July 25, 2002
It's July and the students at Franconia Elementary school are going through their annual back-to-school ritual, gearing up for the first day on July 29. That's right, July 29.
It's back to school as Franconia goes into its second year of a year-round schedule that some Fairfax County schools have adopted.
Principal Judith Jackson looks at the success over the past year.
"It's been wonderful. I've had a lot of people stop by and say they're thrilled," she said.
Fifth grade teacher Janice Tarcza has heard good things too.
"The best thing about it, October and January breaks, you're totally free and have a chance to refresh," she said.
Tarcza raved about the beaches in October with no crowds and lower rates although she hasn't been on a beach vacation in the cooler months herself.
THE FIRST QUARTER is July 29 - Oct. 2, with a break until the second quarter runs from Oct. 21 through Dec. 20. Then there is winter break and the third quarter is Jan. 13 through March 27, and the fourth quarter is April 21 through June 19.
During the fall, winter and spring breaks, intersession classes are held which consist of elective-type courses, and are optional. They cost each student $25. The longest break, from June to July, has no intersession classes and the school is closed. In the future, they may start intersession classes then too.
Tarcza said 80 percent of the students take the intersession classes.
"It's better for them academically," she said.
The year-round schedule is more expensive then the traditional schedule, according to Fairfax County Public Schools information specialist Paul Regnier. He said the additional money was in the $256,000 per school range, and some of this money goes to an "intersession coordinator" position.
Six other schools have this schedule in the county as well. These are Timberlane, Dogwood, Graham Road, Glen Forest, Parklawn and Annandale Terrace, for a total of seven elementary schools. That is a total of $1,855,000 a year in extra funds.
"It is certainly something the board looked at. The School Board seems to think this is a good idea in communities that want it," Regnier said.
Jackson thinks it's a good investment.
"The children are certainly worth that investment," she said.
MARY DUFFER, a teacher at Hayfield Elementary, has a son, Sean, 9, that goes to Franconia. She likes the schedule.
"I love it, I'm on one schedule and he's on another. In August, everyone's pretty much tired, there's less retraining time that needs to be done," she said.
When July 29 was mentioned, Sean didn't want to go back to class that soon.
"I want to go back in September," he said.
He changed his opinion when his mother mentioned the breaks in October and January. He attends the intersessions as well.
Hung Dang lives in the Autumn Chase community next to Franconia and has two children in fifth and sixth grade there.
"The kids don't take a long summer break, it's easier for us to take a vacation," he said. Last winter, the family went to Cancun, Mexico.
Synthia Leninger is a mother and teacher at Springfield Estates Elementary School. She liked the idea although it hasn't been proposed for her school, and wasn't worried about the money.
"Kids have a tendency to start getting bored [in August]. It comes out of my taxes," she said.
Springfield mother Gina Cerasani was open to the idea of year-round schools until she heard about the increase in cost. She has a two-year-old daughter.
"There's better ways to spend the money," she said.
SOME FAMILIES stick with a traditional schedule though and the school system offers an "Opt Out School," for those families. That is a school in the district that will enroll children from an area where the elementary school has gone year-round. For Franconia, the opt out school is Bush Hill Elementary, which is more toward Alexandria than Franconia.
Fourteen students from Franconia chose that option last year, which Jackson referred to as "not that many."
Cerasani noted the importance of choice for potential students.
"As long as they have that choice," she said.