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Senate committee recommends later school start date
Findings won’t affect Dawson County Schools in 2019-20
DCN Generic school bus
The Senate Study Committee on Evaluating the School Year Calendar of Georgia Public Schools concluded its evaluation and published its recommendations at the end of December. According to the final report of the committee on Dec. 27, members are recommending a required start date no earlier than seven to 10 days before Labor Day and an end date around June 1. Other recommendations in the report include evaluating testing dates, requiring school systems to survey communities about school calendars and coordinating the start dates to “coincide more with the University System of Georgia and Technical College System of Georgia.” “This Committee has attempted to look at the benefits of a more unified calendar statewide, balanced with the positive impact gained from local control, while placing a priority on student well-being,” the report states. “Through its investigation, this Committee found no evidence to suggest that a more congruent school calendar or a later start date to the school year statewide could have a negative impact on education.”