Mitchell students who are missing school days after a fire destroyed the school gym and severely damaged other parts of the building will not have to make up days at the end of the school year.

Instead, the school day for middle school students is being extended a few minutes every day beginning March 18 and going through the end of the school year. The extended schools days will include the extra days already tacked on to the year after students missed four days of school because of bitterly cold temperatures.

Middle school students remain out of school until March 18.

Racine Unified spokesperson Stacy Tapp confirmed for Racine County Eye that the district was given a waiver by the state Department of Public Instruction.

“We have received a waiver from DPI on the number of days; however, we still must make up the instructional minutes,” she wrote in an email. “So, we have extended the school day for the remainder of the school year beginning March 18. That will allow us to meet the minute requirement without adding days in June.”

Elementary students are being relocated to Wind Point starting Wednesday. They do not have to add any extra minutes to their days because, Tapp explained, elementary schools already have a longer school day than is required by DPI.

The waiver from the department to not have to make up days does extend to the elementary school as well, she added.