Highlights:

• On Jan. 16, CHCCS presented a public update to the Board of Education that covered the future bell schedule, course registration process for students/families, and professional development for staff.
• Quick links: Agenda document. Presentation slide deck. Video recording (YouTube). 
• Jan. 28: High school course registration information events (grades 8-11).
• Week of Feb. 4: Community Q&A sessions hosted by your high school.

Details:

As you may know, CHCCS high schools will all adopt the same scheduling model known as 4x4 block (with daily flex) starting with the 2025-26 school year. 4x4 block means high school students will take four classes each semester, and the daily classes will last longer every day compared to the traditional 7-period model. Daily flex means the instructional day can still be flexible to accommodate a variety of programming needs. The overall length of the school day does not change.

⏰ What will the high school schedule actually look like in 2025-26?

• 1st Block: 8:55-10:15 (80 minutes)
• 2nd Block: 10:20-11:40 (80 minutes)
• Lunch: 11:40-12:25 (45 minutes)
• 3rd Block: 12:30-1:50 (80 minutes)
• Flex Time: 1:55-2:35 (40 minutes)
• 4th Block: 2:40-4:00 (80 minutes)

🆕 Last night, Jan. 16, the Board of Education received an update on the transition and planning process, including:

• Jan. 28 is each high school’s course registration information night for students/families in grades 8-11. Click this link to see the times at each high school.
• Jan. 29-Feb. 14 is the high school course registration window. Students will select their core and elective courses for the entire upcoming year (grades 8-11).
• Families will have the opportunity to get support and guidance on course selection and scheduling (see below for ‘Community Q&A sessions’.)
• Staff should expect a variety of professional development opportunities, including a full day of options on the Feb. 10 Teacher Workday, to be followed by collaboration time with colleagues, monthly planning meetings and self-paced courses.

🔜 Community Q&A sessions: After the Jan. 28 high school course information events, each high school will be hosting Community Q&A sessions during the week of February 3. These sessions will allow for more personalized conversations about course registration, helping students in grades 8-11 be successful with next school year’s scheduling model. Times and locations for the Q&A sessions will be communicated by schools for the following dates:

• East Chapel Hill: Tuesday, Feb. 4
• Phoenix Academy: Tuesday, Feb. 4
• Carrboro High: Wednesday, Feb. 5
• Chapel Hill: Thursday, Feb. 6

📝 Send in your questions: To help schools prepare for your course registration and scheduling questions, please use this link to tell us what you’d like to know.

• Please keep in mind that answers to every question may not be possible until the master scheduling process is completed in the summer.

On Oct. 17, CHCCS administration presented a public update to the Board of Education about implementing 4x4 block scheduling (with daily flex) at CHCCS high schools.

• 4x4 (with daily flex) is on-schedule to begin at the start of the 2025-26 school year.
• The Oct. 17 presentation and discussion covered input/feedback from teachers, training for staff and additional considerations that are being addressed at this time.
• Board agenda and presentation materials. Video recording (YouTube). 

June 7, 2024: the Board voted and approved to adopt a 4x4 high school schedule

• On June 6, the Board of Education approved the administration’s recommendation to adopt a 4x4 Block Schedule (with daily flex) starting with the 2025-26 school year. (The vote was 6-0 in favor, with one Board member absent.)

• There are no changes for the next/upcoming 2024-25 school year.

• High school principals and district administrators have been directed to use the model’s flexibility, collaborating with teacher groups, to address instruction and program continuity needs outlined by the High School Schedule Assessment Guiding Committee.

• To view the discussion and action during the June 6 Board meeting, please use this link and fast forward to the 2:29:00 timestamp.

May 16, 2024: the Board voted to delay considering any action on future high school bell schedules until Thursday, June 6. 

• Use this link to watch a recording of the May 16 meeting. (On the page, you will click “Video” for the May 16, 2024 Board of Education Regular meeting.)
• Public comment begins at the 58:47 mark and lasts for approximately 1 hour and 10 minutes.
• The administration’s May presentation begins at the 2:08:00 mark and lasts for approximately 2 hours and 30 minutes by the time Board questions and discussion are complete.

May 2, 2024: CHCCS administration presented the High School Schedule Assessment to the Board of Education and made a recommendation for a 4x4 Block Schedule (with daily flex) to take effect starting in August 2025.

• Use this link to watch a recording of the meeting. (On the page, you will click “Video” for the May 2, 2024 Board of Education Work Session.)
• The administration’s presentation begins at the 1:18:30 mark and lasts for approximately 2 hours and 15 minutes by the time Board questions and discussion are complete.
• The public comment portion of the meeting begins at the 3:41:41 mark and lasts for approximately 1 hour.

April 2024: CHCCS hosted two community information sessions that were open to students, families, staff and the general public.

• Virtual session: Monday, April 22 
  • View the English-language recording on our YouTube channel.
  • View the Spanish-language recording on our YouTube channel.
• In-person session: Monday, April 29 at Carrboro High School
  • View the English-language recording on our YouTube channel.

February 2024 and earlier: The Board of Education's Student Success Committee received an update on the High School Schedule Assessment (HSSA). Please click here to view the presentation. The video offers a comprehensive overview of the High School Schedule Assessment (HSSA), a summary of the feedback from stakeholders received as of 2/27/2024, and outlines the upcoming phases of the assessment.

• No changes for the current school year or the 2024-25 school year.  Implementation occurs in the 2025-26 school year, with professional development for staff in 2024-25.  

• Various stakeholders have formed a guiding committee consisting of school and district leadership, parents, teachers and school counselors.  We will include additional student voices in subsequent meetings (minimizing the amount of time students are out of class for this purpose.)

• Middle and high school families have had the opportunity to provide feedback, and additional opportunities will take place during this process.

• The guiding committee has met for two sessions already and in future meetings will begin to determine what is most important in an aligned schedule. This will guide subgroups on what types of schedules to study and evaluate.

• CHCCS administration will make a recommendation to the Board in the spring of 2024.

• An objective third party (TregoEd) will partner with CHCCS to facilitate the work.