Saying more time would be needed to implement an alternative, Springfield school superintendent Walter Milton now suggests that the school board wait another year to implement a new schedule for the city's public high schools.
Milton's original proposed budget cuts called for replacing the 7-period high school day with either a 6-period day or a "trimester" schedule. Either option could save as much as a million dollars a year. But Milton says the 6-period day compromises educational objectives too much, and he says the district needs more time to implement the trimester schedule.
So instead, Milton is now asking the board to keep the 7-period day in place for another year while working on plans to adopt the trimester format. He says he will ask the board to relax its policy on keeping a minimum amount on hand in cash reserves, since the estimated million-dollar price tag and other reversals on cuts would push the reserves below the required level. The board could decide on the request later this month.
