MARIETTA - Marietta Schools Superintendent Dr. Emily Lembeck is advising the school board to approve a two-year school calendar that would begin classes on Aug. 11 in 2011 and on Aug. 9 in 2012.

The proposal does not widely depart for the district's existing calendar, which started school on Aug. 12, said board Chairman Randy Weiner.

The board will review the calendar at tonight's meeting before voting at its Dec. 21 meeting.

Lembeck's calendar recommendation for next school year spans Aug. 11 to May 25, with a full week off for the Thanksgiving holiday, ending first semester on Dec. 21, beginning second semester on Jan. 5, and offering a full-week February break from Feb. 20 to Feb. 24 and a Spring break of April 2 to 6.

Her calendar for the 2012-13 school year spans Aug. 9 to May 24, with a full week off at Thanksgiving, ending first semester on Dec. 21, beginning second semester on Jan. 7, with a weeklong break from Feb. 18 to Feb. 22 and a Spring Break of April 8 to 12.

Paper surveys were given to parents during October's conference week for grades eight and below, while high school surveys were mailed home for parents to select which calendar option they preferred, Lembeck said. The district conducted paper surveys this year in reaction to last year's problems with an Internet calendar survey, in which anyone could vote multiple times for the same option, Weiner said.

"We want to be very, very sure that all parents were given the opportunity to review the calendar and cast their vote for the calendar of their choice," Lembeck said.

Weiner said the main difference between the above calendars that Lembeck has recommended and the two-year alternative she also presented is that the alternative offers a three-day vacation from Sept. 21 to 23 next year and Sept. 19 to 21 off for the 2012-2013 school year.

The alternative option also calls for a slightly earlier start date, specifically on Aug. 8 next year and on Aug. 6 for the 2012-2013 school year.

After parents and staff voted on the calendars of their choice, each school's governance team submitted their recommendation to the central office.

Eight schools chose Lembeck's recommendation while three, Lockheed Elementary, Hickory Hills Elementary, and Marietta Center for Advanced Academics, chose the alternative option with the September break.

Other parents didn't believe Lembeck gave them much of a choice between the options. For instance, in its recommendation, the governance team for the Marietta Center for Advanced Academics wrote, "Parents and staff did not feel there was really a significant choice to be made this year since the calendars are really quite similar."

Lembeck said she offered a variety of calendar options last year, but "in the end, the big decision came down to whether parents and staff wanted a September break or not," she said.

Weiner said he support's Lembeck's calendar proposal.

"Parents I talked to did not like the academic year being broken up in September," he said. "Kids are in a routine, and then to break that routine early in the school year, they see that as counterproductive."

Tonight's meeting, which begins at 6 p.m., will be held in the boardroom, located at 250 Howard St. in Marietta.