Mike Wolanin | The Republic Central Middle School student Ananya Ramanujapuram, bottom left, Ritisha Rashmil, upper left, and Sruthika Gangisetty watch the solar eclipse on Monday.
Bartholomew Consolidated School Corp. officials plan to amend the 2023-24 school year calendar in light — or lack thereof — of an upcoming total solar eclipse.
The BCSC school board is expected to vote on whether to reschedule a professional development day so that it coincides with the eclipse, school officials said. The meeting will be held at Columbus North High School at 6:30 p.m. on April 24.
According to NASA, a total solar eclipse will pass over North America on April 8, 2024.
“A total solar eclipse happens when the moon passes between the sun and Earth, completely blocking the face of the sun,” NASA officials explained. “People viewing the eclipse from locations where the moon’s shadow completely covers the sun – known as the path of totality – will experience a total solar eclipse. The sky will darken, as if it were dawn or dusk. Weather permitting, people along the path of totality will see the sun’s corona, or outer atmosphere, which is usually obscured by the bright face of the sun.”
While Columbus did not see a total eclipse in 2017, it will in 2024. Indiana University has reported that its campuses in Columbus, Indianapolis and Bloomington are all in the path of totality. NASA maps show that the total eclipse will occur at 3:05 p.m. in Bloomington and 3:10 p.m. in Indianapolis.
The totality lasts up to about 4 minutes and 28 seconds depending on a viewer’s location within the path. According to the Great American Eclipse, the totality will last about 3 minutes and 50 seconds in Columbus.
Assistant Superintendent of Human Resources Gina Pleak said that the eclipse is expected to create challenges for communities all over the state of Indiana.
“There are a lot of state and community, city and county conversations about what the day will look like as it impacts the operations of the city and county, including schools,” she said. “We had conversations with CEA (Columbus Educators Association) and with cabinet members, and we are looking to make a change to the school calendar.”
BCSC’s current 2023-24 calendar has March 28, 2024 — the Thursday before Good Friday — scheduled as a professional development (PD) day for staff, with no classes in session.
Pleak said that school officials would like to reschedule this professional development day for Monday, April 8, 2024. Under the change, students would go to school on March 28 but not on the day of the eclipse.
She added that the professional development committee will examine the impact of the eclipse on the PD day, taking city and county information into consideration as they decide how to “maximize the use of the PD day for learning opportunities for all employees.”
Pleak noted that the time of totality, for Columbus, would be close to each school’s dismissal time. The concern from city and county officials is that visitors from all over the country will be coming in to view the eclipse, and the phenomenon is expected to halt movement on roadways.
“It is something that people want to come and be part of,” said Pleak. “And we’ll be welcoming many guests to our community on that day.”
According to NASA, after the April 2024 eclipse, there will not be another total solar eclipse that is visible from the contiguous United States until Aug. 23, 2044.
