Watertown School Calendar OK if There are No More Snow Days

Snow is the last thing Watertown Superintendent Ann Koufman wants to see. The district has already cancelled school five times due to wintry weather, so she hopes to avoid calling another snow day this year so the school calendar does not have to be hacked up.

If the snow is done for the year, Watertown Public Schools will end without affecting school vacations, she told the School Committee this week.

"If there are no more snow days before April 1, we are with the calendar we have been talking about," Koufman said. "If there is snow we will have to consider using time during April vacation or go later in June. Let's not pre-worry."

Massachusetts schools must have 180 days of school each year, and the school year must be complete by the end of June.

The original school calendar called for school to end on June 21, and five days were tacked on at the end to account for snow days. With those used up, the last day has been pushed to June 27 for students.

One alteration has been made already to the school year. Monday March 14 was originally slated to be a professional development day for staff, but a day off for the kids. Now it will be a regular school day for students and staff.

The School Committee also looked at the 2011-12 school calendar, which has school starting on Tuesday, Sept. 6 – the day after Labor Day – and the 180th day on June 19.

The snow has also been a headache for the Town Hall officials. Town Manager Michael Driscoll said the town's snow removal budget has a deficit of more than $662,000, which is $168,000 more than two weeks prior, Driscoll said.

He will ask the Town Council to approve a transfer at the next council meeting to avoid having a deficit in the snow budget going into fiscal 2012.