2017-18 calendar could be finalized at Tuesday’s school board session

A 2017-18 school calendar that restores a full two-week Christmas break but runs just past Memorial Day will be under consideration Tuesday when the Beaufort County Board of Education holds its regular meeting, starting at 6 p.m. at the Beaufort City Council chambers.

The board also will discuss placing a proposed new gym at Whale Branch Early College High School — one item in a $217 million bond referendum that was defeated by voters in November — into a funding option that doesn’t require voter approval.

The calendar being considered was the favorite among two options placed before both parents and district employees in online polls last week. At issue was whether to shorten the traditional holiday break in order to complete spring semester by Memorial Day, or let the semester run until the end of May.

Just under 58 percent of parents preferred the longer break and later finish. The margin was even greater among district employees, with 72 percent supporting that option.

The board also may opt to postpone a vote to follow developments in the state Assembly, where a bill is in committee that would allow schools to start two days earlier than current law allows in order to accommodate this summer’s solar eclipse.

The longest total eclipse to hit the East Coast will happen Aug. 21 — the first allowable school day under current law — with the darkest path cutting through South Carolina from Charleston to Greenville.

The bill would allow schools to open Aug. 17, with the proviso that the days be used for teaching about the eclipse.

The Whale Branch gym, meantime, could get fast-tracked if the board decides to place the $4.4 million project under the “8 percent” classification, which allows districts to issue bonds below their 8 percent debt-limit capacity without having to go to voters.

Whale Branch is the district’s only high school without a gym that meets state capacity requirements for late postseason competition. Should the Warriors get past the first two playoff rounds, they’d have to take any home games to either Battery Creek or Beaufort High.

It’s an issue that could raise its head later this month, with Whale Branch currently the state’s No. 5 team in the Class 2A boys’ basketball rankings.

This story was originally published February 6, 2017 at 6:46 PM with the headline "2017-18 calendar could be finalized at Tuesday’s school board session."