YS Schools are on track to open as expected on Thursday, Aug. 20; a contingency calendar is in place in the event that school buildings, which are in the final stretch of renovation and new construction, are not cleared for occupancy by the planned first day of school. Pictured is the new YS Middle and High School gym under construction earlier this summer. (Aerial photo courtesy of YS Schools)
YS Schools— First day of school remains on track; contingency calendar in place
- Published: July 25, 2026
Yellow Springs Schools students are expected to begin the upcoming school year as planned on Thursday, Aug. 20, inside both district buildings.
At the school board’s Tuesday, July 7, regular meeting, district leaders said they are working toward occupancy at both campuses before students return. Construction crews will still be at work putting the finishing touches on the updated facilities into November, but Superintendent Megan Winston said the administration and construction team remain optimistic that the buildings will be ready for the first day of school.
“If something changes, we will make sure that families know,” Winston said, noting that weekly facilities meetings are still being held.
With that in mind, the school board held a special meeting Tuesday, July 14, to discuss a proposed contingency calendar for the school year in the event that there are unexpected construction delays.
Winston said the meeting was being held as a public hearing, required under Ohio law at least 30 days in advance of any possible changes to the district calendar already approved by the school board. The district’s legal counsel, Winston added, recommended holding the hearing now to preserve that option if the buildings are not cleared for occupancy in time. If the facilities are ready as anticipated, no further action will be needed.
Under the proposed contingency calendar, the first day of school would move from Aug. 20 to Monday, Aug. 31 — a delay of seven instructional days — while the remainder of the student calendar would stay the same. Staff members would still report on their originally scheduled dates, avoiding an extension of their work calendar into June.
Winston said the district would use the same calendar at both campuses even if one building were ready before the other, noting that some families have children in more than one school and some employees travel between buildings.
Even with the delayed start, the district would remain above Ohio’s minimum instructional-hour requirements. The district also has the option of using up to three online-learning days if closures later in the year bring it close to the state’s minimum-hour thresholds — an option approved the week before during the July 7 meeting.
Winston said the district has not used the option since it became available and would employ the days only if needed after exhausting the remaining instructional-hour cushion.
Winston reiterated during the July 14 special meeting that the district still expects facilities to be ready for students on Aug. 20, noting that she had met with the construction team that morning.
“As of an hour ago, they are optimistic that we will still be able to start school on the first day of school,” she said.
The coming year will also bring new bell schedules for students based on school day start and end time changes and the move of fifth- and sixth-graders from Mills Lawn to the middle and high school campus.
Also new this year, as the News has reported in months past, is a busing schedule that will encompass the new start and end times and ferry students from kindergarten through 12th grade to and from school together. With that in mind, Winston asked during the July 7 meeting that local families update their transportation information in FinalForms as soon as possible as the district works to finalize bus routes and staffing.
State mandates raise questions
During school board Vice President Kristi Myers’ July 7 legislative report, members discussed two state bills that could require changes to instruction, scheduling and district spending.
Senate Bill 19, signed into law by Gov. Mike DeWine in late June, directs school districts to provide free, evidence-based mathematics intervention outside students’ core classroom hours. According to the report, districts in which 51% or more of students score in the lowest performance tier would be required to submit a Math Achievement Improvement Plan to the state and use a state-approved curriculum.
Board members questioned whether the state would provide funding for tutoring or new instructional materials, and how intervention outside core class time would fit into the school day.
“I feel like we have another case of the state giving us a mandate, and we’re not quite sure what that’s going to look like for us,” Myers said.
Winston said Mills Lawn already has intervention periods built into each grade level’s schedule, and the middle school’s new schedule also includes intervention time. She said the district’s teaching, learning and curriculum team had discussed the new requirements at its summer retreat, and principals would address the district’s approach in a future report.
The board also discussed Senate Bill 276, which among other requirements, states that schools must provide instruction in grades six–12 aligned with the “success sequence” — that is, a “three-pronged framework for youth and young adults,” as the bill reads, “based on research from diverse institutions that individuals who complete at least a high school education, obtain full-time work and marry before having children are overwhelmingly less likely to live in poverty in adulthood.”
The “success sequence” was first brought to the attention of the board by former Superintendent Terri Holden last August when it was then included as language in two other bills.
SB 276, approved by the Ohio Senate in mid-June, was signed into law by Gov. DeWine the same day as the meeting, July 7.
“Again, what is that going to cost?” Myers asked. “How will we put it in? Those are questions that come up every time they pass something that they don’t fund.”
Board member Rebecca Potter also reported on a workshop focused on state legislation affecting diversity, equity and inclusion and LGBTQ+ education. Potter said participants were urged not to “over comply” with Ohio’s “Parents’ Bill of Rights,” which requires schools to notify parents about sexuality-related instruction and substantial changes to a student’s health or well-being, and allows parents to review or opt students out of certain lessons.
Finance committee proposed
Treasurer Jacob McGrath announced during the meeting that he is drafting a proposal for a district finance committee.
The committee would include McGrath, one appointed board member and one or two community volunteers. It would meet twice annually to review the district’s financial forecast, audit results, publicly available financial information and investment portfolio.
McGrath said the committee’s purpose, in part, would be to review forecast assumptions before the forecast comes before the full school board, giving committee members an opportunity to recommend changes.
“The goal is to get it started this year,” McGrath said, adding that he would send board members more information about the proposal.
In his monthly financial report, McGrath said May revenues were running ahead of the district’s benchmark, driven largely by income tax receipts, while expenditures remained on target.
In other school board business:
Community member Mitzie Miller, who first came before the board in April with concerns over street safety, again asked the board to press for changes to crosswalks and school-zone signage before classes begin. Winston said the district had been told crosswalks would be repainted before the start of school and had requested flashing lights and additional signs, though a review from civil engineering firm Choice One found existing crosswalks and signage compliant with state requirements.
Potter also raised concerns about students crossing Dayton Street near Stafford and Walnut streets, where she said morning traffic can make walking and bicycling difficult. Board members said the issue could be raised at a joint meeting with Village Council and township trustees later that week.
Contact: chuck@ysnews.com
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