The state Board of Education last night voted to extend summer vacation for public school students by two weeks.

The change from a seven- to a nine-week summer break means shorter winter and spring breaks, however. Meeting last night on Kaua'i, the board shortened the winter break from three to two weeks and cut the two-week spring break to one week, said state Department of Education spokeswoman Sandy Goya.

The summer break had been as long as 10 weeks or more, but the board reduced that to seven weeks when it adopted a uniform school calendar that went into effect two years ago.

The move was aimed at helping parents whose children studied at different campuses, streamlining payroll, and preventing kids from forgetting their lessons during the summer.

But the shorter summer break led to problems finding enough teachers to volunteer for summer school.