Pinellas County Schools’ make-up days announced

Pinellas County public school students missed approximately 50 hours (or 2 ½ days) due to Hurricanes Helene and Milton. After planning, discussing and deliberating, the Pinellas County School Board has decided when the lost hours will be made up.

At a Tuesday afternoon workshop, board members approved updates to the instructional calendar: Jan. 6 and Feb. 17, previously “off” days on the student calendar, will now be school days. And May 29, the last day of the school year, will be changed from a half-day to a full day.

“Our staff have put a lot of time and thought into how to ensure that we achieve academic excellence, while also having the compassion and acknowledgement for what our community has been through with the storms,” Chair Laura Hine told the Catalyst. “And I believe, through their recommendation, that they have achieved both those things.”

Pending a full vote Oct. 29, the new calendar will go into effect immediately.

“And we are waving first semester exams,” Hines said. “That’s such a big deal. One of the things we thought about was ‘Should we just push them back to January? Keep those exams, keep that rigor?’ But that’s over winter break, and all of that.”

Adding school days to Thanksgiving or spring break holidays were also rejected. “We all need a little Thanksgiving right now,” Hine said.

“And also by waving first semester exams, it captures about another four days of instruction. The other thing I think is important, that people need to understand, is that the high school graduations are going to occur towards the end of May. Whereas they often occur in the middle of May. That’s capturing another several days of instruction.

“They’re still going to graduate by the last day of school. We aren’t pushing graduations into June or anything.”