DRIGGS, Idaho — The Teton School Board voted in favor of implementing a four-day school week for Teton School District 401 at a meeting Monday night, which lasted for nearly six hours. The new schedule is expected to begin with the new school year this fall.
Three board members voted in favor of the four-day week, with one voting against and one voting “present,” which is like saying “pass.”
The motion includes the caveat that if Senate Bill 521 is passed and has “financial implications that are detrimental to our school district, that we revert to a five-day week for the 2024/2025 school year.” That bill “amends, repeals and adds to existing law to revise provisions regarding tax rates, school facilities funding and school district bond and tax levy elections.”
Superintendent Megan Christiansen told Buckrail that she and her team were feeling optimistic about the change.
“I’m really proud of our school board, it was a difficult decision, especially with the facilities bill on the table,” Christiansen said. “I’m really proud of our board for giving us the chance to improve our school district for our students. Our team is really excited. We’re energized. We’re feeling empowered.”
Christiansen said plans for Friday programming are already getting underway. She said the priority for fifth-day programming is to “make sure students are safe and in a good environment.”
“It’s gonna be a big change, but we’ve needed a big change,” Christiansen said.
Voting on this matter originally took place in December, but it was later determined that the process leading up to the decision did not fully comply with Idaho’s Open Meeting Law.
Before the vote, the board heard several hours’ worth of comments from teachers and parents regarding the potential schedule change.
A number of teachers commented at the meeting, emphasizing that built-in collaboration time for the teachers afforded by a four-day week would be crucial to improving the learning community
One commented that the collaboration time would not be “getting together and drinking coffee and talking about the kids,” but it would allow for a “data dive” and “deep practice” regarding what could be done to support the students.
A parent commented that he wanted more information about the potential change, and more time to process that information, before making a decision. Similarly, one board member suggested beginning the four-day week in the 2025/2026 school year. “That buys us time to get all of these other questions addressed,” they said.
View the entirety of the meeting here.
