North Thurston schools to hold community forums on ‘balanced calendar’

Thanks to a state grant from OSPI, North Thurston Public Schools is exploring the
concept of a balanced calendar, which more evenly distributes the days students attend
school across the 12-month calendar year.

With a balanced calendar, students continue to have their longest break over the
summer, but the typical 11-week summer break is reduced to create longer breaks in
the fall, winter, and spring.

A balanced calendar has been shown to:
• improve academic success for students by offering more opportunities for
students who need it to receive personalized supports
• reduce summer learning loss
• provide staff, families, and students with more school/life balance during the year
• offer new opportunities for students and staff with more breaks throughout the
school year

NTPS wants to hear from the community about the opportunities and challenges that
might come with a change. Join us for one of three meetings this winter.

Balanced Calendar Community Forums
6:00 - 7:00 PM
• January 19- Chinook Middle School, 4301 6th Ave. NE
• January 26- Nisqually Middle School, 8100 Steilacoom Rd. SE
• February 2 - Salish Middle School, 8605 Campus Glen Dr. NE (Note: this
meeting will also be live-streamed on our YouTube channel,
https://www.youtube.com/ntpsvideos )