Wisconsin Restaurant Association Position on Wisconsin School Start Date

​The Wisconsin Restaurant Association supports the current administrative rule regarding the September 1 school start date in Wisconsin (Ch. PI 27 regarding the commencement of the school term prior to September 1) and opposes the current proposal to change it.
 
There are two major reasons why a September 1 school start date is important to restaurants and all the other small businesses that rely on tourism visitors: 

• Families want to visit Wisconsin when the weather is consistently warm. Our thousands of lakes and other water attractions are best suited to July and August use and are too cold to enjoy in June. We not only want folks from out of state to vacation in Wisconsin, but for our own families to stay in-state and enjoy all that is offered by the warmer months. Wisconsin families who vacation in June, tend to go to warmer states, such as Florida. Additionally, many families wait until mid to late August to vacation once summer sports leagues and summer school has ended. It is a reality of modern family life that the last two weeks of August may present the one-and-only opportunity for families to spend quality time together during a planned for getaway. 
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• Many 14-17 year-old students get summer jobs to earn money for post-secondary education or other financial reasons. Many teachers get summer jobs as well in tourism businesses and rely on that income to support their families. Most businesses do not hire their summer employees until late June, since the tourism season really starts booming closer to July 4. A September 1 start date has allowed students and teachers who wish to work more time to earn and save. Over one in three workers in Wisconsin had their first job in a restaurant. Restaurants provide students with invaluable opportunities to learn basic life skills such as how to work and communicate with others, how to manage their earnings and what it means to be responsible for themselves and the quality of work they do.  

 
The Wisconsin Restaurant Association advocated for the current September 1 K-12 school start date. This advocacy effort began in the mid 1990’s and culminated in 2000 when the current statute mandating a September 1 start date went into effect. The September 1 date was a compromise between the tourism industry and the legislature. The agreed upon statute further gives parameters of when a school district can commence the school term prior to September 1 for extraordinary reasons. This section of statute was intended to give some leeway for issues out of the school district’s control that would interfere with a September 1 start. The resulting rule promulgated by the Department of Public Instruction gives districts the ability to plan for or deal with these extraordinary circumstances that occasionally occur. All the rules have one important thing in common – they apply to circumstances that effect all the children in the school district, or in the case if an international baccalaureate program, the large majority of the entire high school, but not the rest of the school district. 
 
School districts and boards currently have the ability to design a school calendar to meet the needs of their students and staff. Accommodation for students with special circumstances can be provided, without requiring the entire student body to return to school early. Changes to PI 27 are not necessary at this time to address local district needs. 
 
Current administrative rules give local school boards and districts great flexibility in setting their school calendar. Selecting the number and frequency of breaks, staff development days, inclement weather makeup days, and the last day of school are all under the control of school boards. Wisconsin no longer requires 180 days of instruction, giving districts even more flexibility on length of school days, allowing them to adjust schedules to accommodate bussing and other circumstances that come up throughout the school year. Currently school boards and districts have every tool necessary to change the length of their summer breaks or to add more frequent breaks throughout the school year. The date the school year ends is under their control. 
 
Whenever there have been legislative proposals to remove or change the September 1 start date, many teachers have called our association to tell us they support keeping the September 1 start date. Many of them cannot take their own summer vacations until late in August, due to meeting their continuing education requirements or their own children’s summer sports leagues. Some of these teachers also state they have summer jobs to supplement their income and need those last weeks in August to support their families. When they call us to tell us of their support for keeping the date, we ask them why they don’t talk to their administrators about their support. Their reply is that they will fall out of favor with the administration and harm their employment. 
 
Restaurants are the cornerstones of their communities. They not only provide food - they support jobs and provide revenue in the form of local taxes and fees. In most parts of the state, they rely on summer tourism to keep their businesses viable. Without tourism traffic, they do not have the wherewithal to support their communities, including schools, and remain in business. 
 
PROGRESS UPDATE April 1
WRA has worked for many years to protect a consistent September 1 K-12 school start date in Wisconsin to "Save our Summers" - so restaurants can take advantage of late summer tourist spending and to keep valuable teenagers and teachers available to work later into August, when visitor traffic is the highest. Unfortunately, the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction (DPI) has taken the next step in its effort to gut the uniform school start date in Wisconsin, by holding another hearing on March 25 on a massive rule change.
 
The WRA is opposing the Department's proposed changes to the rules. School districts already have the tools necessary to schedule more breaks in the school calendar or to extend the school year into June to mitigate summer learning loss and boost academic achievement. Because June weather is not as desirable for vacationing in Wisconsin, keeping kids in school in June is not as harmful to the tourism economy as starting in mid-August. Plus, most schools in Wisconsin do not have air conditioning - June is consistently cooler weather-wise compared to August.
 
Once the Department responds to all of the testimony submitted, the proposed rule is sent to Governor Evers for review. WRA and other tourism associations will meet with the Governor's office to discuss the harmful changes this rule proposes, prior to his decision to approve or deny. Look to this page for a call to action to share your concern with the Governor.

Questions about Wisconsin’s school start date or WRA’s position? Email Susan Quam.