APS 2021-2022 CALENDAR CHANGES

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Wow I fully support this calendar! What an amazing thing for my children to get our religious holidays off. Is this what it's felt like to be Christian all this time?

Thanks for the heads up, OP! I just completed the survey to support the calendar.

Indeed! Imagine being able to celebrate your religious holiday without having to call into school or worry about making up work!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Stop being a bigot, Beverly.

+1

And if you can't, there are plenty of parochial schools in Arlington that can serve your narrow-minded vision. The horror of having to explain to your children that no, Hanukkah isn't a big deal and in fact the highest holy days for Jews are Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur and families have been forced to make the choice of school or services for years. And Eid and Diwali -- OMG.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:10 days is plenty of time! This year it works out nicely because Rosh Hashana extends Labor Day weekend. My only gripe with this calendar is that we get out too late. I grew up starting school mid-August and getting out by Memorial Day and prefer that. I felt it was easier when I taught that schedule too.

I prefer this because it aligns with my older kid’s private high school. He gets out end of May and starts mid-August.

I prefer having all of June off then all of August.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Stop being a bigot, Beverly.

+1

And if you can't, there are plenty of parochial schools in Arlington that can serve your narrow-minded vision. The horror of having to explain to your children that no, Hanukkah isn't a big deal and in fact the highest holy days for Jews are Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur and families have been forced to make the choice of school or services for years. And Eid and Diwali -- OMG.

My brother teaches in NYC public schools. They celebrate every religion you can think of. Every time I talk to him, it seems like he has a day off for some religious holiday.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:10 days is plenty of time! This year it works out nicely because Rosh Hashana extends Labor Day weekend. My only gripe with this calendar is that we get out too late. I grew up starting school mid-August and getting out by Memorial Day and prefer that. I felt it was easier when I taught that schedule too.

I prefer this because it aligns with my older kid’s private high school. He gets out end of May and starts mid-August.

I prefer having all of June off then all of August.

But APS is still going until late June- I’m an atheist and think of you give Christian holidays off, other religions should be included as well- but holy long school year Batman!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:10 days is plenty of time! This year it works out nicely because Rosh Hashana extends Labor Day weekend. My only gripe with this calendar is that we get out too late. I grew up starting school mid-August and getting out by Memorial Day and prefer that. I felt it was easier when I taught that schedule too.

+1. This is my gripe too. Starting earlier (which I prefer) but getting out at the same time. Time to let some of those other holidays go (which I doubt will happen, they've been on the calendar too long), and/or have a slightly shortened winter break.

+1, i took the survey and said to keep the added religious holidays that they built in (even though my family does not celebrate them), but remove the Friday before labor day and the 4 days before xmas eve. Then they can get out June 10 instead of the 17th. Still provides a 10 day winter break with weekends. The proposed calendar has a 16 day winter break including weekends. Even if you are traveling for the holidays, that is plenty of time to do that.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:10 days is plenty of time! This year it works out nicely because Rosh Hashana extends Labor Day weekend. My only gripe with this calendar is that we get out too late. I grew up starting school mid-August and getting out by Memorial Day and prefer that. I felt it was easier when I taught that schedule too.

+1. This is my gripe too. Starting earlier (which I prefer) but getting out at the same time. Time to let some of those other holidays go (which I doubt will happen, they've been on the calendar too long), and/or have a slightly shortened winter break.

+1, i took the survey and said to keep the added religious holidays that they built in (even though my family does not celebrate them), but remove the Friday before labor day and the 4 days before xmas eve. Then they can get out June 10 instead of the 17th. Still provides a 10 day winter break with weekends. The proposed calendar has a 16 day winter break including weekends. Even if you are traveling for the holidays, that is plenty of time to do that.

+1

[Anonymous]

I may be in the minority but I hate the early start.

Oh well, I’ve got zero qualms simply starting my kids a week later if it means a nice end-of-summer vacation with my extended family who all start back after Labor Day. The days of caring ended with compulsory, never-ending DL.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:10 days is plenty of time! This year it works out nicely because Rosh Hashana extends Labor Day weekend. My only gripe with this calendar is that we get out too late. I grew up starting school mid-August and getting out by Memorial Day and prefer that. I felt it was easier when I taught that schedule too.

+1. This is my gripe too. Starting earlier (which I prefer) but getting out at the same time. Time to let some of those other holidays go (which I doubt will happen, they've been on the calendar too long), and/or have a slightly shortened winter break.

+1, i took the survey and said to keep the added religious holidays that they built in (even though my family does not celebrate them), but remove the Friday before labor day and the 4 days before xmas eve. Then they can get out June 10 instead of the 17th. Still provides a 10 day winter break with weekends. The proposed calendar has a 16 day winter break including weekends. Even if you are traveling for the holidays, that is plenty of time to do that.

I was similar, but cut only 4 days. I said school on Veterans' Day and have the kids holiday break start on December 23. I am not even sure they're allowed to have off some of the days they listed in the survey, though. For example, I thought that the Friday before Labor Day was required to be off by the state when they changed the law allowing schools to start before Labor Day.

[Anonymous]

Agreed. Happy about holidays. We always have to choose between celebrating properly and making kids miss important events at school. This is much, much better. Do agree that we. Don’t need the whole week before Christmas off. And we celebrate Christmas as well as some of the now recognized holidays.

[Anonymous]

Love the calendar. But, still looking forward to the parade of families complaining about their summer beach house reservations and the School Board’s bizarre toleration of it like last year. So self absorbed.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Love the calendar. But, still looking forward to the parade of families complaining about their summer beach house reservations and the School Board’s bizarre toleration of it like last year. So self absorbed.

Oh I’m not complaining. I’m simply going to do what’s best for my family, including prioritizing extended family vacations. I doubt the school will give me a hard time about it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:APS 2021-2022 CALENDAR ALERT! Be sure to read the email from APS and respond to the survey. They really seem to be trying to push forward quick & dirty without time for parent/staff/community input. The survey is only open through October 30th!
They're adding four religious holidays (Rosh Hashanah, Yom Kippur, one Eid, and Diwali), which do not seem to be up for negotiation.
This necessitates starting school about a week earlier. If you object to an earlier start or later end to the school year, the holidays the survey lets you elect to cut in exchange (you are to pick 5) are Columbus/Peoples Indigenous Day, day before Thanksgiving, Winter Break days, or government/secular holidays like Veterans Day or MLK day, for example.

Wow. I thought this post was offensive when you posted it on AEM and I still think so. You seem to be quite annoyed that APS is respecting more major non-Christian holidays. The only thing that disappoints me about this proposed calendar, aside from reactions like yours, is that it took APS so long to do this.

+1M. Consider recognizing your religious privilege and reflect upon your words.

[Anonymous]

I like the calendar and I am so glad that we are going back in mid-August. The only suggestion I made was to bump up winter parent teacher conferences by a week. That would create a long weekend with President's Day.

[Anonymous]

What about the P/T conferences February 24th/25th? That makes a 2 day week after President's day. I suggested moving the conferences to the 17th/18th for a long weekend instead.

Also, I understand the added holidays but really don't like starting August 23rd. I'd rather lose September 3rd, Indigenous People's Day, Veteran's Day and start the Holiday Break on the 22nd in order to start the year on August 30th.

And why does Spring Break always have to be tied to Easter?! I'd much prefer it the last week of March.