Carpe Diem cuts classes to 4-day week

Carpe Diem Academy, a Yuma charter school, announced Thursday it will hold classes on a four-day-week schedule beginning with the 2008-09 school year.

After polling the parents of all their students, the school found that 99.9 percent of them were in favor of the schedule change, said Roger Sciarretta, Carpe Diem principal.

"It was kind of shocking to us because we were not so sure if the cost-cutting measures would appeal to parents. Also, most parents drive to school so it results in a savings to parents for transportation."

One of the major concerns was finding a way of reducing operating expenses, Sciarretta said. The air conditioning is not only needed to keep all the people at the school comfortable but also because all the students have computers, which require a climate-controlled environment and "we don't want to fry them," he said.

The new schedule will have classes begin at 7:30 a.m. with dismissal at 4:10 p.m. Monday through Thursday. Employees will also have a four-day week. The school office will possibly open on Fridays with a reduced staff.

The schedule change was also motivated by a consensus among teachers and administration that because the school is adding one hour and 45 minutes to the Day, they should really be able to deepen students' learning, Sciarretta said.

Carpe Diem is a public school for grades 6 through 12 that provides accelerated graduation, advanced placement and career paths in science, technology, math and humanities. It is located at 3777 W. 22nd Lane. Details of their program offerings can be viewed on its Web site at www.cdayuma.com or call 317-3113.

The staff is also pleased with the schedule change but must wait until the students arrive for the fall term to see how things unfold, Sciarretta said.

"The high school students are excited about it. They can get a job, get their homework done, do public service and still have a full weekend. They're really jazzed. And the savings will be quite significant."

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William Roller can be reached at
wroller@yumasun.com or 539-6858.