Pilot Point school board members unanimously voted to approve a hybrid academic calendar for the 202627 school year at the Jan. 14 meeting.
Assistant Superintendent of Curriculum and Instruction Alicia Bonnett shared the research she and the other PPISD administrators did into the benefits and challenges of moving away from a traditional five-day week calendar.
Superintendent Dr. Shannon Fuller spoke to other districts in the area that operate on the four-day model.
“Every single one except one district said that they would [keep] Fridays if they had the chance to, for academic needs,” Bonnett said.
Bonnett followed that by saying, “That is absolutely why their kids are struggling when they're missing that much school.”
Bonnett’s report stated that staff absences are higher on Friday, along with those of students, in part because extracurricular activities often fall on a Friday.
Bonnett said the District Educational Improvement Council gave feedback on the calendar draft in November and the results of the survey submitted in December submitted by parents, faculty and community with self-reported labels of 183 staff members, 278 parents or guardians and three community members.
Of those, “76.5 of those percent of the total participants preferred the hybrid model, and 23% preferred the five-day model,” she said.
Bonnett added that 157 votes for the hybrid model were from staff, and 190 votes for the hybrid model were from parents.
The school will offer childcare services on a sliding scale cost, based on household income, and qualifying families will be provided with the service free of charge.
Families will have that option available on Fridays off for pre-K through fifth grade.
“I wanted to make sure that I shared that … there's a reimbursement program through the government where they can do that on a sliding scale and get reimbursed,” Bonnett said.
The school would also provide meals through the Child and Adult Care Food Program, a federal program.
New legislation requires school districts to reach 165 days, and schools that do not meet the minimum number of days lose the chance for hundreds of thousands of dollars in funding each year, Bonnett said.
With the hybrid schedule, four-day weeks wouldn’t begin until the second quarter of the school year to meet day count requirements, and incorporating reviewing and lesson plans, Bonnett said, is also beneficial for students.
“Plus there's quite a bit of research about our littlest of littles who are learning how to go to school, and so getting them in the pattern of school, a shorter weekend is better for all of that at the very beginning,” Bonnett said.
There will also be one day of professional development a month for teachers with the new calendar.
Also at the meeting, Executive Director of Administrative Services and Operations Dr. Brant Perry explained that the number of students and faculty transfers is steadily increasing.
In 2023-24, the number of transfers was around 120, then in 2025-26, the number rose to just below 140.
“A third roughly are returning just year in and year out, coming back,” Perry said. “We have a third that are employee transfers, and then we get a third every year to that number that's brand new and looking to come to our district.”
Tracking the number of students applying to the school as transfers helps track the amount of support needed in the school, Perry said, with a majority of transfers coming from Denton ISD and Aubrey ISD and in the ninth grade.
Although there is no guarantee a student's transfer application will be accepted, the school remains open-minded, he said.
“No one's perfect, and so we show grace,” Perry said. “We also understand that there's a lot of reasons why a parent might choose to transfer here.”
Early in the meeting were a plethora of awards and recognition for students and faculty alike.
Two students from Pilot Point Early Childhood Center, Luna Reyes and Jax Simmons, and Pilot Point Elementary students Stone Greer and Lilliana Tristan received recognition for their hard work in the classroom.
Pilot Point ISD also recognized several employees throughout the district for the Bearcat Best Initiative.
January’s initiative, “Begins with Me,” praises teachers for taking personal accountability for their actions and leading by example, the administrators said, with that recognition going to Norma Casas, Pilot Point Early Childhood Center; Olga Bailon, Pilot Point Elementary School; Lauren Frank and Kayla Stallcup, Pilot Point Middle School; and Kimberly Frazier, Pilot Point High School.
The school board members were also recognized for School Board Appreciation Month, celebrated every January.
Pilot Point ISD also recognized the Pilot Point High School varsity football team for advancing to the second round of the playoffs.
The board welcomed a new Director of Special Education Dr. Nicole Park, who has 15 years of experience in special education.
