Additional Days School Year

In June 2019, the passage of House Bill 3 by the 86th Texas Legislature added half-day formula funding for school systems that add up to 30 instructional days to any of their elementary schools starting in the 2020-2021 school year. This initiative is called Additional Days School Year (ADSY). Funding for ADSY is available to campuses that meet the requirements below.

Campuses eligible for ADSY funding must:

• Serve at least one grade level within grades PreK-5th grade
• Campus academic calendar(s) include at least 180 instructional days with 75,600 operational minutes, not including staff development waivers
• Add up to 30 additional days of instruction in addition to the 180 instructional days in its regular academic calendar
• Have a certified teacher deliver at least two hours of instruction on designated ADSY days
• Host ADSY days separate from the regular instructional calendar days (e.g., ADSY days cannot be hosted in the second part of a regular instructional day) 

More information on the implementation of ADSY can be found in the ADSY HB 3 in 30 webinar recording below and in the ADSY FAQs. Statute language can be found at this link: TEC Sec. 48.0051.

Why ADSY?

ADSY addresses summer learning loss, which can have a profound effect on students from low-income backgrounds. The cumulative impact of summer learning loss has been shown to create a gap of up to three grade levels for low-income students by the fifth grade.

Research from RAND has shown that the impact of summer learning loss can be eliminated if academic instruction is offered for three to four hours a day for five to six weeks. Additionally, when comparing students in the US to those of top performing countries on the PISA exam, we see that many of those countries have shorter summer breaks, and all have more instructional days per year (as many as 47 additional days in countries like South Korea). This suggests that holding more instructional days leads to academic achievement, however there has not previously been additional funding for lengthening the instructional year in Texas until the passage of HB 3.

ADSY Implementation Options

TEA has identified three potential routes forward for those districts looking to implement ADSY.

• Option 1 - Summer Learning: Campuses hold a traditional 180-day calendar and have up to 30 days for something additional for a targeted subset of students, such as summer enrichment.
• Option 2 - Intersessional Calendar: Campuses conduct a regular calendar of 180 days spaced out over the full year, with intermittent breaks for targeted remediation with a subset of students.
• Option 3 - Full Year Redesign: Campuses conduct a revamped 210-day calendar and change daily schedules to decrease instruction time so it can be spread out over additional days and increase time for planning and student brain breaks.

How Do I Benefit from ADSY Funding?

LEAs interested in utilizing ADSY funding should follow the chart below.

Implementation

• There is no application, sign-up, or annual deadline for participating in ADSY aside from PEIMS reporting. If a campus meets all ADSY eligibility requirements and decides to host ADSY days, they will receive funding from days reported in PEIMS.
• ADSY-eligible days can be scheduled at any point throughout the school year, including as a block at the end of the year or intermittently throughout the year.
• ADSY-eligible days must have a minimum of two hours of instruction to qualify for funding.

Reporting

LEAs report ADSY attendance in the Extended Year PEIMS submission (August) each year. LEAs will need to report participating campuses, staff, and students.

Flow of Funds

LEAs should calculate estimated ADSY attendance and adjust overall ADA to reflect ADSY attendance in the biennial Legislative Planning Estimate (LPE) process in October-December of even-numbered years. ADA funding will flow to LEAs as normal based on this updated estimate. If ADSY attendance is not projected, LEAs will received funding in the settle-up process in late fall after the academic year in which attendance is reported.

ADSY Planning and Execution Program - Optional Grant Program

All LEAs can access ADSY formula funding as detailed above. The ADSY Planning and Execution Program is an optional grant program that offers planning and execution supports for interested districts. There is no requirement to participate in the ADSY Planning and Execution Program to benefit from ADSY formula funds.

The ADSY Planning and Execution Program supports LEAs with the planning, program design, and change management necessary to effectively add instructional days to the school calendar. Participating school districts and open-enrollment charter schools engage in a year-long planning process with a learning community and approved technical assistance vendors before implementing ADSY. For more information, please see TEA's Learning Acceleration Support Opportunities (LASO) website.