SAVE OUR GUSD SUMMERS

Please sign the SAVE OUR GUSD SUMMERS petition to have our schools' starting date be extended to much later in August (and as close to Labor Day as possible) for 2016 and subsequent years. This would not affect the mandatory 180 days of instructional teaching. We have only so many years to build summer family memories with our children. By losing a month of the summer vacation, the lives of our children and families are being negatively impacted in many ways. If our children are taking summer school, their summer vacation has been shortened to only 3 weeks. Our children deserve to have time in the summer for camps, sports, recreation, and most importantly, family time. In our society, the stress of our adult workloads are increasing, and our recreational time with our children is being lessened. We are a community who is very committed to the educational lives of our children. When the academic year begins, we are all invested in their well being and educational process. Kids need a break. Families need a break. If a teacher is interested in pursuing educational opportunities to build on their own expertise, those are also affected by the shortened summer hiatus. The stated "pro" for starting our schools earlier is so that our students will have taken their finals before the Christmas break. This goal could be met by adjusting other holiday dates in the calendar year, and still starting school at a later date.  The GUSD school starting date is one of the earliest in the entire United States. It is affecting our children's internships and summer job opportunities as well. The warm temperatures are miserable for our kids in non air conditioned classrooms and for outdoor Physical Education. The decision was made for the early starting date for GUSD schools by a small committee 8 years ago.  I have not found a single parent who is happy about the school year beginning so early. Next year the starting date is scheduled for August 8th. I know that our School Board leaders are committed to the children of this community, and are driven by their love for education. Let's send them a message that curtailing our summers does not benefit the family and the educational lives of our children, but hurts us all.