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Essential Question 4
EDU 640
Scheduling Interview: Barb Schultz
Michael Johnson

a. What are the main challenges (variables) in building the master schedule?
Traveling specialist teachers are the toughest challenge for the building schedule.
They often create a domino affect throughout the schedule causing change after change. Phy.
ed. is a big challenge because we use our small gym for a lunch room and the big gym is used
on rain days and cold weather. The next challenge that often shows up is when a pod or
team would like to do something a little different. Keeping teachers in teams with common
planning time is not only hard for the schedule but is more expensive for the district. Single
certified teachers were an issue at Longfellow for a long time but that has been eliminated.
b. How are challenges resolved, given priority?
The traveling teachers decisions come from the HR department and the schools lobby
for when the teacher(s) will be at each building. Those decisions then are used to frame out
the main schedule. Once those pieces are in place the rest of the schedule is built. Barb
spends a lot of time trying to meet everyones requests and for the past 17 years she has done
that for me.

c. Explain the timeline start to finish in building a schedule.

It all starts when my principal and the HR department discuss staffing needs for the
upcoming year. Guidance comes around to our teams and has the students sign up for classes
in February so that they know how many sections of each class is needed. June 30 is when the
district then moves the schedule from the previous year to the next year.

d. What method (by hand, software) is used to build the schedule?

Barb does the schedule by hand although there is a computer program that can be
used. She does not use it because it fails to align certain subjects like math and science or
language arts and social studies. Once the schedule is drawn up and the final version is in
place, our secretary then puts the kids names in skyward.

e. Who is involved in the process?

It starts with the HR department and conversations with the principal. From there our
guidance counselors communicate with the classroom teachers as well as parents that may
have special requests.

f. How does this individual feel that the schedule best promotes student learning?
Keeping the team/pod schedule with common planning time is a priority for Barb
because of the opportunities it provides for student learning. She also works hard to keep
those common planning times together because it allows for the core classes to be clumped
together which helps with the field trip schedules that many pods at Longfellow incorporate
into their school calendars.