Back to school already? Why the first bell now rings weeks before Labor Day

Summer break is over. Already.

Today, students in the South Bay’s largest school district and at more than 50 schools in Contra Costa County don their backpacks to return to the classroom. Over the next several weeks, the rest of the students in the Bay Area will follow them. All starting weeks before the Labor Day weekend that once marked the unofficial end of summer.

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No matter when class starts, California requires an 180-day school year — the days off, however, have changed.

“The days of schools starting after Labor Day are long gone,” said the superintendent of Mount Diablo Unified School District, Adam Clark, who leads the district’s 50 TK-12 schools, which open their doors today.

Schools have slowly moved to earlier start dates over decades for a variety of reasons — to fight learning loss associated with a long break, to follow the lead of communities seeking breaks throughout the year, to finish the first semester before winter break, and to maximize instruction time before standardized and advanced placement tests.

By 2017, an EdSource survey of the state’s 30 largest districts found all started classes before Aug. 31, including seven districts that still opened in September in 2014.

Many high school juniors like 16-year-old Santhosh Arunkumar have never known a three-month summer. He’ll start his junior year at Mission San Jose High School in Fremont on Aug. 11.

“This summer feels pretty normal,” he said.

During his nearly two-month summer break, Arunkumar trained for the track team, served as the regional president for the state’s student government association, studied for the advanced placement exams he’ll take this year and spent two weeks in India.

“Mission is a really competitive environment,” Arunkumar said. “I feel the largest decompression factor of summer is time — I have enough of it to get away from tests and the pressures of school.”

Enough time to relax, but not enough time to forget what he learned, education leaders hope.

“There is research showing that the June swoon is real,” said Clark at Mount Diablo Unified School District. “Students would make progress throughout the school year and then lose a lot of that over the summer. We want to make sure all of our students have all of the options in the world — reducing learning loss helps do that.”

His Contra Costa County district has added a week-long break in October, pushing its start date a week earlier. San Jose Unified School District has long had an October fall break and also starts today.

Such breaks can reduce absenteeism, as students would often miss time in that window, Clark said.

Campbell Union School District is among many that have turned the three-day Presidents’ Day weekend in February into a week-long school break. So many families were pulling their kids out of school for an unauthorized weeklong ski break that it no longer made sense to schedule four days of school that week. Even though, unlike many other districts, Campbell Union’s funding isn’t tied to student attendance, it was an easy decision.

“You meet them where they are,” said district spokesperson Kelly Wylie. “It’s a way of saying we see you and you’re a valued member of the community.”

Teachers and school staff often use the long summer break in a similar way to students — as an opportunity to reset.

“The schedule was a big part of going into the field,” said Katie McManus, a special education social worker in Oakland Unified School District. Schools start there on Monday. “For my own sanity, I have to have time off so that I can be present for my students and their families during the school year.”

Still, though, social workers and the unions representing other employees recently worked out a deal with the district — more money for more time on campus. The agreement increases wages and takes four days from staff and teacher summers to help support students most at risk for dropping out or truancy.

McManus’ coworkers spent those days helping students enroll in classes, pick up their schedules, attend backpack giveaways and get free haircuts before the school year begins.

Throughout the Bay Area, staff and teachers have been doing similar work, even if students weren’t back yet. New posters adorn classroom walls, administrators have reviewed curriculum with teachers and cafeteria staff have geared up for the first meal of a school year.

“It’s a busy time of year,” said Mount Diablo’s Clark. “We want to make sure our kids have enriching experiences.”

That includes free breakfast and lunch, as well as snacks for kids participating in afterschool programs. “You have parents who are commuting, who are working, who are stretched; school and afterschool enrichments are a great way to make sure students aren’t home alone and are growing and learning. What could be better?”

Starting today, hallways and breezeways begin to fill with students again.

“Parents are certainly excited to have routine back into their lives, and the kiddos are excited to see their friends,” said Campbell Union’s Wylie, who is a parent herself. “And teachers and staff are excited to see them, too.”