Surveys for four-day school week go out in Jeff Davis Parish

JENNINGS, La. (KLFY) – Parishes throughout the state have been transitioning to four-day school weeks, and the next parish facing that possibility is Jeff Davis.

Jeff Davis Parish School Board Superintendent John Hall says school board officials began researching transitioning from a five-day school week to a four-day school week. He says a committee was formed to spearhead the research earlier this year.

“The surveys are going to go to the students, and then another survey is going to go out to employees and then the third survey is going to go stakeholders,” says Hall. “We formed a committee that had all of our stakeholders involved. We had parents, we had volunteers, we had teachers, administrators, and central office staff.”

Hall says the committee’s responsibility is to gather feedback on the proposed shorter school week through three surveys available to students, staff, and people who want to voice their opinion on the matter. “The surveys will go out October 2nd, and we’ll run them for about two and half weeks.”

Hall says a lot of steps need to be taken before a decision can be made, and the surveys are just part of the process. “Once our board looks at the results and decides to take the next step, there would be a lot of research that e would have to start getting into looking at every facet of their four day school week which would be food service, transportation, and definitely the most important part of this is the curriculum element and instructional element,” says Hall.

He says once the surveys are in, the results will be discussed at the next school board meeting later this month.

“So we’re just in that first strep right now. Just gathering information to see if that’s something that our stakeholders are interested in.”

Hall says more information about the surveys could be found on the school board’s website were the survey is accessible.