CHARLESTON, W.Va. — A source of controversy this year in the Kanawha County school system won’t be that way next school year.
The Kanawha County Board of Education has approved the new school calendar and it returns Thanksgiving Week 2023 as a full week off.
That’s not the case this year with schools scheduled to be open Monday thru Wednesday next week. This year’s schedule has produced a lot of discussion particularly in the last few days with concerns about whether there will be enough bus drivers, other staff and teachers to open some schools next week.
Some schools may have to go remote but Kanawha County Schools Communications Director Briana Warner said Friday there’s really no way of knowing that ahead of time.
“This isn’t something that we’re trying to hold back and have those last minute decisions but that’s just the nature of what has happened here,” Warner said.
Some employees have already let it be known that they won’t work next week but the school system may not find out about others until early Monday.
“We just legitimately do not know because of those same issues,” Warner said during an appearance on WCHS Radio’s 580 Live show Friday. “We don’t know if there’s going to be additional staff that have the flu or children with RSV. We don’t know.”
The system is urging parents to be alert Monday morning concerning announcements about their child’s particular school.
Warner said the schools are scheduled to be open and they want them to be because of the services they provide.
“We are more than just places of academic learning,” Warner said. “We are feeding our students. We’re providing social-emotional wellness. We know that families are relying on our schools for a lot of things and we want them to be open.”
The Kanawha BOE approved the 2023-24 school calendar at its Thursday night meeting.
The school year will begin on Friday, Aug. 18, 2023, and end on May 30, 2024.
As mentioned, the calendar includes a full week off for Thanksgiving. There will be an expanded Christmas break from Dec. 20-Jan. 2. The first semester of classes will not end until Jan. 12, 2024.
The calendar also features a full week off for spring break, March 25-29, 2024, plus the following Monday, April 1, 2024.