Education
BY CHLOE YOUNG
Liberty Hill ISD high schools to operate on A/B block schedule The district’s board of trustees voted to adopt an A/B block schedule for Liberty Hill and Legacy Ranch high schools at a Jan. 22 meeting. Beginning with the 2024-25 school year, students will attend four classes for at least 90 minutes each instead of the eight 45-minute classes students attend currently, LHISD Chief of Schools Travis Motal said. The cost While district officials previously expressed concerns about whether the district could afford an additional $1.38 million to implement a block schedule, the district lowered costs to $264,000 by increasing its average class size from 22 to 25 students per teacher, Motal said.
Liberty Hill ISD adopts academic calendar The 2024-25 academic calendar—approved by the Liberty Hill ISD board of trustees Jan. 22—includes more staff development days spread throughout the year, allowing for several four-day school weeks and extended weekends for students, Chief of Schools Travis Motal said. Zooming in The calendar includes the following key dates: • First day of school: Aug. 14 • Thanksgiving break: Nov. 25-29 • Winter break: Dec. 19 (early release); Dec. 20-Jan. 6 • Spring break: March 17-21 • Last day of school: May 22 (early release)
Block schedule breakdown Increasing the average class size will allow the district to hire fewer additional teachers to implement a block schedule.
Previous proposal
Approved proposal
Class size
22 students
25 students
Additional teachers needed
21
4
Cost
$1.38 million $264,000
SOURCE: LIBERTY HILL ISD/COMMUNITY IMPACT
How we got here Almost 84% of surveyed teachers at Liberty Hill High School voted to switch from the current eight period schedule to an A/B block schedule, Motal said at a Dec. 18 meeting. Teachers favored having fewer transitions each day, an easier daily work- load and more time for instruction and homework in a previous survey.
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