FLORIDA DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION
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STATE BOARD OF EDUCATION
John L. Winn
Commissioner of Education
F. PHILIP HANDY,
Chairman
T. WILLARD FAIR,
Vice Chairman
Members
DONNA G. CALLAWAY
JULIA L. JOHNSON
ROBERTO MARTÍNEZ
PHOEBE RAULERSON
LINDA K. TAYLOR
November 2, 2005
MEMORANDUM
To: District School Superintendents
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From: Cheri Pierson Yecke, Ph.D.
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Re: Hurricane Season - Waivers for Instructional Days and FCAT Administration
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Waivers for Instructional Days
Unfortunately many of our districts have been impacted by the 2005 hurricane season. This
year, as we did last year, we intend to provide districts with flexibility to address missed
days/minutes of instruction while maintaining the number of instructional hours for an FTE. The
following will be offered:
Districts which missed five days or fewer will be required
rement. Many districts have
the instructional days missed.
Districts which missed six days or more will be required to review their school calendars and
the length of their school days to identify possible options for meeting the requirement of 900
hours of instructional time. Department staff will work with each district individually to
determine the number of days/minutes of instructional time to be waived.
CHERI PIERSON YECKE, PH.D.
CHANCELLOR, K-12 PUBLIC SCHOOLS
325 W. GAINES STREET • SUITE 514 • TALLAHASSEE, FL 32399-0400 • (850) 245-0509 • www.fldoe.org
District School Superintendents
November 2, 2005
Page Two
FCAT Administration
Additionally, the Department is authorized to provide districts more time to administer the
Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test (FCAT) based on the number of school days missed.
To implement this:
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Districts which have missed five days or less will administer the FCAT as originally
scheduled.
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Districts which have missed six to ten days may have one extra week for administration.
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Districts which have missed eleven days or more may have two extra weeks for
administration.
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All districts will administer FCAT Writing as scheduled.
We know that some districts will choose to make up all of their missed days and some will
choose to keep their schedule for FCAT as is. Please know that any changes are your choices,
and we will work with you towards a solution that best supports learning and is responsive to the
needs of your communities.
All requests for waivers or FCAT extensions need to be submitted to:
Chancellor Cheri Pierson Yecke
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325 West Gaines Street
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Suite 514
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Tallahassee, FL 32399
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(850) 245-5036 FAX
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Chancellor.Yecke@fldoe.org
cc:
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Assistant Superintendents
for Curriculum and Instruction
District Finance Officers
District MIS Contacts
District Assessment Coordinators
