Students in the Manitowoc Public School District will be starting school a few days later than normal this year. Superintendent Mark Holzman explains that “This year our grade alignment moved 9th graders, 6th graders, and Kindergarteners to new buildings, and because of that, we moved staff, and we wanted to provide an opportunity to provide a little bit more time for our staff to make sure they are prepared for the new students.”
The first full day of school will be Friday, September 6th with orientation day for all students to be held September 5th. Elementary schools will consist of children in grades Kindergarten thru fifth grade, the junior high will welcome children in grades six thru eight and Lincoln High School will house students in grades 9 thru 12. Two of the biggest changes in the new model have sixth graders moving from elementary to Junior high and ninth-graders move from junior high to the high school. “Our 9th graders are now going to have more co-curricular and academic opportunities than they would if they were in the Junior High model,” Holzman explains. “Our 6th graders will have the same co-curricular opportunities our 9th graders did.”
Holzman adds that this transition was made easier since Lincoln High School had the extra space allotting the district to make the most of the resources available to them. The MPSD Superintendent also elaborated on what will be happening on the Orientation or Transition day, saying “Students who are new…are gonna get a little bit of an opportunity to meet and greet their teachers, see what its gonna look like in their buildings, and really work to get acclimated to the building for the first time.”
September 5th will be a half-day with buses running their normal schedule. Open Houses will be held at all elementary schools Wednesday, September 4th from 4 to 6 p.m. For more information visit the MPSD website.
