By Sterling McGinn
The Tahquamenon Area Schools (TAS) Board of Education met Monday, May 16 at 6 p.m. in the TAS Library for their regular monthly meeting. Although the agenda was light that evening, several items of note were discussed.
School will resume before Labor Day this fall. The board discussed and unanimously approved an early start to the 2022/2023 school year, which will begin on Monday, August 29. The early start is due to summer slide and student achievement gap.
TAS Superintendent Stacy Price noted that the hearing with the Michigan Department of Education was held last Monday and there is a certain criteria for the waiver.
“If we start earlier then it would shorten are summertime to help with the summer slide,” Price said. “It would also open up summer school to all students, which we have, and there is an availability of our K-6 kids to come to summer school.”
Price said there will be two three-week summer school sessions that will take place in June and July. There will also be the same opportunity for grades 7 and 8. Grades 9-12 have the opportunity to do credit recovery online.
Also, dual enrollment students have already enrolled, and fall sports for grades 6-12 will be taking place during the first week of August.
“With all of that combination coming into play, starting four days earlier gives a good introduction to coming back to school,” said Price.
In her education report, Stacy Price informed the board on the upcoming Eastern Upper Peninsula Intermediate School District Special Education Millage renewal, which will be on the ballot on August 2.
Voters of the Chippewa, Luce and Mackinac districts are being asked to approve the renewal of the .2273 mill and an increase of .7500 mill to be utilized to provide state and federally mandated special education children with disabilities. The millage funds support equipment, facility upgrades and transportation. (See related article on page 2.)
Also approved that evening was the retirement of K-6th grade physical education teacher, Angela Welty, who has served the district for 22 years. The board voted to accept her retirement, which will take effect on October 1, 2022.
