SMSD 2019-2020 Calendar Revisions Approved

SMSD 2019-2020 Calendar Revisions Approved
Shawnee Mission School District

The 2019-2020 school year calendar has been revised.

At the July 22, 2019 Board of Education meeting, Board of Education members approved the following changes:

  • Fall Parent Teacher Conferences will be held on October 23 and 24, 2019 (a change from October 16 and 17, 2019)
  • Friday, October 25, 2019 will be a Parent Teacher Conference Day. School will not be held for students in Grades Pre-K-12.
  • A Professional Development day will be held on May 27, 2020. There will be no Professional Development day on January 3, 2020.
  • Students will return from Winter Break on January 6, 2020.
  • The last day of school for grades Pre-K-11 will be May 22, 2020.

Dr. Darren Dennis, director of curriculum, instruction, and assessment, presented the recommended changes to the Board of Education. He provided the following explanation for the recommended changes:

  • The previously approved calendar was a few hours short of the state-required classroom contact hours for high school seniors. Moving the Professional Development Day from January 3 to May 27 and making January 6 a regular day of school solved this issue.
  • The original calendar created a conflict at one high school. This was resolved through holding Parent Teacher Conferences during the day on October 25 and moving the conferences from October 16-17 to October 23-24.

Dr. Dennis consulted with Linda Sieck, NEA-Shawnee Mission president, and representatives from the Shawnee Mission Area Council-PTA to gather input prior to bringing the recommendations to the Board of Education.

The revised 2019-2020 calendar was approved by the Board of Education and may be viewed here. The 2020-2021 calendar was also approved by the Board of Education and may be viewed here.

The Shawnee Mission Board of Education reserves the right to change the school calendar to respond to emergencies or other unforeseen circumstances that affect the educational program or students’ welfare