(The Post Millennial)—The Washington Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction (OSPI) has approved a major calendar shift for Finley School District in Benton County, allowing students a permanent three-day weekend starting in the 2025–26 school year. The small, rural district will become the only one in the Tri-Cities area to operate on a four-day school week — a move designed to close a growing $1 million budget gap.
Finley School District Superintendent Bryan Long said the district will monitor the effects of the new schedule, with a formal review scheduled for spring 2026. The state waiver allows Finley to continue the modified schedule through the 2027–28 academic year, depending on the results.
According to The Olympian, the change comes after voters in Finley rejected a $4.4 million local school levy in February, which would have sustained current district operations. In April, a reduced $3.45 million levy passed, but it included cuts to some athletic programs and staff positions. Had that second levy failed, Finley officials were prepared to eliminate sports entirely and implement deeper staff reductions.
Now, with OSPI’s approval, the district hopes to save hundreds of thousands of dollars annually by reducing expenditures in substitute staffing, utilities, food services, and classified staffing.
Under the new schedule, students at Finley Elementary School will attend classes from 8:00 am to 3:10 pm, while students at Finley Middle School and River View High School will have slightly longer days, running from 7:55 am to 3:25 pm, to meet the state-mandated 1,027 instructional hours. Classes will run Monday through Thursday, with Fridays off.
- Read More: thepostmillennial.com
