Board of Education Moves 2011 Graduation Date, Removes One Snow Day

The Montville board of education voted to move the 2011 high school graduation date back one day, from Thursday, June 23 to Wednesday, June 22, to accommodate the township's Fourth of July celebration at its meeting on August 17.

According to superintendent Dr. Paul Fried, the original graduation date of Thursday, June 23 would have conflicted with the celebration, which is currently planned for the weekend on June 25, 2011.

The township's annual Fourth of July celebration is traditionally scheduled for the weekend prior to July 4 and held at the Montville township high school.

"Due to the coming school schedule, being able to hold the celebration as usual at the school would be a problem," he said.

According to Fried and public works director Tom Mazzaccaro, the issue had to due with carnival parking and storage difficulties created by holding graduation one day before the scheduled event.  Fried said that, by removing one of the school district's snow days, the board would be able to move both the graduation ceremony and the post-ceremony event, "Project Graduation," to Wednesday, June 22.

Fried attributed the problem to an unusual school calendar.

"There are three major holiday breaks this year," he said. "There is one in February, which isn't typical. I feel we can remove one snow day."

Some school board members expressed concerns about the proposed removal, citing possible violations in the required number of days in which teachers are to be in the district. According to Fried, because the calendar is built with extra days, removing a snow day would not be an issue.

"It's just like we've used a snow day," he said.

Mazzaccaro addressed additional concerns regarding parking and handicap accessibility, saying that they had never been an issue in past celebrations and would not be a problem for the coming event. He also expressed his gratitude to the board for assistance in resolving the scheduling conflict.

""Whatever we're going to do will not interfere with graduation," he said. "Without the board of education, we wouldn't have a venue for this event."

Board president Dr. Karen Cortellino was pleased with the collaborative spirit of the school board and the Forth of July committee that lead to the resolution.

"This is a good thing," she said. "It's what neighbors do. This celebration means a lot to the town. Fourth of July is very special to Montville."

The school board is planning a joint meeting with the township committee for September.

With this vote to move graduation back one day, the school district now has two snow days instead of three. When this was brought up, Dr. Cortellino said that the board would have to hope for warm weather in the coming school year.

The next board of education meeting is scheduled for August 31.