JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Students who attend public schools in Duval County will have their last day on May 29 as first planned, not June 3 as was announced last Wednesday, according to a tweet from DCPS.
Duval County’s school had been pushed back to June 3 to make up for the days lost when Spring Break was extended an extra week due to the coronavirus. The adjusted calendar was using built-in weather days as instructional days.
But on Wednesday night, the school district announced that the school year will end on May 29 as originally planned after the Florida Department of Education approved a waiver.
Last Day of School Update - The Florida Department of Education approved our request to waive instructional hours due to districts extending Spring Break in response to COVID-19. This means, we will end as originally planned. May 29 is final day of school year for students.
— DCPS (@DuvalSchools) May 7, 2020
Diana Greene, Duval Schools Superintendent said during a Beaches Watch update meeting posted online, the extension was reconsidered in part because of the success of distance learning.
“Through Duval homeroom we have conducted over 6 million live virtual sessions. Just like we are having a live meeting, our teachers are able to have meetings with their students. Many times, especially in the elementary grades, right at eight o’clock, the teacher comes on and you can see these beautiful little kindergartens, whether they are at home wherever they are, they can see their teacher and their teacher can see them,” Green said.
Greene said Duval County was the first large district to launch an online platform for students and that they excelled at doing so.
According to Greene, the school district has deployed 38,000 computers and 3,000 hot spots to students, delivered more than 1.5 million meals to students, conducted more than 6 million live virtual learning sessions, saw an increase in student attendance, and managed to get a referendum on the November ballot for a half cent sales tax to help Duval County’s aging schools - with the average age of schools in the district being 44 years old.