The Uintah School Board voted Wednesday night to have all students in grades K-5 attend 4 hours of mandatory in-person learning on Fridays beginning next school year.
The board also voted to keep students in grades 6-12 on the current Friday schedule, which offers virtual learning on Fridays with two hours of optional in-person instruction.
The board’s 3-2 vote followed months spent collecting and reviewing student learning data, as well as thousands of survey responses from members of various stakeholder groups.
Board members publicly discussed the data and the survey results for more than 5 hours during an open meeting held on Jan. 30. They also received public comment on the issue for nearly 30 minutes on Wednesday night.
Following the public comment, board members engaged in a prolonged discussion about the Friday schedule, the input they had received, and the data they had reviewed.
Board member Robin McClellan made a motion to have all K-12 students attend school in-person for 4 hours on Fridays with the ability for Ashley Valley Education Center to modify the Friday schedule to meet the specific needs of its students. Board member Denise Maynard seconded McClellan’s motion, but it was voted down 2-3.
Board Vice President Tawnya McKee then made a motion to have K-5 students attend school in-person on a 4-hour minimum day schedule on Fridays and keep students in grades 6-12 on the district’s current Friday schedule. Board member Todd Massey seconded the motion, which passed 3-2.
The new Friday schedule for students in grades K-5 goes into effect at the start of the 2023-24 school year in August. The district will release specific schedules for elementary, middle and high school students before the start of the new school year.