Anonymous
02/17/2026 18:31
Subject: The response to MoCo's calendar change shows why the FCPS religious holidays will never go away
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:The snow days should be virtual days at this point. A week without school over a snowstorm is ridiculous in 2026
We would have been absent. Virtual school is a waste of time unless you are enrolled in a dedicated virtual program that is established for that type of learning. The COVID year was a complete waste, and my kid attended every day. The math was so bad that we started RSM and found competition math. DS loved it and still participates in math competitions but he was learning nothing in math during COVID.
I agree virtual school is a waste. Teachers should telework on snow days like other professionals and subsequent teacher workdays/early release days cancelled.
Teachers already work on snow days. I’m a professional. I work until the work is done, which often means every day of the week.
Are you saying that it should simply be somehow tracked? Micromanaged?
So what you’re really saying is that teacher work time shouldn’t be reflected in the calendar. Parents shouldn’t have to find childcare so teachers can get behind-the-scenes work done.
Fine. I actually agree. But until we teach fewer classes or have fewer duties, I’m not sure what the solution is. Simply put: teachers do need time to get work done. That’s just fact. And random snow days isn’t enough.
In the rest of the white-collar professional world, on days of inclement weather, employees, bring home laptops, and participate in meetings, trainings, calls, etc. It’s not “tracking” or “micromanagement” when Deloitte does it, why is it such an imposition for teachers?
As I wrote, I am working on snow days. I am also bringing home my laptop, participating in team meetings, etc. I don’t need an administrator to TELL me to work. I don’t need an administrator to TELL me to contact my team and schedule a meeting because we have the gift of time that day. I’m already on it.
My comment regarding micromanaging is related to the suggestion above that teachers should be ***told*** to work on these days. Oh, we are. I don’t need an administrator checking in on me.
Why if an administrator tells you to is that wrong, but if the CEO or team lead at a normal company tells their employees that they’ll be meeting virtually tomorrow because of the snow that’s fine? Yes, sometimes people need to be told to work. Public employees on contract days should be expected to work, yes, but that expectation could be reflected in the result in school calendar.
I don’t know why you feel the need to pick a fight. This isn’t a big deal unless you decide to make it one. Just don’t assume I’m lazily basking in the glory of a snow day and I’ll be fine.
I mean— thats exactly the impression you’re giving. No one can MAKE me work. No one can CHECK my work. Just because I’m paid for this day doesn’t mean anyone can EXPECT something.
The NYT ran an opinion piece last week about school choice. NYC has charter schools with 12 hour days. The “don’t micromanage!” me attitude isn’t going to fly much longer.
Anonymous
02/17/2026 18:26
Subject: The response to MoCo's calendar change shows why the FCPS religious holidays will never go away
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:The snow days should be virtual days at this point. A week without school over a snowstorm is ridiculous in 2026
We would have been absent. Virtual school is a waste of time unless you are enrolled in a dedicated virtual program that is established for that type of learning. The COVID year was a complete waste, and my kid attended every day. The math was so bad that we started RSM and found competition math. DS loved it and still participates in math competitions but he was learning nothing in math during COVID.
I agree virtual school is a waste. Teachers should telework on snow days like other professionals and subsequent teacher workdays/early release days cancelled.
Teachers already work on snow days. I’m a professional. I work until the work is done, which often means every day of the week.
Are you saying that it should simply be somehow tracked? Micromanaged?
So what you’re really saying is that teacher work time shouldn’t be reflected in the calendar. Parents shouldn’t have to find childcare so teachers can get behind-the-scenes work done.
Fine. I actually agree. But until we teach fewer classes or have fewer duties, I’m not sure what the solution is. Simply put: teachers do need time to get work done. That’s just fact. And random snow days isn’t enough.
In the rest of the white-collar professional world, on days of inclement weather, employees, bring home laptops, and participate in meetings, trainings, calls, etc. It’s not “tracking” or “micromanagement” when Deloitte does it, why is it such an imposition for teachers?
As I wrote, I am working on snow days. I am also bringing home my laptop, participating in team meetings, etc. I don’t need an administrator to TELL me to work. I don’t need an administrator to TELL me to contact my team and schedule a meeting because we have the gift of time that day. I’m already on it.
My comment regarding micromanaging is related to the suggestion above that teachers should be ***told*** to work on these days. Oh, we are. I don’t need an administrator checking in on me.
Why if an administrator tells you to is that wrong, but if the CEO or team lead at a normal company tells their employees that they’ll be meeting virtually tomorrow because of the snow that’s fine? Yes, sometimes people need to be told to work. Public employees on contract days should be expected to work, yes, but that expectation could be reflected in the result in school calendar.
I don’t know why you feel the need to pick a fight. This isn’t a big deal unless you decide to make it one. Just don’t assume I’m lazily basking in the glory of a snow day and I’ll be fine.
Anonymous
02/17/2026 17:20
Subject: The response to MoCo's calendar change shows why the FCPS religious holidays will never go away
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:The snow days should be virtual days at this point. A week without school over a snowstorm is ridiculous in 2026
We would have been absent. Virtual school is a waste of time unless you are enrolled in a dedicated virtual program that is established for that type of learning. The COVID year was a complete waste, and my kid attended every day. The math was so bad that we started RSM and found competition math. DS loved it and still participates in math competitions but he was learning nothing in math during COVID.
I agree virtual school is a waste. Teachers should telework on snow days like other professionals and subsequent teacher workdays/early release days cancelled.
Teachers already work on snow days. I’m a professional. I work until the work is done, which often means every day of the week.
Are you saying that it should simply be somehow tracked? Micromanaged?
So what you’re really saying is that teacher work time shouldn’t be reflected in the calendar. Parents shouldn’t have to find childcare so teachers can get behind-the-scenes work done.
Fine. I actually agree. But until we teach fewer classes or have fewer duties, I’m not sure what the solution is. Simply put: teachers do need time to get work done. That’s just fact. And random snow days isn’t enough.
In the rest of the white-collar professional world, on days of inclement weather, employees, bring home laptops, and participate in meetings, trainings, calls, etc. It’s not “tracking” or “micromanagement” when Deloitte does it, why is it such an imposition for teachers?
As I wrote, I am working on snow days. I am also bringing home my laptop, participating in team meetings, etc. I don’t need an administrator to TELL me to work. I don’t need an administrator to TELL me to contact my team and schedule a meeting because we have the gift of time that day. I’m already on it.
My comment regarding micromanaging is related to the suggestion above that teachers should be ***told*** to work on these days. Oh, we are. I don’t need an administrator checking in on me.
Why if an administrator tells you to is that wrong, but if the CEO or team lead at a normal company tells their employees that they’ll be meeting virtually tomorrow because of the snow that’s fine? Yes, sometimes people need to be told to work. Public employees on contract days should be expected to work, yes, but that expectation could be reflected in the result in school calendar.
Anonymous
02/17/2026 17:13
Subject: The response to MoCo's calendar change shows why the FCPS religious holidays will never go away
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:The snow days should be virtual days at this point. A week without school over a snowstorm is ridiculous in 2026
We would have been absent. Virtual school is a waste of time unless you are enrolled in a dedicated virtual program that is established for that type of learning. The COVID year was a complete waste, and my kid attended every day. The math was so bad that we started RSM and found competition math. DS loved it and still participates in math competitions but he was learning nothing in math during COVID.
I agree virtual school is a waste. Teachers should telework on snow days like other professionals and subsequent teacher workdays/early release days cancelled.
Teachers already work on snow days. I’m a professional. I work until the work is done, which often means every day of the week.
Are you saying that it should simply be somehow tracked? Micromanaged?
So what you’re really saying is that teacher work time shouldn’t be reflected in the calendar. Parents shouldn’t have to find childcare so teachers can get behind-the-scenes work done.
Fine. I actually agree. But until we teach fewer classes or have fewer duties, I’m not sure what the solution is. Simply put: teachers do need time to get work done. That’s just fact. And random snow days isn’t enough.
In the rest of the white-collar professional world, on days of inclement weather, employees, bring home laptops, and participate in meetings, trainings, calls, etc. It’s not “tracking” or “micromanagement” when Deloitte does it, why is it such an imposition for teachers?
As I wrote, I am working on snow days. I am also bringing home my laptop, participating in team meetings, etc. I don’t need an administrator to TELL me to work. I don’t need an administrator to TELL me to contact my team and schedule a meeting because we have the gift of time that day. I’m already on it.
My comment regarding micromanaging is related to the suggestion above that teachers should be ***told*** to work on these days. Oh, we are. I don’t need an administrator checking in on me.
Anonymous
02/17/2026 17:03
Subject: The response to MoCo's calendar change shows why the FCPS religious holidays will never go away
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:The snow days should be virtual days at this point. A week without school over a snowstorm is ridiculous in 2026
We would have been absent. Virtual school is a waste of time unless you are enrolled in a dedicated virtual program that is established for that type of learning. The COVID year was a complete waste, and my kid attended every day. The math was so bad that we started RSM and found competition math. DS loved it and still participates in math competitions but he was learning nothing in math during COVID.
I agree virtual school is a waste. Teachers should telework on snow days like other professionals and subsequent teacher workdays/early release days cancelled.
Teachers already work on snow days. I’m a professional. I work until the work is done, which often means every day of the week.
Are you saying that it should simply be somehow tracked? Micromanaged?
So what you’re really saying is that teacher work time shouldn’t be reflected in the calendar. Parents shouldn’t have to find childcare so teachers can get behind-the-scenes work done.
Fine. I actually agree. But until we teach fewer classes or have fewer duties, I’m not sure what the solution is. Simply put: teachers do need time to get work done. That’s just fact. And random snow days isn’t enough.
In the rest of the white-collar professional world, on days of inclement weather, employees, bring home laptops, and participate in meetings, trainings, calls, etc. It’s not “tracking” or “micromanagement” when Deloitte does it, why is it such an imposition for teachers?
Anonymous
02/17/2026 16:56
Subject: The response to MoCo's calendar change shows why the FCPS religious holidays will never go away
I would be 1000% okay with no teacher work days if I only taught 2 blocks a day instead of 3, or had class sizes of 20 instead of 32. Then I'd actually have time to get stuff done during the day. To do the job *well* takes ~3 hours of student free time a day, on average. I get 90 minutes, and half of it is meetings or duties--so really 45.
Anonymous
02/17/2026 16:29
Subject: The response to MoCo's calendar change shows why the FCPS religious holidays will never go away
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:The snow days should be virtual days at this point. A week without school over a snowstorm is ridiculous in 2026
We would have been absent. Virtual school is a waste of time unless you are enrolled in a dedicated virtual program that is established for that type of learning. The COVID year was a complete waste, and my kid attended every day. The math was so bad that we started RSM and found competition math. DS loved it and still participates in math competitions but he was learning nothing in math during COVID.
I agree virtual school is a waste. Teachers should telework on snow days like other professionals and subsequent teacher workdays/early release days cancelled.
Teachers already work on snow days. I’m a professional. I work until the work is done, which often means every day of the week.
Are you saying that it should simply be somehow tracked? Micromanaged?
So what you’re really saying is that teacher work time shouldn’t be reflected in the calendar. Parents shouldn’t have to find childcare so teachers can get behind-the-scenes work done.
Fine. I actually agree. But until we teach fewer classes or have fewer duties, I’m not sure what the solution is. Simply put: teachers do need time to get work done. That’s just fact. And random snow days isn’t enough.
Anonymous
02/17/2026 13:56
Subject: The response to MoCo's calendar change shows why the FCPS religious holidays will never go away
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:The snow days should be virtual days at this point. A week without school over a snowstorm is ridiculous in 2026
We would have been absent. Virtual school is a waste of time unless you are enrolled in a dedicated virtual program that is established for that type of learning. The COVID year was a complete waste, and my kid attended every day. The math was so bad that we started RSM and found competition math. DS loved it and still participates in math competitions but he was learning nothing in math during COVID.
I agree virtual school is a waste. Teachers should telework on snow days like other professionals and subsequent teacher workdays/early release days cancelled.
Anonymous
02/17/2026 11:15
Subject: The response to MoCo's calendar change shows why the FCPS religious holidays will never go away
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Here is a straightforward calendar from a state/metropolitan area with a diverse population https://resources.finalsite.net/images/v1756930407/mplsk12mnus/ge5clwh0shgydwvthwbs/SYCalendar-English-2026-27.pdf
Put it out there and if people don’t like it there is always private school, home school, or excused absences.
Oh look, this year Minneapolis is also closed Monday/Tuesday for Presidents Day weekend and is giving 3 days off for Memorial Day due to Eid.
https://www.centerschool.org/about/mps-calendar-2025-2026
I'm a native Minnesotan and for whatever reason, we always had one of the lowest number of school days required. Started after Labor Day, ended the first week of June. Looks like only Colorado is lower
I’m a native New Yorker. school always started Tuesday after labor day and we ended school the Friday before Father’s Day. There was never any change. Parents loved this so they knew when to plan vacations annually. The dates for first and last day of school never changed. We rarely had more than 2 snow days in a row off
Doesn’t FCPS always start 2 weeks before Labor Day and then finishes the Wednesday or Thursday before Father’s Day. The weeks for summer are fairly consistent. It’s the one off closures during the school year that are less predictable and more frustrating.
FCPS only started “always starting two weeks before Labor Day” within the last decade. Around when they stated having days off for every religion under the sun and all of the teacher work days and all of the federal holidays. It’s disruptive to students and teachers alike but we’re stuck with it now unless there’s a serious lobby to get rid of the swiss cheese calendar. We’re doing our kids a disservice with this absolute lack of consistency.
Anonymous
02/17/2026 10:29
Subject: The response to MoCo's calendar change shows why the FCPS religious holidays will never go away
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Here is a straightforward calendar from a state/metropolitan area with a diverse population https://resources.finalsite.net/images/v1756930407/mplsk12mnus/ge5clwh0shgydwvthwbs/SYCalendar-English-2026-27.pdf
Put it out there and if people don’t like it there is always private school, home school, or excused absences.
Oh look, this year Minneapolis is also closed Monday/Tuesday for Presidents Day weekend and is giving 3 days off for Memorial Day due to Eid.
https://www.centerschool.org/about/mps-calendar-2025-2026
I'm a native Minnesotan and for whatever reason, we always had one of the lowest number of school days required. Started after Labor Day, ended the first week of June. Looks like only Colorado is lower
I’m a native New Yorker. school always started Tuesday after labor day and we ended school the Friday before Father’s Day. There was never any change. Parents loved this so they knew when to plan vacations annually. The dates for first and last day of school never changed. We rarely had more than 2 snow days in a row off
Doesn’t FCPS always start 2 weeks before Labor Day and then finishes the Wednesday or Thursday before Father’s Day. The weeks for summer are fairly consistent. It’s the one off closures during the school year that are less predictable and more frustrating.
Anonymous
02/17/2026 09:54
Subject: The response to MoCo's calendar change shows why the FCPS religious holidays will never go away
Anonymous wrote:The snow days should be virtual days at this point. A week without school over a snowstorm is ridiculous in 2026
We would have been absent. Virtual school is a waste of time unless you are enrolled in a dedicated virtual program that is established for that type of learning. The COVID year was a complete waste, and my kid attended every day. The math was so bad that we started RSM and found competition math. DS loved it and still participates in math competitions but he was learning nothing in math during COVID.
Anonymous
02/17/2026 09:53
Subject: The response to MoCo's calendar change shows why the FCPS religious holidays will never go away
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Here is a straightforward calendar from a state/metropolitan area with a diverse population https://resources.finalsite.net/images/v1756930407/mplsk12mnus/ge5clwh0shgydwvthwbs/SYCalendar-English-2026-27.pdf
Put it out there and if people don’t like it there is always private school, home school, or excused absences.
Oh look, this year Minneapolis is also closed Monday/Tuesday for Presidents Day weekend and is giving 3 days off for Memorial Day due to Eid.
https://www.centerschool.org/about/mps-calendar-2025-2026
I'm a native Minnesotan and for whatever reason, we always had one of the lowest number of school days required. Started after Labor Day, ended the first week of June. Looks like only Colorado is lower
I’m a native New Yorker. school always started Tuesday after labor day and we ended school the Friday before Father’s Day. There was never any change. Parents loved this so they knew when to plan vacations annually. The dates for first and last day of school never changed. We rarely had more than 2 snow days in a row off
Anonymous
02/17/2026 09:49
Subject: The response to MoCo's calendar change shows why the FCPS religious holidays will never go away
The snow days should be virtual days at this point. A week without school over a snowstorm is ridiculous in 2026
Anonymous
02/17/2026 09:48
Subject: The response to MoCo's calendar change shows why the FCPS religious holidays will never go away
There’s a significant Ethiopian community in dc. Why isn’t Orthodox Christmas (January 7) a holiday for them?
Anonymous
02/17/2026 09:45
Subject: The response to MoCo's calendar change shows why the FCPS religious holidays will never go away
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:I have zero desire for an even shorter summer. It is only about two months. For kids that do fall sports or band (ignoring summer swim even) it is about 6 weeks before they have to report in Aug. And my kid’s sport starts Green Day practices in July. The need time to just be kids and do stuff you cannot easily do during the year.
No one wants year round school or a short, 2 month summer
Some people do want year round school. Two weeks off after quarters would be amazing for travel and there would be enough time in summer to take good trips and do camps. The people who seem to oppose year round school are parents that are devoted to summer swim and feel like they need 8 weeks of travel. Most families cannot afford that type of travel and don't participate in summer swim but the families that do scream loudly.