Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools is finalizing its 2027-28 academic calendar after receiving more than 20,000 responses to a survey seeking feedback on two options.
The final recommendation was driven by feedback from one group of community members that responded at a surprisingly high rate: students.
Students accounted for just over half of the survey responses — taking up a far greater share than usual — and their feedback impacted Superintendent Crystal Hill’s final recommendation to the school board.
Students were the only group that overwhelmingly favored an earlier spring break. CMS chief strategy officer Beth Thompson said students were concerned about the timing of Cambridge, AP and International Baccalaureate exams.
“The later spring break would mean students would literally come back from spring break and start taking exams immediately — I’m sure our parents and other community members didn’t think of that,” Thompson said.
Hill’s final recommendation is a blend of the two calendar options, taking the slightly favored Option 2 with the earlier Aug. 24 start date and mixing it with the April 10-14 spring break favored by students.
CMS is also proposing to replace four early release days with two full teacher work days. That’s the result of feedback from a working group of parents and staff members who suggested those early release days were difficult to plan around. The board will hold a public hearing on the calendar on March 24 and vote next month.
School leaders were excited to see the high response from students, who traditionally have not participated in the community response survey in high numbers.
“I was excited, really, to hear that the students were thinking so proactively about how that spring break has to work for them,” said board member Cynthia Stone. “That was impressive. And I’m very glad to see that you guys honored that, because they’re the ones that are going to be taking those tests.”
Thompson suggested that the higher engagement was driven by a new approach this year. The district learned how to send the survey out through Canvas, the online portal students use to manage schoolwork.
That, coupled with the fact that the district sent it out during the streak of inclement weather last year, when many students were checking Canvas during remote learning days.
There was one area, however, where student opinions didn’t move the needle. They were the only group that favored a later start to the school year. The students voted for a school year that started Aug. 26; parents, teachers and other community members all backed Aug. 24.
