Decorah Schools calendar set; classes begin August 24

With the Iowa Legislature having settled the school start date issue (classes may not begin before August 23), the Decorah Community School Board approved the 2015-16 school calendar.

Highlights include:

• Classes begin Monday, August 24.
• Winter Break is December 23 – January1.
• Last day for seniors is May 19.
• Last day of classes is May 25.
• Graduation is May 22.

The full calendar will be available soon on the Decorah Community Schools website:

The most significant part of the calendar discussion was that of commencement. While acknowledging the many conflicts (such as hotel and dining issues in Decorah) that occur when Luther commencement is on the same day, the Board decided that the potential negative impacts of a delayed graduation for seniors, well beyond their last day of classes, were significant enough to establish May 22 as the commencement date.