Minnesota School District is Launching a 4-Day Week this School Year

A school district in Minnesota is trying out something new this upcoming school year that's sure to turn some heads. And that's part of the reason why they're making this change.

The district just recently announced this big change to a 4-day school week, which will kick off this fall.

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Opinions on a 4-Day Work Week

In the past, 4-day work weeks have been tossed around. Many businesses in countries around Europe are testing it out and it's been talked about a little bit in the US. I think it could be a really good idea, and there have been many reports that it's great for employee well-being and it's also even good for the company.

But I had never heard people talking about 4-day school weeks. Until now!

Carlton, MN Changes to 4-Day School Week

Carlton School District near Duluth is the district making the switch to a 4-day school week. Superintendent Donita Stepan spoke with WCCO about the decision and she said, "'We had about 79% of the families that filled out the survey were in support of a four-day week. We had about 99% of our teachers and staff that were in support.'"

But why was this an idea in the first place? Superintendent Stepan says that it's competing with the bigger surrounding schools.

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She said that many applications have come in for new teachers who are interested in this 4-day school week, which was a big reason for vying for the change. She told WCCO, "'I can't pay my teachers the same as what Cloquet can or Hermantown can, so we've got to do something different in order to retain and recruit our staff.'"

She also wanted the change to happen to help with student's mental health and their jobs/activities outside of school.

How Carlton's 4-Day School Week Will Work

I'm sure you're curious how in the world this is going to work out. The plan is that there will be no school on Fridays, however, the staff will be in the building, just with a lighter workload.

Also, on Monday through Thursday, school will start 15 minutes earlier than in the past and end 15 minutes later.

I think it's a really interesting concept! We'll see how it all ends up working out for Carlton after this school year.