State Board of Education grants waiver to Sacramento district to avoid $47 million fine

(US MEDIA GROUP) – The State Board of Education has granted approval to a district’s request to change the first day of school for the 2024-25 school year to Monday, Aug. 19. The decision was made in response to a plan aimed at avoiding a $47 million fine from the state. The approved plan, announced on Monday, will add eight additional days of instruction each year for the 2024-25 and 2025-26 school years. The move comes after a teachers and staff strike in the 2021-22 school year resulted in the loss of eight days of instruction. In order to secure a waiver from the State Board of Education, the district was required to make up twice the amount of lost time. A schedule agreement was reached with the teachers’ union in February for the district to make up for the lost learning time. “We are pleased that the State Board of Education approved our District’s plan to invest in additional days of instruction that our students deserve,” said Board of Education President, Lavinia Phillips. “We appreciate the collaboration with our labor partners and the thoughtful consideration of the State Board of Education that has resulted in this waiver.” The decision...