Rockdale Citizen

CONYERS -- Rockdale County Public Schools wants to hear your opinion about its school calendar for the 2011-12 school year.

RCPS is asking parents, students, teachers and other RCPS employees to give their input and select their preferred calendar.

The calendar committee -- made up of teachers, administrators and parents -- suggested to RCPS officials that early release/parent conference days be eliminated in order to provide full instructional days for teachers and students, according to the survey on its website, www.rockdale.k12.ga.us.

Instead, the committee proposed specific weeks in September and March as Parent Conference Weeks in which teachers would schedule conferences throughout the week outside of traditional school hours. Teachers would receive a one-day credit during the calendar year for pre- or post-planning time.

Additionally, RCPS is presenting three calendar options for parents to vote on with varying start and end dates and different breaks during the school year.

Option 1 calls for students to begin the school year on Thursday, July 28; teachers would start preplanning and staff development on July 22. The last day of school for students would be Friday, May 26 with graduations that night and the following day; teachers would have their postplanning days on May 30 and 31.

Option 2 requires that students start school on Thursday, Aug. 4; teachers would report to their schools on July 29. Students' last day would be Tuesday, June 6, with graduations held on June 7 and 8, the same as postplanning days.

Option 3 would have students begin school on Monday, Aug. 1; teachers would begin on July 26. Like Option 1, the last day of school for students would be Friday, May 26, with graduations that night and the following day; teachers would work on May 30 and 31.

All three options schedule Fall Break for Oct. 3 through 7, Semester Break from Dec. 19 through Jan. 2, Winter Break from Feb. 13 through 17 and Spring Break from April 3 through 7.

Both Option 1 and 2 call for Thanksgiving Break to run from Nov. 21 through 25; and Option 3 would require that Thanksgiving Break be Nov. 23 through 25.

RCPS plans to use the input during future planning, according to the Web site.