San Marcos CISD staff and students will see a slight change in their upcoming academic calendar. The board of trustees adopted an Additional Days School Year calendar, or ADSY, which will add six instructional days to garner more state funding for SMCISD's summer learning program.
The board voted 6-1 at its April 20 meeting to rescind the 2026-27 academic calendar approved in January, and 4-2 to adopt a new calendar in line with ADSY.
Remember this?
The board first considered the ADSY calendar at its March 23 board meeting. According to Chief of Communications Andrew Fernandez, the calendar would add between one and 30 additional half-days, which would generate half-day formula funding through the Texas Education Agency.
Funding through ADSY is available for districts that add up to 30 additional instructional days beyond a minimum of 175 days to campuses serving prekindergarten through eighth-grade students, Fernandez said.
By approving a 175-day calendar—up from 169 days approved in January—the district will receive funding to pay for its summer school program, which is currently paid for through the general fund.
The update
According to Fernandez, a survey with two calendar options was sent out to community members. There were 602 responses recorded, with 56.6% voting for the Option 2 calendar.
However, board President Anne Halsey motioned for the board to adopt Option 1, which trustees John McGlothin and Jessica Cain voted against.
Per the approved Option 1 calendar, the first day and last day of school will remain Aug. 19 and May 27. Additionally, Sept. 25, Oct. 8, Dec. 18 and Feb. 12 will all be converted from either a parent community day or staff professional learning day into a regular school day.
The calendar will also front-load staff professional development days Aug. 5-6, 10-14, and 18 instead of throughout the year. Based on principal feedback, parent community days—previously held Sept. 25 and Feb. 12—will also become weeklong after-school opportunities in September and February instead.
"I feel like we moved the professional development throughout the year because we thought that there were pedagogical things that were going to be improved by that, but it doesn't seem like that," Halsey said. "I feel like if we actually saw real results that were direct and meaningful, then we would all be all in on keeping the professional development all throughout the year."
What they're saying
Along with voting against Option 1, McGlothlin cast the sole dissenting vote to rescind the 2026-27 calendar.
"I'm concerned because administration brings us idea after idea to save the district money because we're in these financial straits that the state has put us in, and then I don't like what the state has put us in and then I don't vote for an idea, and I don't want it to be seen as me not supporting you guys," McGlothlin said. "[The state doesn't] give us enough resources and then they will throw us crumbs if we do certain things like adopt their curriculum or have additional school days; things that our mobile parents don't even want. ... I just think it's rotten. I'm against this because it seems to be mainly motivated by money."
