To Save Money, School Buildings Closed Fridays for Rest of Summer

As of July 15 and ending on August 19, all and offices will be closed on Fridays as a way for the district to save money.

“There will be nobody at all in the schools on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays and we are hoping to save somewhere between $20,000 and $30,000," said Superintendent David Trethaway. "That is our estimate."

Employees will make up the missing day by working longer hours, according to the district.

Friday summer closures have never been done before. The idea came as part of the districts' completion of the Energy Education program, which helped the school system to save $1 million and reduce energy consumption by nearly 30 percent over the past two years, according to Trethaway.

“We saved a lot of money with the energy conservation that we have been doing throughout all of the schools," he said. "Things like shutting down equipment and turning down thermostats have helped."

Even seemingly small things, like automating climate controls in the district buildings to ensure heating and cooling units are not running when not needed, helped to save money during during the year.

“Turning down your thermostat in your home will save you money, but when we turn down the thermostats in all six of the schools, you can imagine what a large savings that is. It has made a significant difference,” Trethaway said.

The district was able to reduce energy cost and consumption throughout last year by replacing equipment that was constantly running and having custodians consistently working in only one area of the school and shutting all lights down before proceeding to the next section, Trethaway said.

The superintendent formed this plan and also credits Jessica Brosnan, a first grade teacher at who serves as Energy Education Specialist for the district.

“We talked to her and she thought it was a good idea, also," he said. "So I made the recommendation to the board, and the board approved it with the idea that we could save some money from it."

Even though the schools and offices will only be open Monday-through-Thursday for about the next month, the district has much to squeeze into the weeks before schools reopen on Sept. 6. 

“The first big area, and a huge job over the summer, is to hire new staff," Trethaway said. "That is a process where the building principals and central office are involved."

Some maintenance of buildings and grounds can only be done during the summer as to not interrupt regular school sessions. District-wide purchasing, curriculum and administrative meetings are also some of the tasks that are completed over the summer, the superintendent said.

The Manchester Board of Education will meet Wednesday at 7:30 p.m. at its office, 121 Route 539 in Whiting.