Bandera ISD will try 4-day school week

The Bandera Independent School District will give Fridays off to its more than 2,000 students next school year in an effort to address mental health concerns, cut costs and boost teacher retention.

The district’s board voted unanimously Monday to implement a four-day school week starting in the fall. It will adhere to the shortened schedule for one year before revisiting the decision.

School days will begin 10 minutes earlier and end 25 minutes later than with a five-day week. Students will attend school on Fridays only in August, which will allow the district to finish the school year before Memorial Day 2025.

“There are a lot of people who are not happy about it right now, but what we’re saying is, ‘Hey, let’s just try this out for a year.’ If the mass majority hate it, then we can go back — but I personally think people are going to love it,” board President Brittany Hicks said Thursday.

The state modified the way classroom instruction was timed in 2015, changing from a required 180 days of classes to 75,600 minutes per academic school year. Since then, scores of districts across the state have opted to shorten their school weeks, most of them in rural areas that have had a hard time filling teacher vacancies.

Harlandale ISD announced a year ago that it was considering a four-day school week but ultimately decided against it. No Bexar County school district has yet to adopt one, but La

Vernia ISD in Wilson County made the switch for the 2023-24 school year.

The condensed schedule often is employed as a strategy to attract and retain teachers — but that wasn’t the Bandera ISD board’s main reason, Hicks said. The move is intended to address concerns over student burnout and stress, she said.

“We have a huge mental health crisis right now in the world, and these kids are exhausted,” Hicks said.

One of the biggest concerns about the new schedule is the effect on families with younger children, and the Boys and Girls Club has stepped up and agreed to provide child care on Fridays at its two Bandera County locations, she said.

The board is focused right now on finding a way to continue feeding the roughly 50% of students who are on free or reduced-price lunch.

“I know change can be scary, but we’ve got to do something to fix some of our issues, and I feel like this is something that can do that,” Hicks said.

A former teacher, she believes extending the weekend will improve student attendance and boost performance in class.

The first day of school for students will be Aug. 6, and summer break will begin after classes conclude the following May 22.

The need to compete for teachers certainly played a role in the decision, Hicks added. She said the lack of affordable housing in the Hill Country school district poses a recruitment challenge and that the new schedule might expand the district’s reach.

“We are hoping to attract teachers saying, ‘Hey, I might have to drive 15 minutes further every day, but I get Fridays off, so that makes up for it,’ ” Hicks said.

The district’s 400-plus square miles cover the eastern half of Bandera County. Board members and district officials have spent the past several months taking notes on La Vernia ISD’S experience with a four-day school week and believe the switch will drive down heating, cooling, transportation and labor costs, Hicks said.

With Fridays off to complete mandatory training, attend appointments or fulfill other obligations, teachers will be less likely to take off during the workweek, reducing the need for substitute teachers, she said.