As bells ring across the region signaling the end of the school day, students at the Academy for Science and Design Charter School in Nashua are heading to their last class period.
Students spend that time doing enrichment activities, from rocketry and video game design to mock trials, foreign language clubs, Destination Imagination and even yoga. ASD is one of only two schools in the state that currently operate under an extended school day, running from 7:45 a.m.-3:30 p.m., about an hour longer than most schools in the region.
But it seems that more schools in New Hampshire and around the country are considering following suit.
In 2005, the state changed its school approval rules to permit school calendars that are based on the number of instructional hours instead of the number of school days.
And in Manchester this month, school officials discussed a plan to lengthen school days and shorten the school year to 175 days. A similar plan was approved by the school boards of SAU 39, covering the Amherst, Mont Vernon and Souhegan Cooperative school districts, last summer.
Both districts have said the plans could save money in transportation, salaries and facilities costs.
In Massachusetts, more than 5,000 students at schools in Lawrence and Fall River will see longer school days beginning in September, to provide extra academic enrichment as part of a federal initiative that also involves schools in Colorado, Connecticut, New York and Tennessee.
Still, support for adding instructional time to the school day or school year remains mixed locally.
In SAU 39, Superintendent Peter Warburton told School Board members in January that the plan to implement a 175-day calendar with longer school days won’t go into effect next year, after not all bargaining units agreed to its implementation.
Under the plan, the school day at Souhegan High School would still start at 7:30 a.m.![]()
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