By Linda Conner Lambeck

WESTPORT–The school board voted 7-0 on Thursday to shorten the 2025-26 school calendar for students to 180 days and 6-1 to make March 20 a full school day for students.

As revised, the school year ends for students on Thursday, June 18. Graduation Day for Staples High School remains on June 15.

With five weather related closures already this school year, Schools Superintendent Thomas Scarice told the board that staying the course on a 2025-26 school calendar it adopted two years ago is not the best thing for the district.

“I am really trying to avoid going into that fourth week in June,” said Scarice.

For many families, Scarice added, that can be highly problematic.

His proposal would end school in the third week of June, preserving–at least for now–the April vacation week. It would also move an instructional day from the end of the year to March 20, which Scarice said would provide more valuable instructional day.

Not everyone agreed.

“The calendar is designed particularly for years like this one,” said freshman board member Stephen Shackelford.

Shackelford said he didn’t understand the point of having a clear process laid out for what happens if there are snow days if it is going to be changed.

“I think part of our jobs as public servants is to be … reliable,” Shackelford said.

The adopted calendar has fine print that says five days are built into the school year. If all five are used, school was to end June 24. Any days beyond that would eat into the April 13 through 18 spring break.

Although it rarely happens, Shackelford said parents are forewarned that the April break is at risk.

Shackelford said he was particularly opposed to adding a school day on March 20–two weeks from now–when families may have been planning college visits. March 20 was to be a professional development day for staff. It is being moved to June.

Board Vice Chair Dorie Hordon was OK with making March 20 a school day, but said she was conflicted with shrinking the school year to the state-mandated 180 days.

“It’s sort of a community question,” Hordon said. “What kind of community are we? Do we value instructional time? We are a premier district. Instructional time is important.”

Hordon also agreed that if the board sets a policy, it should stick to it.

Board Secretary Neil Phillips called the shortened calendar an exception, not a rule.

“We need to be flexible,” said Board Chair Lee Goldstein.

If tampering with the April break is so taboo, why is it even an option, Hordon added.

Goldstein pointed out the district hasn’t had five snow days in a single year in quite a while. While she too favors a 182-day school year, Goldstein said approving a calendar that would have gone into the fourth week of June was a mistake.

During public comment PTA Council Co-President Lorie Freemon, said parent feedback she has received has been overwhelmingly in support of making March 20 an instructional day and designating June 18^th as the last day of school.

Scarice said a day of instruction in the third week of March is going to be much more valuable than at the end of June.

When the school board considers a 2027-28 school calendar at its March 19 meeting, it agreed to also revisit the 2026-27 calendar to consider adjustments.

Linda Conner Lambeck

^{_{Linda Conner Lambeck covers education for Westport Journal. She was a reporter for more than four decades at the Connecticut Post and other Hearst publications. She has covered education throughout Fairfield and New Haven counties. She is a proud member of the Education Writers Association.}}