More school districts have pushed their start dates up, trending away from what tourism industry stakeholders prefer and the historical norm, which is to start school after the federal holiday Labor Day. As a result, the industry loses out on tourist volume, staff and revenue.
More districts in Florida, Michigan, Illinois, North Carolina and New Jersey are requiring kids to come back earlier than their typical start dates. One big reason start dates are being pushed up is to make up for instructional time lost during the pandemic, said Harvard Graduate School of Education Henry Less Shattuck Professor of Education Martin West. Instructional time is essential to student success on standardized tests and other educational…