Reply to MCPS updated calendar is insane

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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]Can we not agree that this year is extremely unusual?? Just because people want exceptions this year doesn't mean it should be or would be a permanent thing. I think if people are loud enough, the board will hear and hopefully amend next year's calendar. It's not too late, as they already amended one day in September 2026 that was slated to be off that is now a school day.[/quote]

Except it wasn't. We have snow days every year. So far the total number has been pretty normal for a typical year. They were bunched together more, but the overall number is typical.

Do people really not remember last year? Or before covid?  It might seem worse, but that's just because MCPS used to build in more days knowing that it snows in the winter. Now they try to pretend it doesn't when they make the calendar.[/quote]

Agree. MCPS closes very easily. If there's an inch upcountry and rain downcountry, we close. We often use 4-5 days, sometimes more. What the legislature should be doing is requiring MCPS to schedule a 185 day school year, and then if we don't use them ending school early.[/quote]

That is what Frederick County MD does. There are even some states that require the extra days to be put onto the calendar and then given back at the end if they are not used. MCPS claims that they cannot do that because if the extra days are given back at the end, the teachers will not be paid. Not sure how so many other systems do this. I am sure it can be put in the contract to pay them. [/quote]

That's ridiculous - teacher are paid to teach 180 days (plus PD days on top of that). If they have taught 180 days, then they are paid whether that is ending earlier than expected or later than expected. And agree that is certainly something that can be added to the contract. [/quote]

This is effectively what MCPS has been doing. And it is a terrible way to handle it. There's an extra week in the calendar that is only used if we have snow days.

But we implement it in the most chaotic and worthless way possible.[/quote]

That is not how we handle it right now. Right now we have a few contingency days that everyone thinks are non instructional. If we have to many snow days, we take away the day off and make it a school day. The other way is to have the days already on the schedule. Everyone thinks they are instructional days, but if we do not have to many snow days, we give them back and they become no noninstructional days.

Both ways have pros and cons. No matter what we will always have people who take off when it is clearly on the schedule. The second way at least is clear about when you should not plan vacation, it gives people the worst case scenario. If someone takes a gamble, it is on them. The current way leaves people wondering if they will or will not use the contingency day, if they will or will not add days to the end of the year, if they will or will not get a waiver, heck, even wondering if the state legislature will pass a new law or not. [/quote]

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