Anonymous
Post 11/23/2022 10:33     Subject: APS calendar options are here
The thing that I hate the most is that it’s been a moving target. We can’t plan for our family from one year to the next because it will likely change. Also agree with PP. two weeks off in December means we use our leave and I would rather take that time off in the summer.
Anonymous
Post 11/23/2022 09:24     Subject: APS calendar options are here
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:I don’t recall having calendar issues in the previous administration. Is it just me?? I can’t believe staff is spending so much time debating something that could be fixed by using a calendar that already worked. Just get rid of religious holidays.


We have started to chase Fairfax, which this year pulled the rug out by starting even earlier after we had already moved up a week to stay with them. The thing to get rid of, that most people supported, is the two week winter break. It’s not customary in most parts of the country and working parents hate it. I would much rather travel towards the end of August and have a nice break before school starts than have to scramble to get childcare for that first week or burn two whole weeks of leave. You want to go visit family halfway around the world, do it in the summer if you can’t fit it in in a week (which with the way the holidays fall is usually about 10 days). I’m so tempted not to send my kid back for the first week because they shouldn’t be rewarded for such behavior and kids don’t belong in school in the middle of August.

Is two weeks not common for winter? When I moved here and started working for APS I thought it was weird that they didn’t get two weeks off, then they switched.
Anonymous
Post 11/23/2022 09:22     Subject: APS calendar options are here
Anonymous wrote:I don’t recall having calendar issues in the previous administration. Is it just me?? I can’t believe staff is spending so much time debating something that could be fixed by using a calendar that already worked. Just get rid of religious holidays.

There was a year where they surveyed and then came up with another option that wasn’t in the survey at all (which is what I hope happens here)
Anonymous
Post 11/23/2022 09:20     Subject: APS calendar options are here
Anonymous wrote:I don’t recall having calendar issues in the previous administration. Is it just me?? I can’t believe staff is spending so much time debating something that could be fixed by using a calendar that already worked. Just get rid of religious holidays.


We have started to chase Fairfax, which this year pulled the rug out by starting even earlier after we had already moved up a week to stay with them. The thing to get rid of, that most people supported, is the two week winter break. It’s not customary in most parts of the country and working parents hate it. I would much rather travel towards the end of August and have a nice break before school starts than have to scramble to get childcare for that first week or burn two whole weeks of leave. You want to go visit family halfway around the world, do it in the summer if you can’t fit it in in a week (which with the way the holidays fall is usually about 10 days). I’m so tempted not to send my kid back for the first week because they shouldn’t be rewarded for such behavior and kids don’t belong in school in the middle of August.
Anonymous
Post 11/23/2022 09:09     Subject: APS calendar options are here
I don’t recall having calendar issues in the previous administration. Is it just me?? I can’t believe staff is spending so much time debating something that could be fixed by using a calendar that already worked. Just get rid of religious holidays.
Anonymous
Post 11/23/2022 09:06     Subject: Re:APS calendar options are here
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:It's the same amount of time off thought isn't it? Option 1 starts a week earlier but has 2 weeks off at Christmas. Options 2 and 3 start a week later but only have one week off at Christmas.

I'm fine with option 1. Summer is long enough and I like the 2 week winter break.


Get rid of the religious holidays and end on June 7. Falls Church is doing it. One of Loudoun’s options is the same. A nine week summer means summer school ends just as teachers have to report back. I’m sure that will make finding summer school teachers much easier.


This sounds great to me.


+1



+1000
Anonymous
Post 11/23/2022 00:11     Subject: Re:APS calendar options are here
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:It's the same amount of time off thought isn't it? Option 1 starts a week earlier but has 2 weeks off at Christmas. Options 2 and 3 start a week later but only have one week off at Christmas.

I'm fine with option 1. Summer is long enough and I like the 2 week winter break.


Get rid of the religious holidays and end on June 7. Falls Church is doing it. One of Loudoun’s options is the same. A nine week summer means summer school ends just as teachers have to report back. I’m sure that will make finding summer school teachers much easier.


This sounds great to me.


+1

Anonymous
Post 11/22/2022 22:58     Subject: Re:APS calendar options are here
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:It's the same amount of time off thought isn't it? Option 1 starts a week earlier but has 2 weeks off at Christmas. Options 2 and 3 start a week later but only have one week off at Christmas.

I'm fine with option 1. Summer is long enough and I like the 2 week winter break.


Get rid of the religious holidays and end on June 7. Falls Church is doing it. One of Loudoun’s options is the same. A nine week summer means summer school ends just as teachers have to report back. I’m sure that will make finding summer school teachers much easier.


This sounds great to me.
Anonymous
Post 11/22/2022 22:24     Subject: Re:APS calendar options are here
Anonymous wrote:It's the same amount of time off thought isn't it? Option 1 starts a week earlier but has 2 weeks off at Christmas. Options 2 and 3 start a week later but only have one week off at Christmas.

I'm fine with option 1. Summer is long enough and I like the 2 week winter break.


Get rid of the religious holidays and end on June 7. Falls Church is doing it. One of Loudoun’s options is the same. A nine week summer means summer school ends just as teachers have to report back. I’m sure that will make finding summer school teachers much easier.
Anonymous
Post 11/22/2022 22:08     Subject: Re:APS calendar options are here
It's the same amount of time off thought isn't it? Option 1 starts a week earlier but has 2 weeks off at Christmas. Options 2 and 3 start a week later but only have one week off at Christmas.

I'm fine with option 1. Summer is long enough and I like the 2 week winter break.
Anonymous
Post 11/22/2022 21:08     Subject: APS calendar options are here
So… Duran gave the Central Office staff an extra two weeks of paid vacation, and he wants to take a week from his teachers? Why would anyone stay in the classroom?
Anonymous
Post 11/22/2022 21:06     Subject: APS calendar options are here
Anonymous wrote:Is there any chance the school board will offer a pre-planned compromise? Community preferred 2, committee preferred 3, superintendent proposes 1 and school board compromises with 3? I feel like the boundary process was similar, where the superintendent presented something and the school board suggested/compromised on something different. Or compromise by with option 2, the only difference from option 3 is spring break lines up with neighboring districts which I think is a big deal.


Sorry I think I have backward which option has spring break align... but basically wondering if they'll go with the later start but choose the spring break that aligns as a compromise.

Otherwise they are really, really saying that there is no point in surveying people given that 72% of respondents preferred something other than option 1. I know they don't really care, but this is a pretty in your face I don't care.
Anonymous
Post 11/22/2022 21:04     Subject: APS calendar options are here
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:The increase in instructional time is great. Back to 180 days. I'm very happy about that.


I’m a teacher, I’m furious. We’ve never started that early. Having the time off in the summer is one of the few, very important, perks of this job. It’s not the salary. The light workload. It’s the summer, and I’m losing a week of it?!

I’m taking the 10th and 11th off
Anonymous
Post 11/22/2022 21:04     Subject: APS calendar options are here
Is there any chance the school board will offer a pre-planned compromise? Community preferred 2, committee preferred 3, superintendent proposes 1 and school board compromises with 3? I feel like the boundary process was similar, where the superintendent presented something and the school board suggested/compromised on something different. Or compromise by with option 2, the only difference from option 3 is spring break lines up with neighboring districts which I think is a big deal.
Anonymous
Post 11/22/2022 20:57     Subject: APS calendar options are here
Anonymous wrote:The increase in instructional time is great. Back to 180 days. I'm very happy about that.


I’m a teacher, I’m furious. We’ve never started that early. Having the time off in the summer is one of the few, very important, perks of this job. It’s not the salary. The light workload. It’s the summer, and I’m losing a week of it?!