If all the details can be worked out in time, the New Berlin schools will shift to a four-day week this summer on a pilot program basis.
The New Berlin School Board approved the plan Tuesday mainly to save energy. The target is to save $10,000 over the two months, Superintendent Paul Kreutzer said. Employees would still work 40 hours, but only Monday through Thursday, he said.
"I don't feel that we will lose customer service if we shut down on Fridays, if people are aware of it," Kreutzer said.
The school clerical employees have already expressed interest, but he still has to talk to custodial employees, he said. Scheduling would present tougher problems for them, he said.
Also piloting four-day weeks this summer will be the Oak Creek-Franklin and the Green Bay school districts, said Joe Garza, assistant superintendent of operations.
The high schools use most of the energy during the summer because they have the most programming, said Roger Bortmann, energy manager for the district.
The high schools have physical education and health classes on Fridays during the summer, Garza said, but those are held outside or in the gyms. The gyms could be controlled just for humidity as they would be if they were empty, he said.
The board will hear a report on the success of the program in January.
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