DCPS and Jewish holidays

Anonymous
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:As a Jewish DCPS teacher, the only thing I resent is that in order to take my own high holidays off, I have to use personal days. Not so for Christian teachers...and FWIW, students do have Easter Monday off. It's factored into the dates for Spring Break.


Not this year.

Easter is April 1, 2018. Spring break (for DCPS on the traditional schedule) is March 26-30. There is school on Monday, April 2.



And it was not a holiday for DCPS last year either.
Anonymous
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:As a Jewish DCPS teacher, the only thing I resent is that in order to take my own high holidays off, I have to use personal days. Not so for Christian teachers...and FWIW, students do have Easter Monday off. It's factored into the dates for Spring Break.


I am Christian and celebrate Easter. There is no sort of celebration whatsoever on Easter Monday. It's just not a religious day at all. Good Friday is much more religious and it's always a school day.


You are clearly not for DC. Easter Monday at the Zoo is a cultural day / tradition for African American Families. It started over 100 years ago as African-Americans were not allowed to participate in the White House Easter Egg Roll - and many families were domestic help and required to work on Easter.


For Spring Break - DC messed up when they said a few years ago that it would always be around Emancipation Day - but only stuck to it for a year. People complained - April is TOO late for a skiing vacation.


For those who don't understand the Easter Monday school tradition please read this http://www.theroot.com/for-dc-easter-monday-at-the-national-zoo-is-an-african-1790859364

HOWEVER, it is no longer a school holiday and in a number of schools, attendance will be light.


I'm convinced DCPS dialed back on giving off on Easter Monday partly because of the consistently chaotic scene at the zoo each year. Tons of unsupervised kids. There is always some sort of fiasco (a shooting a couple years ago).
Anonymous
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:Christmas is a national holiday, the high holidays are not. Eid is not. That's why businesses are closed for Christmas and not for Eid. I'm a Jew - but that is just a fact.


Christmas is a Christian holiday. Most schools and businesses are closed in recognition that the majority of the population is Christian. It is not a national holiday and many non-Christians don't celebrate anything on that day other than enjoying the day off, just as they would on a weekend or a secular holiday like President's Day.


NP but Christmas has turned into a secular, consumer holiday. Also, "Easter Monday" is not a holiday or a thing and Easter is tied to a Sunday.


No, Christmas is a Christian holiday that many people celebrate largely in secular ways through consumerism. Hanukkah has become the same way for lots of people, but doesn't mean it isn't still a Jewish holiday.
Anonymous
Jewish parent here. no, public schools should NOT be closed for religious holidays. period. christmas being a national holiday is a whole separate matter.

carry on...
Anonymous
Anonymous wrote:I wish they would give Rosh hashanah and yom Kippur off like all surrounding counties. I am not sure of the exact numbers, but obviously there are less Jew in DC than in MCPS, but maybe not PG and they get those days off. we have a lot of Jewish families at our school... way more than in some MC areas and they have the days off. Anything I can do? Get a petition going? I mean we have off the day after this year for a PD, you think they could just throw us a bone and say, we respect your holiday, students can have off. I mean we get Easter Monday off...




Easter Monday is a historic AA event specific to DC and it's unique culture.

Jewish High Holy Days may make sense due to percentage Jewish students or faculty.

These are two separate questions.
Anonymous
DC is 4.2% Jewish, according to http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jewish-population-in-the-united-states-by-state

That hardly seems a critical mass.
Anonymous
Anonymous wrote:DC is 4.2% Jewish, according to http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jewish-population-in-the-united-states-by-state

That hardly seems a critical mass.


Which works out to 194 students, as applied to the school population. Again, not a large number.
Anonymous
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:I wish they would give Rosh hashanah and yom Kippur off like all surrounding counties. I am not sure of the exact numbers, but obviously there are less Jew in DC than in MCPS, but maybe not PG and they get those days off. we have a lot of Jewish families at our school... way more than in some MC areas and they have the days off. Anything I can do? Get a petition going? I mean we have off the day after this year for a PD, you think they could just throw us a bone and say, we respect your holiday, students can have off. I mean we get Easter Monday off...




Easter Monday is a historic AA event specific to DC and it's unique culture.

Jewish High Holy Days may make sense due to percentage Jewish students or faculty.

These are two separate questions.


And Easter Monday isn't a holiday anymore.
Anonymous
To the OP, DH & I work and the kids are in school so we never get to do things at not crowded times. For RH, we have dinner with family (two nights) and go to synagogue for the kids service only. Now our new tradition is that we also go apple picking in the morning on the one school day we have to take off. That makes me feel better about having to take the kids out of school that day
Anonymous
*ahem* Christmas is technically a pagan holiday, but the Christians" borrowed it.

I'm totally supportive of kids having off on national holidays, but I do not support days off for every single religious holiday, no matter the religion. My kid needs a real summer break, and it's already way too short due to all of these random 1/2 days and PD.
Anonymous
I'd love it if spring break could be over Passover every year so we didn't have to worry so much about food for our kids, as we keep Passover.

But this is the life we chose and the school district we chose. We do take extra days off during the holiday for extended travel to family.
Anonymous
Anonymous wrote:I'd love it if spring break could be over Passover every year so we didn't have to worry so much about food for our kids, as we keep Passover.

But this is the life we chose and the school district we chose. We do take extra days off during the holiday for extended travel to family.


Interesting. For us, I'd hate to have Passover coincide with spring break bc then we'd have to keep Passover while traveling. That's a pain.
Anonymous
I think the fact that the second day of RH this year is an off day is great. Kids are going to school on Thursday and services on Friday.

The number of days of DCPS has during the school year (most of November is a 4 day week) I'm fine with schools being open on Jewish holidays. If I wasn't they'd go to JPDS.
Anonymous
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:I'd love it if spring break could be over Passover every year so we didn't have to worry so much about food for our kids, as we keep Passover.

But this is the life we chose and the school district we chose. We do take extra days off during the holiday for extended travel to family.


Interesting. For us, I'd hate to have Passover coincide with spring break bc then we'd have to keep Passover while traveling. That's a pain.


I'm in FCPS and we don't keep kosher for Passover but we celebrate with family.. First world problem, but it cramps my already cramped vacation schedule (due to the school calendar) when spring break coincides with Passover.
Anonymous
Anonymous wrote:To the OP, DH & I work and the kids are in school so we never get to do things at not crowded times. For RH, we have dinner with family (two nights) and go to synagogue for the kids service only. Now our new tradition is that we also go apple picking in the morning on the one school day we have to take off. That makes me feel better about having to take the kids out of school that day


Last year we went to Cox Farms on Rosh Hashana after services-- it was great!
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