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For More Information Contact:

Tina Bruno at 210-559-5277

NEWS RELEASE

Uniform School Start Date Looks Good on All Counts

(Atlanta) &endash; Citing research that shows students excel academically in states where end-of-semester exams are taken after the Winter Break, Representatives Mark Burkhalter (R-Alpharetta) and Joe Wilkinson (R-Atlanta) today pledged to file legislation codifying a uniform school start date and passing the travel and tourism industry's anticipated extra revenue to the schools.

"Superintendents and school board members have been demanding more money to fund public education for some time and I agree with them," Wilkinson said. "But we needed to come up with a way to generate more revenue without placing a heavier load on Georgia taxpayers."

The Representatives listed several reasons, both academic and economic, to require Georgia public schools to start classes on September 1 or later. August is traditionally the busiest month for travel and tourism, Wilkinson said, but Georgia loses out on much of the revenue because of early-August school start dates. Starting school in September would return one of the busiest travel months to the industry, he said, and in turn would generate higher tax dollars.

As laid out, the proposed bill would set a revenue threshold for the travel and tourism industry for the month of August. The proposal calls for the threshold to be set based on the average domestic and international travel spending in the state for the past three years, but Wilkinson underlined he is open and eager to hear any and all ideas; as his is a preliminary idea.

Tax revenue collected above that threshold would be safeguarded in a fund dedicated to public education finance. The money would then be divided among the schools based on average daily attendance numbers, after the state has anted up its fair share.

According to the 2002 report, Impact of Travel on State Economies, by the Travel Industry Association of America, travel in Georgia brings in 16 percent more revenue to the state than travel in North Carolina. Based on an economic impact study used by the North Carolina Legislature, when passing their August 25th school start date bill just a month ago, Wilkinson said Georgia could expect an increase of $2.4 billion in domestic and international travel spending if the month of August is returned and all other factors are equal.

"I know there is a trade-off between when school starts and the amount of money generated by travel and tourism," Wilkinson said. "We are making an educated guess based on the figures available to us." He said he is looking forward to the discussion his proposal should generate and is excited to see the numbers local and state economists put together.

Based on preliminary estimates schools could see in increase of $114 more per student. Or an increase of over $2,000 per classroom. The Cobb County School District could see an increase of $11,544,666.00 from a simple change in the school calendar.

Wilkinson said the proposal is a win for everyone. "The schools receive more money for teacher salaries, small group tutoring and academic programming; the tourism industry gets the longer summer they have been asking for; and taxpayers benefit from better-funded public schools &endash; without carrying a heavier tax burden," he explained.

Based on savings schools that other states have experienced from later school start dates, Wilkinson said Georgia schools will receive more money under his proposal while driving down non-instructional costs.

August is the most expensive month of the school year to cool a school, according to the U.S. Department of Energy. Energy Department figures also show that t takes 35 percent less electricity to cool a building in September than August. June also shows a 16 percent decrease in cooling degree-days versus August.

Answering the complaint that September school-start dates require final exams to be administered after the Winter Break, Wilkinson pointed to four state educational ranking systems. States listed in the top 10 of each report all begin school in late-August or early-September and all administer end-of-semester exams after the winter break.

"I in no way contend the school calendar in these states has influenced academic performance," Wilkinson said. "But I do contend the results show when exams are administered does not hurt academic performance, either."

The ranking systems included ACT scores, SAT scores, the American Legislative Exchange Councils Report Card on Education and the 2003 Smartest State Award issued by the Morgan Quitno Press.

Burkhalter said the changes prompted by their legislation could improve air quality, reducing the money the state is forced to spend on air quality programs while allowing Georgia to qualify for federal grant dollars because of the air improvement.

Vivian Jackson, a founding member of Georgians Need Summers, said the proposed legislation provides a key opportunity for constituents to show the widespread disdain for early school start dates.

"Parents all across the state have shown through petitions, letter-writing campaigns and phone calls that they want to return to a traditional start to the school year," said Jackson, whose grass-roots group advocates for a traditional start to the school year in Georgia. "We urge everyone to log onto our website at www.georgiansneedsummers.com and sign an online petition that Representatives Burkhalter and Wilkinson will use to show their colleagues how important this issue is to Georgians."

"If we join together, and it will take all of us joining together, we can give our children, who have no voice, everything they deserve, time with family, a healthy environment and a robust economy."

State Rep. Butch Parrish (D-Swainsboro) sponsored legislation during the last regular session that would have pushed back the school start date to the last Monday in August. Parrish said he authored the bill in the hopes of starting a discussion on the issue.

Georgia legislators are not alone in their quest for a synchronized school start date; legislators in Alabama, Oklahoma and South Carolina have proposed legislation drafted. Several states already have passed laws regarding the first day of school. They are Texas, North Carolina, Wisconsin, Minnesota and Virginia.

Issues in the School Calendar Debate

Non-traditional calendars create many problems for families, teachers and students. Some of the issues we feel are important are:

OPERATING EFFICIENCY

"Tulsa Public Schools saved nearly $500,000 by delaying the start of school until after Labor Day, the district's latest utility bills show." Late opening of school saved money, Tulsa World News, November 17, 2002.

"District officials say the delay (August 18 to September 2) will save the schools at least $150,000 in utility costs." City Schools to Delay Start of Classes, The Daily Oklahoman, January 16, 2003.

"In 2000, school districts' electricity bills were as much as $10 million a year higher as a result of early start dates." Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts, Special Report, An Economic Analysis of the Changing School Start Date in Texas, December 2002.

A traditional school year would allow students to complete the second semester in late May if only traditional holidays were observed -- actually allowing for less days of low level cooling.

ATTENDANCE LAG

Attendance is often poor in early-August as compared with school district figures the first week of September.

A Texas study found that more than 250,000 students were not in class the first day of school, as compared to September 1. A similar study completed after the state passed a uniform school start date bill, requiring a week of August 21 start date, showed an increase in first day attendance of 60 percent.

School district officials attribute high absenteeism in August to the timing of family vacations, new families transferring into the district, and other factors. A uniform school start date would eliminate the above-mentioned problems for many families -- thus increasing attendance the first day of school.

STUDENT EMPLOYMENT

A study by the Employment Policies Institute, May 1994, found that students who work during the summer are more likely to obtain better jobs upon graduation.

A full summer of employment gives students the opportunity to apply what they have learned in the classroom and gain valuable insight in choosing a career path.

Summer employment allows many students to afford college without working as many hours during the school year -- thus giving them more time for academic studies and extracurricular activities.

TEACHERS' CONTINUING EDUCATION

Teachers are expected to remain competitive and to continue updating their skills; the shortened summer inhibits professional development.

A shorter summer for teachers means teachers can only attend one of the two summer school sessions, so it often takes twice as long to earn advanced degrees.

Many school districts offer greater pay for teachers with advanced degrees. If advanced degrees are beneficial enough to merit pay increases, shouldn't we ensure teachers have time to achieve advanced degrees?

A Time to Learn report, Poor Timing - The Impact of Early-August School Start Dates in Florida showed that school districts with higher percentages of Master's Level teachers performed better on standardized testing than those with lower percentages.

College and University systems often pull teachers from many different districts. When no uniform calendar is in place it is often difficult, if not impossible, to create a calendar that allows teachers from all districts to maximize summer learning.

CHILD CARE

The early-August school start date creates numerous breaks during the school year -- forcing parents to find child care at non-traditional times. These small breaks often force parents to pay higher prices for care than during the summer months.

Communities often support educational learning opportunities during the summer months -- not during a day off twice a month.

A one-day holiday often encourages students who would not be left unsupervised during the summer to be left "home alone."

FALL SEMESTER EXAMS

When semester exams are administered in no way impacts academic performance. The top 10 academic states, in four commonly used state education ranking systems, have two things in common. They all begin school in late-August, early-September and they all administer semester finals after the winter break.

The week prior to the Winter Break is often the most hectic for high school students. By placing end-of-semester exams during this time, we often force students to choose between participating in community activities and studying for exams.

Teachers report student concentration is lowest the days before a long holiday and energy levels are the highest.

If the goal of education is retention, wouldn't it be better to allow students to return refreshed and ready to "hit the books?" If students are not able to retain information for two weeks, they never committed the material to memory in the first place.

LOCAL AUTONOMY

The laws governing education in most states are extensive. Providing uniformity in school start dates would in no way minimize the work of the school board or the school community. The district would still be responsible for setting yearly divisions, semesters or trimesters, assigning holidays and teacher workdays.

NON-CUSTODIAL FAMILIES

Non-custodial parents are normally granted their long-term block of visitation during the summer months. When we take time away from children's summers, in many instances, we are reducing quality time with their non-custodial parent.

Non-custodial parents are normally unable to make up this lost time in the summer during piecemeal vacations offered during the school year.

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	c	For More Information Contact: Tina Bruno at 210-559-5277 NEWS RELEASE Uniform School Start Date Looks Good on All Counts (Atlanta) &endash; Citing research that shows students excel academically in states where end-of-semester exams are taken after the Winter Break, Representatives Mark Burkhalter (R-Alpharetta) and Joe Wilkinson (R-Atlanta) today pledged to file legislation codifying a uniform school start date and passing the travel and tourism industry's anticipated extra revenue to the schools. "Superintendents and school board members have been demanding more money to fund public education for some time and I agree with them," Wilkinson said. "But we needed to come up with a way to generate more revenue without placing a heavier load on Georgia taxpayers." The Representatives listed several reasons, both academic and economic, to require Georgia public schools to start classes on September 1 or later. August is traditionally the busiest month for travel and tourism, Wilkinson said, but Georgia loses out on much of the revenue because of early-August school start dates. Starting school in September would return one of the busiest travel months to the industry, he said, and in turn would generate higher tax dollars. As laid out, the proposed bill would set a revenue threshold for the travel and tourism industry for the month of August. The proposal calls for the threshold to be set based on the average domestic and international travel spending in the state for the past three years, but Wilkinson underlined he is open and eager to hear any and all ideas; as his is a preliminary idea. Tax revenue collected above that threshold would be safeguarded in a fund dedicated to public education finance. The money would then be divided among the schools based on average daily attendance numbers, after the state has anted up its fair share. According to the 2002 report, Impact of Travel on State Economies, by the Travel Industry Association of America, travel in Georgia brings in 16 percent more revenue to the state than travel in North Carolina. Based on an economic impact study used by the North Carolina Legislature, when passing their August 25th school start date bill just a month ago, Wilkinson said Georgia could expect an increase of $2.4 billion in domestic and international travel spending if the month of August is returned and all other factors are equal. "I know there is a trade-off between when school starts and the amount of money generated by travel and tourism," Wilkinson said. "We are making an educated guess based on the figures available to us." He said he is looking forward to the discussion his proposal should generate and is excited to see the numbers local and state economists put together. Based on preliminary estimates schools could see in increase of $114 more per student. Or an increase of over $2,000 per classroom. The Cobb County School District could see an increase of $11,544,666.00 from a simple change in the school calendar. Wilkinson said the proposal is a win for everyone. "The schools receive more money for teacher salaries, small group tutoring and academic programming; the tourism industry gets the longer summer they have been asking for; and taxpayers benefit from better-funded public schools &endash; without carrying a heavier tax burden," he explained. Based on savings schools that other states have experienced from later school start dates, Wilkinson said Georgia schools will receive more money under his proposal while driving down non-instructional costs. August is the most expensive month of the school year to cool a school, according to the U.S. Department of Energy. Energy Department figures also show that t takes 35 percent less electricity to cool a building in September than August. June also shows a 16 percent decrease in cooling degree-days versus August. Answering the complaint that September school-start dates require final exams to be administered after the Winter Break, Wilkinson pointed to four state educational ranking systems. States listed in the top 10 of each report all begin school in late-August or early-September and all administer end-of-semester exams after the winter break. "I in no way contend the school calendar in these states has influenced academic performance," Wilkinson said. "But I do contend the results show when exams are administered does not hurt academic performance, either." The ranking systems included ACT scores, SAT scores, the American Legislative Exchange Councils Report Card on Education and the 2003 Smartest State Award issued by the Morgan Quitno Press. Burkhalter said the changes prompted by their legislation could improve air quality, reducing the money the state is forced to spend on air quality programs while allowing Georgia to qualify for federal grant dollars because of the air improvement. Vivian Jackson, a founding member of Georgians Need Summers, said the proposed legislation provides a key opportunity for constituents to show the widespread disdain for early school start dates. "Parents all across the state have shown through petitions, letter-writing campaigns and phone calls that they want to return to a traditional start to the school year," said Jackson, whose grass-roots group advocates for a traditional start to the school year in Georgia. "We urge everyone to log onto our website at www.georgiansneedsummers.com and sign an online petition that Representatives Burkhalter and Wilkinson will use to show their colleagues how important this issue is to Georgians." "If we join together, and it will take all of us joining together, we can give our children, who have no voice, everything they deserve, time with family, a healthy environment and a robust economy." State Rep. Butch Parrish (D-Swainsboro) sponsored legislation during the last regular session that would have pushed back the school start date to the last Monday in August. Parrish said he authored the bill in the hopes of starting a discussion on the issue. Georgia legislators are not alone in their quest for a synchronized school start date; legislators in Alabama, Oklahoma and South Carolina have proposed legislation drafted. Several states already have passed laws regarding the first day of school. They are Texas, North Carolina, Wisconsin, Minnesota and Virginia. Issues in the School Calendar Debate Non-traditional calendars create many problems for families, teachers and students. Some of the issues we feel are important are: OPERATING EFFICIENCY "Tulsa Public Schools saved nearly $500,000 by delaying the start of school until after Labor Day, the district's latest utility bills show." Late opening of school saved money, Tulsa World News, November 17, 2002. "District officials say the delay (August 18 to September 2) will save the schools at least $150,000 in utility costs." City Schools to Delay Start of Classes, The Daily Oklahoman, January 16, 2003. "In 2000, school districts' electricity bills were as much as $10 million a year higher as a result of early start dates." Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts, Special Report, An Economic Analysis of the Changing School Start Date in Texas, December 2002. A traditional school year would allow students to complete the second semester in late May if only traditional holidays were observed -- actually allowing for less days of low level cooling. ATTENDANCE LAG Attendance is often poor in early-August as compared with school district figures the first week of September. A Texas study found that more than 250,000 students were not in class the first day of school, as compared to September 1. A similar study completed after the state passed a uniform school start date bill, requiring a week of August 21 start date, showed an increase in first day attendance of 60 percent. School district officials attribute high absenteeism in August to the timing of family vacations, new families transferring into the district, and other factors. A uniform school start date would eliminate the above-mentioned problems for many families -- thus increasing attendance the first day of school. STUDENT EMPLOYMENT A study by the Employment Policies Institute, May 1994, found that students who work during the summer are more likely to obtain better jobs upon graduation. A full summer of employment gives students the opportunity to apply what they have learned in the classroom and gain valuable insight in choosing a career path. Summer employment allows many students to afford college without working as many hours during the school year -- thus giving them more time for academic studies and extracurricular activities. TEACHERS' CONTINUING EDUCATION Teachers are expected to remain competitive and to continue updating their skills; the shortened summer inhibits professional development. A shorter summer for teachers means teachers can only attend one of the two summer school sessions, so it often takes twice as long to earn advanced degrees. Many school districts offer greater pay for teachers with advanced degrees. If advanced degrees are beneficial enough to merit pay increases, shouldn't we ensure teachers have time to achieve advanced degrees? A Time to Learn report, Poor Timing - The Impact of Early-August School Start Dates in Florida showed that school districts with higher percentages of Master's Level teachers performed better on standardized testing than those with lower percentages. College and University systems often pull teachers from many different districts. When no uniform calendar is in place it is often difficult, if not impossible, to create a calendar that allows teachers from all districts to maximize summer learning. CHILD CARE The early-August school start date creates numerous breaks during the school year -- forcing parents to find child care at non-traditional times. These small breaks often force parents to pay higher prices for care than during the summer months. Communities often support educational learning opportunities during the summer months -- not during a day off twice a month. A one-day holiday often encourages students who would not be left unsupervised during the summer to be left "home alone." FALL SEMESTER EXAMS When semester exams are administered in no way impacts academic performance. The top 10 academic states, in four commonly used state education ranking systems, have two things in common. They all begin school in late-August, early-September and they all administer semester finals after the winter break. The week prior to the Winter Break is often the most hectic for high school students. By placing end-of-semester exams during this time, we often force students to choose between participating in community activities and studying for exams. Teachers report student concentration is lowest the days before a long holiday and energy levels are the highest. If the goal of education is retention, wouldn't it be better to allow students to return refreshed and ready to "hit the books?" If students are not able to retain information for two weeks, they never committed the material to memory in the first place. LOCAL AUTONOMY The laws governing education in most states are extensive. Providing uniformity in school start dates would in no way minimize the work of the school board or the school community. The district would still be responsible for setting yearly divisions, semesters or trimesters, assigning holidays and teacher workdays. NON-CUSTODIAL FAMILIES Non-custodial parents are normally granted their long-term block of visitation during the summer months. When we take time away from children's summers, in many instances, we are reducing quality time with their non-custodial parent. Non-custodial parents are normally unable to make up this lost time in the summer during piecemeal vacations offered during the school year. BACK