Greenville County Schools Releases 2019-2020 Calendar
School Year to Begin on Tuesday, August 20th
Greenville County Schools released its 2019-20 calendar. Students will start the new school year on Tuesday, August 20, 2019. Their final day of class will be Thursday, June 4, 2020. In accordance with state law, the calendar includes 180 scheduled instructional days plus three makeup days. Ten professional development/teacher workdays are included in keeping with state requirements.
Under existing State law, the first allowable day of school for 2019-20 is Monday, August 19. The GCS calendar committee, comprised of parents, teachers, principals, and staff, recommended a Tuesday start, recognizing that the first week of school is particularly exciting and tiring for our youngest students, many of whom will be in a structured environment for the first time.
The last day of school before Winter break will be Friday, December 20, while the first day back will be Monday, January 6. Spring break is slated for the week of April 13. The last three days of the year (June 2-4) will be half days for students. Other student holidays include Labor Day (Sept. 2), Thanksgiving Break (Nov. 27-29), Martin Luther King, Jr. Day (Jan. 20), Presidents Day (Feb. 17), Memorial Day (May 25), and three professional development/teacher workdays (Oct. 28-29, March 20). The two days in October are later than usual due to testing.
The state-required school makeup days, used in case of inclement weather or other unexpected closures, are Monday, March 23 (makeup day #3), Tuesday, March 24 (makeup day #1) and Friday, April 10 (makeup day #2). These days, sometimes called “snow days,” will remain as student and teacher holidays unless the District must close unexpectedly. Makeup days are scheduled in spring, after the most likely chance of winter weather has passed. They are distributed in 2019-20 to provide maximum time off (i.e. attached to a break or weekend), should they not be needed.
The Superintendent determines the school calendar after receiving recommendations from the Calendar Committee. Those recommendations are based on State requirements, input from parent groups and school faculties, and factors such as required testing dates set by the State Department of Education.