Why does FCPS have all these random days of week off???

[Anonymous]

Stop answering people who complain about the calendar by saying they should have voted in the survey.

1. survey did not allow a vote on adding explicitly religious holidays to the calendar. Proxies for this such as whether we should align with neighboring counties and whether we should add days to the school year if we add more holidays were soundly rejected by parents.

2. Survey included kids for some bizarre reason and actually counted them in summarizing the take-aways.

3. In reporting results survey seems to have given equal weight to all those surveyed rather than relying mostly on parent replies with a check for things employees may be strongly opposed to (for staffing retention reasons).

https://www.fcps.edu//sites/default/files/calendarsurveyresults.pdf

[Anonymous]

Fed here who just realized a week ago that even with my 26 days of annual leave a year (8 hours a pay period), I still won’t have enough to cover the school year, which is 28 days off (not counting early release days). Will always need back-up care, day camps, SACC for some of the school days off.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Because religion is dictating public school calendars.

Yup - specifically the Christian religion - Easter Break, Christmas Break disguised as spring break and winter break. LOL

Spring break is now the 1st week in April always. No longer tied to Easter (thank goodness, should have been this way for years).

Really? I thought it was tied to Easter always per the survey?

It does line up this year but will not always.

That’s only stated as fact here in DCUM. They tried it last year and then said, sorry we messed up not aligning to the other local districts and changing the calendar at the last minute. No one knows what next year will bring.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Fed here who just realized a week ago that even with my 26 days of annual leave a year (8 hours a pay period), I still won’t have enough to cover the school year, which is 28 days off (not counting early release days). Will always need back-up care, day camps, SACC for some of the school days off.

You only have 26 dats of leave? My husband is a fed and has 6 months worth of annual and sick.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Because religion is dictating public school calendars.

Yup - specifically the Christian religion - Easter Break, Christmas Break disguised as spring break and winter break. LOL

Spring break is now the 1st week in April always. No longer tied to Easter (thank goodness, should have been this way for years).

Really? I thought it was tied to Easter always per the survey?

It does line up this year but will not always.

That’s only stated as fact here in DCUM. They tried it last year and then said, sorry we messed up not aligning to the other local districts and changing the calendar at the last minute. No one knows what next year will bring.

They will absolutely align the calendars with other districts to RETAIN teachers. Simple as that.

[Anonymous]

Honestly, I don’t think parents should have any say in the calendar. This survey nonsense is not done in other places. Even with all these extra long weekends, kids are getting pulled out for extended vacations. The county needs to have teachers look at the draft to problem solve issues. This calendar could gave been better even with the religious holidays off. I am hoping that the new superintendent will commit to making the next two calendars together so at least parents know.

[Anonymous]

The calendar has too many random days off. Makes it very hard for parents who can’t afford child care to go to work. But yet they insist on “equity”. This SB needs to be voted out!!!

[Anonymous]

We should get rid of the random days and just have a fall break mid Oct.

[Anonymous]

We saw family this weekend who started same day in another state and get out June 2. They only get one week at Christmas and not all of these random days. June 16 is going to feel really late this year.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Fed here who just realized a week ago that even with my 26 days of annual leave a year (8 hours a pay period), I still won’t have enough to cover the school year, which is 28 days off (not counting early release days). Will always need back-up care, day camps, SACC for some of the school days off.

Don't you already have SACC to cover before care and after care? Or do you only work 7 hours a day? Or are you planning to work from home most days for the next 10 years? It is hard to feel sympathy for you. What do you think teachers do with their own kids on these workdays and early release days? Stick them in SACC and day camps, of course. There are lots of options.

[Anonymous]

I wish they would go back to the model with "optional" snow days at the end, I think the schedule accounts for a zillion snow days now.

[Anonymous]

Certainly don’t feel sorry for the Fed. But I do feel sorry for hourly workers, shift workers, people with limited leave and resources. This calendar is not “equity” friendly.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:There have been a million calendar threads. Parents were surveyed. Clearly you didn’t want what others did.

There is no way anyone voted for the schedule as is. No one likes it, no one. Starts early, ends late. Tons of random days off.

Op here. I was just with some people at the beach and they are all starting school after Labor Day. How is it that we are starting 2 weeks later but getting out later in mid June??? Ugh.

Because you elected idiots to the School Board. They decided on the calendar.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:There have been a million calendar threads. Parents were surveyed. Clearly you didn’t want what others did.

There is no way anyone voted for the schedule as is. No one likes it, no one. Starts early, ends late. Tons of random days off.

Op here. I was just with some people at the beach and they are all starting school after Labor Day. How is it that we are starting 2 weeks later but getting out later in mid June??? Ugh.

Because you elected idiots to the School Board. They decided on the calendar.

It wasn’t better before the current SB. They used to have early release every Monday, school started after Labor Day, there was a two week Christmas break, and if we got any snow, the kids were in school until June 25. Part of diversity, which you all claim to want, is that other people’s holidays are built into the calendar. If you don’t like it, send your kids to middle school. As a working parent, you have to pay for child care. It is the cost of doing business. The alternative is a longer summer and then working parents have to pay for expensive camps.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:There have been a million calendar threads. Parents were surveyed. Clearly you didn’t want what others did.

There is no way anyone voted for the schedule as is. No one likes it, no one. Starts early, ends late. Tons of random days off.

Op here. I was just with some people at the beach and they are all starting school after Labor Day. How is it that we are starting 2 weeks later but getting out later in mid June??? Ugh.

Because you elected idiots to the School Board. They decided on the calendar.

It wasn’t better before the current SB. They used to have early release every Monday, school started after Labor Day, there was a two week Christmas break, and if we got any snow, the kids were in school until June 25. Part of diversity, which you all claim to want, is that other people’s holidays are built into the calendar. If you don’t like it, send your kids to middle school. As a working parent, you have to pay for child care. It is the cost of doing business. The alternative is a longer summer and then working parents have to pay for expensive camps.

“Middle school” should be “catholic school”.