Broward School Board approves earlier start date for next school year

Broward School Board on Tuesday voted to start the next school year a week earlier than usual.

The new school year will begin on August 12th, 2024, and end on June 3rd, 2025. Teachers would start on August 5th.

It was Broward Superintendent Dr. Peter Licata who recommended that Broward begin the year on Monday, August 12. The other recommendation was for the school year to begin on August 19.

August 12 is the earliest start date allowed by the state. It also falls in line with the start date of Palm Beach School District, Licata’s former School District.

The vote during the meeting was 7-1.

Much of the concern was voiced by Broward Teachers Union President Anna Fusco.

She said the union is concerned about losing early release days, where students leave two hours early, in the fall semester. Teachers use those days to get grades done.

The new start date means the district would have to convert four early release days into full school days in order to achieve the state-required instructional time.

The board made a tentative agreement with BTU to trade the two early release days for full school days.

Decision on uniform policy

Another item on the agenda was a countywide school uniforms policy.

The board directed district administrators to survey parents to gather their thoughts on whether the district should adopt a mandatory dress code.

The school board made the request instead of voting on a proposal that calls for a “unified dress code” for all students from kindergarten through 12th grade.

Only a few schools in the county have such policy. The majority of schools in the district do not require uniforms.

If the school board approves the proposal, it would still need to go through a rule development process, which would likely take 60 to 90 days, and come back to the board for a final vote.