Iowa Senate mulls change in school year calendars

Iowa school districts would be granted more flexibility in establishing their school calendars under a bill advanced Tuesday by an Iowa Senate education subcommittee.

Senate File 2064, authored by Sen. Mark Lofgren, R-Muscatine, says the school calendar could annually begin no earlier than Aug. 23 or the Monday following the closing day of the annual Iowa State Fair, whichever occurs earlier.

The 2018 Iowa State Fair is scheduled to run from Aug. 9 through Aug. 19, which means the legislation would allow the academic year to begin Aug. 20 this year.

Lofgren said school administrators in eastern Iowa have told him the bill would be helpful with educational planning and would offer more opportunities for in-service training for teachers. The bill advances to the full Senate Education Committee.

The measure would modify a careful compromise reached two years ago in which former Gov. Terry Branstad worked with legislators, education groups, tourism officials and Iowa State Fair officials to declare the academic year could begin no earlier than Aug. 23. Iowa's tourism industry had lobbied for a later starting date, expressing concerns that allowing school districts to begin classes in mid-August had cost Iowa businesses millions of dollars annually.

Craig Patterson, a lobbyist for the Travel Federation of Iowa, told lawmakers Tuesday his organization opposed the Senate bill. "For about 20 years we have tried to make the case that every day that school creeps farther and farther into August, it affects the tourism industry."

Margaret Buckton, a lobbyist for the Urban Education Network of Iowa and Rural School Advocates of Iowa, spoke in favor of the bill. She said educators are concerned about a "summer slide" caused by long summer breaks that can negatively affect academic achievement. This particularly affects students from low-income families who can't afford enriching experiences for their children, she added.

"Every day of instruction is an improvement," Buckton said.

Sen. Ken Rozenboom, R-Oskaloosa, supported the bill, saying he loves county fairs, as well as the Iowa State Fair. But he added, "Kids are a little higher on the totem pole." He agreed that Iowa's Okoboji tourist region in northwest Iowa could be affected by an earlier school calendar, but he doubted other areas of Iowa would feel much impact.