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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]So do the 8 early release days include early release Wednesdays? Or will that be a totally different thing since it only applies to elementary schools? They have been so dumb.[/quote]
The motion turned into a disaster. Dunne was trying to stop elementary early releases by using language in the calendar planning policy, but then it was pointed out that there are a ton of high school early releases that aren’t on the calendar either, and we can’t just make high schoolers sit around at school after they’ve finished their AP exam or final because the school board said they couldn’t leave early!

Then the new guy threw out 8 days as a compromise and the language specifying elementary schools got added.

Basically, the attempt to kill the Wednesday early releases resulted in the death of end of quarter early releases, which isn’t going to be popular with the long weekend travelers. [/quote]

Updated calendar from today still has the QE early dismissals. The long weekends are safe.[/quote]
Could you please link to this?[/quote]

https://www.fcps.edu/system/files/forms/2025-04/2026-2027-standard-school-year-calendar.pdf

Updated 4/10, QE days unchanged

PP wasn't kidding, they did forget the first week of August, LOL!
[/quote][/quote]

That Calendar is awful, but hey the complainers who don’t like being with their elementary kids are happy.  We are being ruled by complainers on social media rather than surveys and thinking things through. [/quote]

Yup. You’ve solved it. Parents go to work because they don’t like being with their young kids. Not because they like feeding, clothing, and housing those kids. Thanks Sherlock for solving that mystery.
[/quote]

If you are not making it because of 4 days off, I do honestly feel for you, but summer camps are pricey too. [/quote]

DP. Summer camps allow a consistent schedule. There are also a multitude of options that allow kids to explore all kinds of interests... music, arts, theater, robotics, sports... you name it. Most parents would much prefer to select summer camps based on their childrens' interests than be at the mercy of whatever crappy one day camp is offered by some random martial arts place. No one is putting on a series of high quality camps for one or two days at a time at random times throughout a school year. Who would work at such a camp?

People like you also tend to studiously ignore the parents are saying they prefer a longer summer. Maybe because that goes against your narrative that parents just don't want to deal with their kids. [/quote]

People like me have zero say in what happens to the calendar, and I am responding to your calendar comment, so I’m not ignoring you.

I just disagree with you about summers.

And, yes if taking 4 days off- or just 2 like I do switching off with my partner as necessary to cover those days rather than paying for camps is too hard for you, I do feel sorry for you.

FCPS didn’t poll parents this time to ask about summer camps vs. the day off camps, so you have zero clue whether the “majority” agrees with you or me.  They should absolutely done some surveys (as they ahve done in the past) before making these changes.

But Mateo Dunne and Melanie Meren of the board are ruling by social media and emails rather than better data that could prove your point.[/quote]

Meren is the worst. She is clearly trying to make a name for herself by promoting whatever cause seems like it will get her the most attention. And her statements at the board meeting? Clueless. Nonsensical. She mugged for the cameras, gave an embarrassingly phony and overly dramatic little speech, and said nothing of substance. She needs to go. [/quote]

And what did you do to help any of Meren’s constituents who were dissatisfied with the calendar?

You don’t have to like her but she delivered for the people she works for.[/quote]

Again, you don’t KNOW that.  She delivered for the angry parents who complained.  Did she send out a survey? Did she poll the rest of the county?

When calendar changes were made last time, there were several surveys for parents to fill out and a focus group who worked on the 3 school year calendar.

This time, there was nothing, but 2 board members listening to social media.  This is how bad policy gets made>. When people overreact and act quickly.

The majority shouldn’t be decided only by the angriest few, but the actual majority. [/quote]

1. No surveys were sent before adding early release. In Loudoun there *was* polling and they decided not to do early release because it was so unpopular.

2. If it’s bad policy to limit early release and have one more instructional day, the rest of the board could have voted it down. They didn’t.

3. The current policy of early release was decided by Reid without the board. Thats an even smaller “angriest few” so I assume we could agree that was also bad policy.[/quote]

I agree the current early release policy was bad policy- see all the debate it has stirred up?

[b]2 years ago all districts HAD to implement state mandated training and Reid used early releases.  That HAD to happen to get state funding.  It wasn’t a choice.  
[/b]This last year was bad policy.  The board claimed they just went along to get a calendar and every time something stupid happens, they claim their hands are tied. This board has a planning and foresight issue as we as not understanding the political game at all.

But here is the thing.  The board just COMPOUNDED the issue by not issuing a survey and using the same bad tactics.[/quote]

How it was done was a choice. Loudoun polled parents, found early release was incredibly unpopular, and did it over two days off instead. That was the model most of the rest of VA adopted— no one but Fairfax went to monthly half days, and certainly no one kept them for an extra year. So yes— bad policy.

Reid isn’t elected. The board has a responsibility to oversee her actions and they didn’t do it in 24-25, personally I don’t think they should have waited for “surveys” to correct the early releases when no surveys were done in the first place. Whether they should have surveyed on Veterans Day— Fairfax policy is that it is a day of school. Why does that need polling?[/quote]

But, you see, they didn’t just remove early releases.  They also took away the 2 federal holidays in the fall.  Dr. Anderson was aiming to make a survey for the NEXT (not upcoming 26-27) school years because gives the board information from parents. 
Perhaps you dont’ remember the last rounds of surveys, but questions like: should we have full days off for professional development or early release days?  Or do you want spring break tied to Easter or not. At least allowed parents input unlike now, when it was just screams getting through.

This board made similar mistakes with the boundary policies where they came out with poorly thought out policy and then were left backtracking for the next 2 years.

Also, the board who is elected, had the right to tell Reid NO to early releases this year.  They didn’t and voted the calendar in.  
The board HAD to do something in 23-24, but they could have said no to her request in 24-25.

Frankly, with the hardship care available, the “I can’t pay for day camps” contingent should have been placated, but the combination of weather, weird voting days, and the early releases were just too much for some elementary parents to calm themselves down and think rationally. They and the overreactive board members weren’t able to look at the 25-26 calendar and say “this one is better” (which is was due to changes in the religious holidays anyway) and we should get input from all parents again for the next 2 years.

Honestly, this school board is bad and this is the second majorly mishandled policy.  We had the boundary fiasco and now the calendar.  Real leadership slows down and gets information rather than just jerks their constituents around.

[/quote]

No, they didn’t.

Indigenous peoples day was already a teacher workday and remains a student holiday.

They took away Veterans Day, which by Fairfax policy was supposed to be a school day anyway. That is [b]one[/b] federal holiday, which was supposed to be a school day anyway.

[b]Dismissing the elementary school parents who hated early release is what got us here.  [/b]The “hardship” care was subpar in many places, and disrespectful to parents in others. They had the opportunity to do a good job with it and get parents on board and they failed.

[/quote]

I stand corrected on the Veterans Day and Columbus Day.

Providing extra care isn’t really all that disrespectful to parents.  In fact, it is catering to them.

As to the bolded, had the board used surveys to see if elementary school parents liked the early release, they wouldn’t be in this predicament.

See how important surveys are?
[/quote]

Yes, they should have been used before early release was ever implemented. But they weren’t. Correcting it should not have required waiting for surveys.

The disrespect is things like principal sending an email saying not to use it unless you have a “real hardship”. Things like exceeding in the county guide guidelines for screen time during the “childcare”. And, of course, never asking whether early release should’ve been implemented in the first place, and then lying about it in 24. [/quote]

But the board made a second error in not asking for a survey for the next few years. They could have “corrected” it this year and then gathered information for the next two.

Saying don’t use hardship care unless you have hardship means the school left it up you to decide.  How is that disrespectful? Asking you to make a judgement call about your own life shouldn’t be seen disrespectful.  If you used it and felt guilty because you didn’t really need it, that was your choice.

And going over screen time limits- is disrespectful of PARENTS? so you decided (after being “disrespected” to make choice about that) that yes, you had real hardship and sent your kid and are now complaining that they did Lexia too long?

Sounds like you should have talked to your school admin about your hardship care concerns, but instead decided to attack the calendar.

[/quote]

I spoke to my daughter’s principal, thank you for assuming otherwise. I still think early release has been grossly mismanaged, is disrespectful of parents, particularly those who work, and should’ve been eliminated altogether.[/quote]

I can see why your principal didn’t help out all that much.  No other county offered or offers care during early release days and your response is over the top.  If something awful happened to your daughter during this time, I would understand your level of response, but to get this worked up over using the iPad too much during free hardship care is a bit much. [/quote]

And this level of disrespect is why people advocated for the calendar to be changed. Thank you for providing an example.[/quote]

Well I’m sure you are basking in the glow of being respected now that your wishes were met. Disrespect has a different meaning to me than getting to dictate terms of free childcare.[/quote]

Met? No. But they were listened to and addressed, at least in part. Contrast with your approach which is to deny and dismiss. [/quote]

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