990 Instructional Hours

All schools shall ensure that every secondary school student is scheduled to receive a minimum of 990 hours per school year of structured learning time, as defined in 603 CMR 27.02. Time which a student spends at school breakfast and lunch, passing between classes, in homeroom, at recess, in non-directed study periods, receiving school services, and participating in optional school programs shall not count toward meeting the minimum structured learning time requirement for that student.

• DESE Time on Learning Regulations

During a periodic review, DESE (Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education) has cited the high school for not meeting the mandated 990 hours of instruction required in a school year for every 9th - 12th grader. We have one school year to correct this issue, which means we will make changes that will take effect for next school year, 2027-2028.

There are three areas that we need to address to comply with DESE guidelines: 1) all students will need to be fully scheduled; 2) we will need to add 18 total hours to the overall school year; and 3) seniors' last day of school can be no more than 12 days before the end of the 9th - 11th graders’ school year.

We have formed a staff committee to look at possible solutions, and we will share more details about the issue and request feedback from students and families about these possible solutions soon. We will keep you updated throughout the process. 

The committee will use our school Mission, Vision, Core Values & Vision of a Graduate to guide our work. Additionally, the committee will incorporate feedback from students, staff, and community members into a proposal that will be presented to the School Committee. The School Committee will make a final determination.

September-December 2026: Committee formed and meeting to identify possible solutions based on multiple budgetary options. 

December-February: Options presented to school committee through budget presentations 

February-May: Planning for different options, vote to determine final option in May

May: Implementation begins based on vote of final option

Regular updates will continue to be provided on this page. Additional communication can be found weekly in the Rev Report that is published on Friday afternoons.

If you have questions, let us know through this form.