Bus driver Kenneth Meeks drops off students at W.M. Green Elementary School during the first day of school on Monday, Aug. 10, 2026, in Fort Worth. Amanda McCoy FORT WORTH STAR-TELEGRAM <\/p>\n
Perhaps it was the heat, the way the calendar fell or the ease of complaining online, but this year, it seems that plenty of people have had enough. At least one lawmaker says it\u2019s time for a change, vowing to seek a new law to restrict the school year to between Labor Day and Memorial Day.<\/p>\n
Starting in August is \u201cone of the dumbest things we do<\/a>,\u201d said state Rep. Jared Patterson, R-Frisco. Tarrant County Judge Tim O\u2019Hare even weighed in with a social media post advocating for a later start date.<\/p>\n I\u2019ve seen quite a bit of chatter that we are starting school too early. I could not agree more. It is time to move the start of school to September. Let the kids enjoy the summer! You only get to be a kid for a short time.<\/p>\n \u2014 Tim O’Hare (@TimothyOHare) August 11, 2026<\/a> <\/p>\n Texas state law already says public schools can\u2019t begin the academic year before the fourth Monday in August. But there are exceptions. So-called districts of innovation<\/a>, a designation that the Legislature created in 2015, have more local control over such matters to stimulate more creative approaches to learning.<\/p>\n About 80% of Texas school districts qualify for the tag. Fort Worth is one, and its innovation plan<\/a> explicitly calls for an earlier start date \u201cthat best meets the needs of FWISD and its students, staff and community in furthering the educational program.\u201d<\/p>\n Pamela McPeters, director of governmental relations for the Texas Classroom Teachers Association, said nearly 1,000 Texas school districts \u2014 out of about 1,200 total \u2014 used the district of innovation exemption<\/a> this year to begin classes earlier than late August.<\/p>\n In fact, McPeters said, an early start date is the most popular \u201cinnovation\u201d Texas districts roll out.<\/p>\n The same year the Legislature approved the district of innovation model, it made another change relevant to school calendars. Previously, districts were held to a minimum of 180 instructional days per year, but that requirement was adjusted to a minimum of 75,600 instructional minutes a year. A spokesperson for the Texas Association of School Boards said that offered school districts even more scheduling flexibility.<\/p>\n McPeters said the teacher group doesn\u2019t have a position on school start and end dates. Texas public school teachers are contractually obligated to work 187 days a year, and changes to start dates don\u2019t change that, although for some teachers it means returning to work as early as July for training, planning and classroom preparation.<\/p>\n Texas lawmaker wants to push back school start dates<\/p>\n Patterson tentatively plans to call his bill next year the \u201cSave our Summers Act.\u201d He said Texas students suffer as a result of starting school during the hottest month of the year. He mentioned band members and football players who have to practice under the oppressive August sun, as well as younger kids who don\u2019t have a chance to \u201cget the wiggles out\u201d when temperatures are at their highest.<\/p>\n \u201cFor elementary-age kids, they can\u2019t even go out and have recess because it\u2019s unsafe,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n The Labor Day-to-Memorial Day schedule would also ease the summertime strain on the electric grid because schools wouldn\u2019t have to crank up their air conditioners for as long to keep hundreds of students and teachers cool, Patterson argued.<\/p>\n From an economic standpoint, he believes extending summer break into September would benefit the state\u2019s amusement parks and tourist attractions. He said he drove past Arlington\u2019s Hurricane Harbor on Thursday, for instance, and saw it was closed.<\/p>\n \u201cThat\u2019s a lot of money not being spent where kids could go out and enjoy themselves,\u201d Patterson said.<\/p>\n The debate over school schedules<\/p>\n One group who may not be on board with Patterson\u2019s idea is football coaches. Moving the school schedule would likely mean moving the first week of high school football games to later in September. That would push the season deeper into November, with state championship games taking place close to Christmas. And there are other reasons some will probably balk at starting school after Labor Day.<\/p>\n The prevailing idea is that summer break is a holdover from days when children were needed to help out on farms in rural communities. But a 2014 PBS report<\/a> said the concept of summer break was more accurately traced back to a time before air conditioning. It just made sense to give students and teachers a vacation when school buildings were often unbearably hot.<\/p>\n Today, thanks in part to central air conditioning, there\u2019s a growing argument to keep students in school longer to combat academic regression, as research has shown<\/a> time off negatively impacts student performance.<\/p>\n Another argument favors sacrificing the long summer break for more frequent shorter breaks staggered throughout the school year.<\/p>\n Fort Worth\u2019s district of innovation plan justifies an earlier start date by saying such mid-year \u201cstrategic breaks\u201d contribute to student and staff well-being. The Fort Worth plan also says a later start date would result in a later end date, which would affect summer school schedules and students looking for summer jobs.<\/p>\n Patterson said summertime learning loss is a valid worry, but his proposal doesn\u2019t call for a longer summer or fewer hours in the classroom. Nothing in his proposed bill, he said, would change the minimum instructional time requirement; it would simply shift the calendar a bit and perhaps shorten mid-year breaks.<\/p>\n Instead of getting the entire week off for Thanksgiving, students could go back to just getting Thursday and Friday off, for example.<\/p>\n It\u2019s an ongoing discussion, but Patterson said he\u2019s already heard words of support from other state lawmakers, including those who often disagree with his policy stances.<\/p>\n \u201cThis is one of those common sense things,\u201d Patterson said.<\/p>\n Do you have an opinion on this topic? Tell us! <\/p>\n We love to hear from Texans with opinions on the news \u2014 and to publish those views in the Opinion section.<\/p>\n \u2022 Letters should be no more than 150 words. <\/p>\n \u2022 Writers should submit letters only once every 30 days. <\/p>\n \u2022 Include your name, address (including city of residence), phone number and email address, so we can contact you if we have questions. <\/p>\n You can submit a letter to the editor two ways: <\/p>\n \u2022 Email letters@star-telegram.com<\/a> (preferred).<\/p>\n \u2022 Fill out this online form.<\/a><\/p>\n Please note: Letters will be edited for style and clarity. Publication is not guaranteed. The best letters are focused on one topic.
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