WORLAND — A month after asking the Washakie County School District No. 1 Board of Trustees to consider early release on Friday for next year’s school calendar, Superintendent David Nicholas reported at Monday’s meeting that no calendar under consideration has early release.

Last month Nicholas said he wanted to propose at least one calendar with an early release.

“The thing all the teachers are looking for is collaborative time, time they can spend together in planning, working on curriculum, working on student learning, different strategies and looking at data. For that time to be common is helpful to the district,” he said in August.

At Monday’s regular meeting, Nicholas said, the proposed calendars do not have any early Friday release because there were three questions he could not answer — childcare for Friday afternoons and the hardship it would put on parents; schools already have built in collaborative time so Friday afternoons are not necessary; and third it can be difficult to bring back students for enrichment or remediation activities on a Friday afternoon.

The board briefly discussed ways to avoid the “summer slide” where students may show a slide in progress from the end of one school year to the start of the next year.

SEATING CHANGE

Worland High School Student Body President Caitlin Cottrell reported that the student council voted to move the student section in the gymnasium for volleyball and basketball games.

The idea for the move was presented to the student council by Principal Wade Sanford. Sanford said the student section had been in the north corner in the bottom section, closest to the doors, with the pep band in the upper section.

He said with the separation the pep band members could not be part of the student section. He said pep band director Chad Rose, Sanford, Activities Director Mark Mortimer and Assistant Principal Brian Gunderson met to discuss changing the sections.

He said there were also safety concerns because that north corner becomes logjammed with people coming and going.

The band has moved from the upper section to the very south end and the students next to them near mid court.

Cottrell said a lot of people with walkers or oxygen tanks, or even parents with small children, when they have to get to their seats around the student section they end up getting onto the court.

“A couple years ago we had an official that fell because we had someone who was trying to get past the student section, so moving our student section makes it easier for people,” Cottrell said.

Cottrell and Sanford said the first game with the change was the volleyball match with Lander and they realized they need to pull out the bleachers on the opposite side of the gym because there were problems with the students standing causing some fans to not see.

Sanford said during volleyball they opposite stands are not usually open but with the change in seating they will be in the future.

“Please keep coming because we appreciate it,” Cottrell said to the board and Warrior fans. “The why [of moving the bleachers] is so important. We want everyone to be more comfortable.”

OTHER BUSINESS

In other business, the board:

•Heard preliminary proposal for new early graduation requirements. Sanford said the current procedure is if seniors want to graduate early they had to petition the principal and board by Nov. 1. He said the new proposal would be midway through the first quarter in order to give more time for the students to meet the graduation requirements and allow the school time to assist and monitor the students.

He said the proposal also has students honored by the school board at a January meeting rather than have students go through graduation ceremonies in the spring. Sanford said most students wanting early graduation have a plan for trade school, college or employment right after graduating.

•Honored three swimmers who received good sportsmanship awards from the Wyoming High School Activities Association – Ella Stanek for Aug. 24 Lander Relays; Madi White, Aug. 25 Lander Invite and Juli Warren Aug. 31 for Terry Barlett invite.

•Heard from Nicholas that in response to disciplinary problems other districts have had on activity buses, there will now be a coach riding in the middle of the bus and one at the back of the bus on all trips.