Save Pennsylvania Summers is a non-profit, statewide coalition of parents, teachers and community members disappointed with the ever-earlier start to the school year. Our mission is to educate consumers of the education system, taxpayers and other interested people about the negative impact the August school start date and nontraditional school calendars have on our students, teachers and families. It is our hope that we can work with parents and school districts to help establish educationally and fiscally sound school calendars; a school calendar that allows more money to flow into teachers' salaries, classroom supplies and educational services ... without a heavier tax burden on Pennsylvania families.

Student Employment

• A study by the Employment Policies Institute, May 1994, found that students who work during the summer are more likely to obtain better jobs upon graduation.
• A full summer of employment gives students the opportunity to apply what they have learned in the classroom and gain valuable insight in choosing a career path.
• Summer employment allows many students and teachers the opportunity to earn extra money that their families rely on.

Teacher’s Continuing Education

• Teachers are expected to remain competitive and to continue updating their skills; the shortened summer inhibits professional development.
• A shorter summer for teachers means teachers can only attend one of the two summer school sessions, so it often takes twice as long to earn advanced degrees.
• Many school districts offer greater pay for teachers with advanced degrees. If advanced degrees are beneficial enough to merit pay increases, shouldn’t we ensure teachers have time to achieve advanced degrees?
• A September 2004 report, published in the journal Education Policy Analysis Archives found that students of teachers certified by the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards saw greater test-score gains, on average, than did those of teachers without certification. The study was conducted by Arizona State University researchers.
• College and University systems often enroll teachers from many different school districts. When no uniform school calendar is in place, it is often difficult, if not impossible, to create a college or university calendar that allows teachers from all districts to maximize summer learning.

Child Care

• Starting school in August creates numerous breaks during the school year — forcing parents to find childcare at non-traditional times. These small breaks often force parents to pay higher prices for care than during the summer months.
• Earlier school start dates normally mean shorter summer blocks and more holidays during the school year.  Communities usually support educational learning opportunities during summer months — not during a day off twice a month.
• A one-day holiday means students who would not be left unsupervised during the summer are more likely to be left “home alone.”

Local Autonomy

• Providing uniformity in school start dates in no way minimizes the work of the school board or the school community. The district would still be responsible for setting yearly divisions, semesters or trimesters, assigning holidays and teacher workdays.

Non-Custodial Parents

• Non-custodial parents are normally granted their long-term block of visitation during the summer months. When we take time away from children's summers, in many instances, we are reducing quality time with their non-custodial parent.
• Non-custodial parents are normally unable to make up this lost time in the summer during piecemeal vacations offered during the school year.

Educational excellence is expected from our Pennsylvania schools. As parents and community members, we expect nothing less. Our dedicated teachers work hard every day to provide our students with the best education possible with limited resources. School administrators work hard to meet state and federal deadlines and balance the budget. School board members volunteer countless hours to our school systems weekly. We owe it to our children to explore the benefits of a traditional school calendar, with a school start date no earlier than post-Labor Day.