Mulvihill supports longer school year
By Terry Murry on Wednesday, January 25th, 2023 in Columbia Basin News More Top Stories
PENDLETON – Oregon needs a longer school year in the eyes of InterMountain Education Service District Superintendent Mark Mulvihill.
“If a student goes to school in Washington, kindergarten through 12th grade, 13 years, and the same student goes to school in Oregon, the student in Washington will have gone a year more in school,” he said.
Mulvihill says there are dedicated teachers and hard-working parents who are doing everything they have to help students succeed. The problem, as he sees it, is the clock is ticking.
“We need to confront time,” he said. “We need to confront some of our cultural expectations and look at academic performance and say, ‘Are our kids in school enough?’”
He says the school year could be lengthened by before- and after-school programs as well as summer school, but not as a punishment.
“It can be activities, field trips, and other types of enrichment to help student learning as well,” he said.
