FSSD Two Calendar Petition

The Franklin Special School District (FSSD) is known for providing excellent educational opportunities to students in kindergarten through the eighth grade, together with pre-K classes for qualified students. The District is widely known as a desirable location to live and raise a family, due in large part to the quality of its schools. For the last decade and more, FSSD has provided a choice to its students with both a traditional and a balanced calendar option (the Two Calendar System).

While there has been no official announcement that the Board of Education is considering elimination of either the traditional calendar or the balanced calendar option, there have been unofficial indications that such a course may be under consideration. If the traditional calendar is eliminated, the balanced calendar will be imposed upon residents who have chosen a different system, and the opposite is also true. Parental and family choice, a key strength of the FSSD, is at risk of being lost.

The Board of Education has adopted and embraced a policy which values diversity and equity in the schools, with racial, cultural and socio-economic diversity all being valued components of a dynamic and positive public school environment. We all share this commitment to diversity and equity in our school populations and school programs. We commit ourselves and our resources to promote and obtain the goal of equal opportunity, equal experience, and cultural, ethnic and socio-economic diversity among our several school campuses.

We are concerned that the Two Calendar System is being considered for elimination. We are convinced that the goal of diversity and equity within our schools can be achieved within the context of a two-calendar (both traditional and balanced) system. We seek an opportunity to focus ourselves, the FSSD, and the Board of Education on that goal.

Petition:
We, the undersigned, call on the FSSD Board of Education to reaffirm its commitment to the Two Calendar System, providing both a traditional calendar for the zoned schools and a 9/2 balanced calendar at Poplar Grove School for the 2011-2012 school year, and subsequent years.