SCHOOL YEAR

The school fiscal year will begin on July 1 and end on June 30. The school educational year will include the, months of September, October, November, December, January, February, March, April, May and June. The school year for students will be determined by the school calendar. The employment year will be computed as follows:

a) 10 months – 200 days;
b) 11 months – 220 days;
c) 12 months – 240 days.

School Calendar

The school calendar will be presented to the Board by the Superintendent for its approval. This calendar will indicate the days that school will be in session, conference days, and will contain at least 180 days of instruction as well as provision for snow days and other emergencies. The school calendar will indicate vacation and holiday periods for students.
A calendar for summer sessions will be developed and presented to the Board on an annual basis for its approval.

School Day

The Board will approve the-length of the instructional day annually. It is recognized that school activities are such that many instructional activities will continue to occupy school time both before and after the time established for the instructional day. The beginning and ending times for instructional purposes are to act as guidelines.

OPENING EXERCISES

The Board directs the administration to include the Pledge of Allegiance as part of the opening exercises in all the schools. Under certain circumstances, such as religious conviction, individuals may be excused from this requirement as a protection of their Constitutional rights.

Education Law Section 802
8 New York Code of Rules and Regulations (NYCRR) Section 108.5

INDEPENDENT STUDY

Independent study, for credit, will be available to meet the individual needs of students in grades 9 through 12. The principal, after consultation with relevant faculty, will award credit to the student based on successful completion of the independent study and demonstrated mastery of the learning outcomes of the subject.

Students enrolled in the District, may earn a maximum of three units of elective credit towards a Regents diploma through independent study. The student’s participation in independent study will be approved by a school-based panel consisting of, at a minimum, the principal, a teacher in the subject area for which independent credit is sought, and a guidance director or administrator.

Credit for independent study may be awarded for elective courses only and will not be awarded for courses required for the Regents diploma as specified in Commissioner’s regulations.

8 New York Code of Rules and Regulations (NYCRR) Section 100.5(9)

HOME TUTORING (HOMEBOUND INSTRUCTION)

Resident children attending public or nonpublic schools who are unable to attend school because of physical, mental or emotional illness or injury as substantiated by a licensed physician are eligible to be instructed at home or in a hospital by a tutor provided by the District. These students will be provided with such instruction in accordance with New York State Education Law and Commissioner’s regulations.
Procedures for students requiring home tutoring will be developed under the direction of the Superintendent or designee.

Education Law Sections 1604(20), 1709(24), 3202 and 4401
8 New York Code of Rules and Regulations (NYCRR) Section 175.21

FIELD TRIPS

The Board recognizes that field trips are an educationally sound and important ingredient in the instructional program of the schools.

For purposes of this policy, a field trip will be defined as any journey by a group of students away from the school premises, under the supervision of a teacher, which is an integral part of an approved course of study and conducted for the purpose of affording a first-hand educational experience not available in the classroom.

Field trips are a part of the curriculum of the schools, and student conduct and attendance on field trips are governed by the same rules that govern regular classroom activities. The School System will obtain written parental/guardian permission for students going on school-sponsored field trips.

The Superintendent will prepare procedures for the operation of a field trip activity. Field trip support will be determined annually by the Board during its budget deliberations.

Regardless of the fiscal support for field trips, the rules of the District for approval and conduct of such trips will apply.

The Superintendent/designee may cancel previously approved field trips due to extenuating circumstances.

Out of Country Trips/Summer Trips

Any organization requesting an out of country trip or a summer trip must submit a rationale to the building administrator at least three months prior to the proposed trip.

All out of country trips or summer trips that use District funds, equipment, personnel or facilities must be sanctioned by the Board.

Students involved in out of country trips and summer trips will be expected to behave in an exemplary manner at all times.
Regulations and procedures to implement this policy will be developed by the administration.

HOME INSTRUCTION (HOME SCHOOLING)

From time to time, parents will choose to instruct their children at home. The District will attempt to cooperate with parents who wish to provide home schooling for their children realizing that the child who is educated at home should receive an education in a manner consistent with an educational plan and at least substantially equivalent to that given to students of like age and attainments in the local public schools. The required subjects should be taught in a competent, systematic, and sequential manner, specifically in relation to the required courses as enumerated in Commissioner’s regulation Section 100.10.

Primary responsibility for determining compliance with Commissioner’s regulations addressing home instruction rests with the Superintendent of the school district in which a home-instructed student resides.

Provision of Services to Home-Instructed Students

They are not awarded a high school diploma. A high school diploma may only be awarded to a student enrolled in a registered secondary school who has completed all program requirements set by the Board of Regents, the school or the District.

a) Extracurricular Participation

They are not eligible to participate in interscholastic sports. Commissioner’s regulations mandate that only students enrolled in the public school are allowed to participate in interscholastic sports. Further, the District does not permit home-instructed students to participate in any extracurricular activities.

b) Textbooks and Materials

The District is not required to loan available textbooks and other materials (e.g., library materials, microscopes, computer software, movie projectors) to home-instructed students. However, the District will provide home-instructed students with such textbooks and materials.

c) Health Services

The District is not required to furnish health services.

d) Remedial Programs

The District is not responsible for providing remedial programs.

e) Career and Technical/Gifted Education

The District is not permitted to provide Occupational and Vocational Education programs (career and technical education) nor programs for the Gifted to home-instructed students.

f) Special Education Services

Solely for the purpose of Education Law Section 3602-c, home-instructed students with disabilities are deemed to be students enrolled in and attending a nonpublic school, which enables them to receive special education services, as well as to be included for computation of state aid for such education by the District.

The Committee on Special Education (CSE) will develop an Individualized Education Services Program (IESP) for the student. The IESP will be developed in the same manner and with the same content as an IEP. The Board will determine a location where special education services are to be provided to a home-instructed student. This location may, but is not required to be, in the student’s home.

g) Use of School Facilities

Students instructed at home will not be allowed to use school facilities, except as provided for community organizations in Policy #3280 — Use of School Facilities, Materials and Equipment.

Education Law Sections 3204, 3205, 3210(2), 3212(2), 3240-42, 3602-c and 4402
8 New York Code of Rules and Regulations (NYCRR) Sections 100.10, 135.4(c)(7)(ii)(b)(2) and 200.2(a)