruptions in recent weeks due to Hurricane Florence and the ensuing flooding.
An announcement on the district’s website stated that Dr. Maxey recommended, and the Board approved, a plan for the 15 days missed from school.
Students will make up seven of the 15 days. After three of the seven days have been made up, the Superintendent will then request the Board to waive three days. After that, according to the district’s website, the Board will request the State Board of Education to waive another three days. Assuming that request is approved, the Board will then request the South Carolina General Assembly to waive two additional days.
School leaders say the first priority is to make up as many lost instructional days as possible in the first semester of school utilizing the following schedule:
- Monday, October 8, 2018 (already made up)
- Wednesday, November 21, 2018
- Wednesday, December 19, 2018
- Thursday, December 20, 2018
- Wednesday, January 2, 2019
- Friday, January 18, 2019 (already a scheduled make-up day)
- Monday, February 18, 2019 (already a scheduled make-up day)
With these changes, the first semester will now end on January 25, 2019, instead of January 17, 2019, for grading purposes. January 17, 2019, will now be a full day, and January 25, 2019, will be a half day. The district says this change in the semester’s ending date will provide more balance resulting in the first semester having 85 days and the second semester 87 days. At the present time, Spring Break will remain the same from April 15-22, 2019, and the last day of school will remain June 6, 2019.
While the district says this new make-up schedule is not ideal, and may place a burden on those who plan to travel during the holidays, the district says the arrival of Hurricane Florence and its historic flooding was extremely devastating and was something that no one could have anticipated. Horry County Schools leaders say they believe these calendar adjustments provide the best solution for addressing the school days missed due to this historic event.
