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Commencement of School Term (School Start Date) Information

School Start Date Information

2001 Wisconsin Act 16 eliminated the provision that allowed a school district to commence its school term before September 1 in any year that it held a public hearing and adopted a resolution to do so. Act 16 allows a school district to make a request to the Department of Public Instruction (DPI) to commence its school term before September 1. The DPI was required to promulgate administrative rules to implement and administer this provision. The department may grant a request only if it determines that there are extraordinary reasons for granting it. The process for requesting an exemption can be found below.

Wis. Stat. sec. 118.045 Commencement of school term:

(1) Except as provided in subs. (2) and (3), beginning in the year 2000, no public school may commence the school term until September 1.

(2) Subsection (1) does not prohibit a school board from doing any of the following:

(a) Holding athletic contests or practices before September 1.

(b) Scheduling in-service days or work days before September 1.

(c) Holding school year-round.

(3) A school board may commence the school term before September 1 in any school year if the school board requests the department to allow it to commence the school term before September 1 and the school board includes reasons with its request. The department may grant a request only if it determines that there are extraordinary reasons for granting it. The department shall promulgate rules to implement and administer this subsection.

Requesting a One-Year Exemption from the School Start Date Law

More details about the process for requesting a one-year exemption can be found here:
PI 27.03(3) - PI 27.03(6).

The department may grant a request for a one-year exemption from the school start date law only if it determines that there are extraordinary reasons for granting the request. The extraordinary reasons are listed in PI 27.03(5)

The request shall be adopted as a written resolution by the school board at a school board meeting that complies with the open meetings law under ss. 19.83 and 19.84, Stats.

The request and resolution  can be sent to waivers@dpi.wi.gov. School start date exemptions are effective for one year.