The Harvard School Department has already used three of the five "school cancellation" days planned for the school year, and it isn't even Thanksgiving yet. That was the unwelcome warning that acting Superintendent Joe Connelly set before the School Committee at its Nov. 14 meeting.

Knowing that the coming winter may hold more weather surprises, Connelly asked the committee to let him look into ways to make up some days during the year, rather than allow the school year to extend further and further into June. His concern, he said, was to give families advance notice of possible changes, so that they could keep travel plans flexible.

Connelly proposed making Friday, Jan. 13, a half-day of school, instead of a no-school day. It would then count as one of the 180 school days required by the state. Under this plan, the full day of professional development originally scheduled for teachers on Jan. 13 would be reduced to a half day.

Another option, Connelly said, might be to shorten the April vacation, if snow days continue to pile up over the winter.

Committee member Piali De said she has "terrible bias" against half days. But committee member SusanMary Redinger later noted, "I'd rather have a half-day than a hang-on day in June."

Currently, the school calendar shows Tuesday, June 12, as the tentative last day of school. However, if none of Connelly's proposed adjustments are made, the three days already lost to the October storm will move the closing day at least to Friday, June 15.

Days that run late into June tend not to be academically productive, Connelly said.

Several members of the committee mused that it might have been better originally to have shown Tuesday, June 19, as the last day of school, taking into account the chance that all five cancellation days would be used. That way, students could feel that they were actually gaining vacation days, if fewer snow days were necessary.