Anonymous wrote:In the past, MCPS used the days at the end of the year first as make-up days. Not sure what Thomas Taylor will do.

You just said what he'll most likely do since he did this last year. I hope he'll surprise people and go with the March 20 and April 15 days but I don't expect it.

From today's MSDE meeting (https://marylandpublicschools.org/stateboard/documents/2026/0127/calendar-modification--granting-authority-to-the-state-superintendent-a.pdf). Wonder if MCPS will request this?

"Background
Education Article §7-103 requires schools to be open for student attendance for 180 days and closed on the
following public school holidays: Thanksgiving Day and the day after; Christmas Eve and from then through
January 1; Martin Luther King, Jr. Day; Presidents’ Day; the Friday before Easter and from then through the
Monday after Easter; Memorial Day; and primary and general election days. Subsection (b) (iv) provides the
State Board the authority to permit schools to open on holidays if normal school attendance is prevented
because of natural disaster, civil disaster, or severe weather conditions.

Executive Summary
Weather conditions in January and February can be unpredictable. Granting authority to the State
Superintendent of Schools to approve requests received from local school systems to open schools on
February 16, 2026, Presidents’ Day, will provide local school systems the flexibility to make calendar
modifications and recover instructional time, if needed.

Action
It is being requested that the Maryland State Board of Education grant the State Superintendent of Schools
authority to approve, upon request of a local board of education, flexibility for local school systems to open
for pupil attendance on February 16, 2026, Presidents’ Day, as an inclement weather make-up day, if needed,
for the 2025-2026 school year."

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Anonymous wrote:According to the school calendar, March 20 (which is a professional development day for teachers) is marked as a contingency day for snow. Place your bets on whether MCPS uses that as a learning day….

I really wish they would. But bet the chances are slim to none….

Thanks for wishing away our holiday

Take your holiday. But let the rest of students who aren’t celebrating go to school and not have their summer taken away.

The effect is we have to decide between missing learning and scrambling to make up assignments when we take our holiday or not having our holiday. That’s effectively systemic discrimination.

What MCPS is learning is there is no reasonable way to close for every religious holiday and account for snow and still close by a reasonable date in the summer. I’m all for striking all — Christian, Muslim, Jewish, Hindu — holidays from the calendar all together. Give a few days at the end of each term and be done with it…

State law requires schools close on Christian holidays and on the days adjacent to Christian holidays.

Just some. Orthodox Easter and Good Friday are ignored.

Good Friday is required by the state.

As the made-up holiday of “Easter Monday.”

Why on earth do they require that?

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Now that there will be 4-5 snow days, they have to use the contingency days. Otherwise kids will be in school until almost July.

And yet they won’t. They’ll lean on trying to get a waiver from the state instead

I thought they can't get a waiver without using the contingency days?

Correct. So if they don't use the earlier contingency days, we will be going later into June, likely with half days.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Now that there will be 4-5 snow days, they have to use the contingency days. Otherwise kids will be in school until almost July.

And yet they won’t. They’ll lean on trying to get a waiver from the state instead

I thought they can't get a waiver without using the contingency days?

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:According to the school calendar, March 20 (which is a professional development day for teachers) is marked as a contingency day for snow. Place your bets on whether MCPS uses that as a learning day….

I really wish they would. But bet the chances are slim to none….

Thanks for wishing away our holiday

Take your holiday. But let the rest of students who aren’t celebrating go to school and not have their summer taken away.

The effect is we have to decide between missing learning and scrambling to make up assignments when we take our holiday or not having our holiday. That’s effectively systemic discrimination.

What MCPS is learning is there is no reasonable way to close for every religious holiday and account for snow and still close by a reasonable date in the summer. I’m all for striking all — Christian, Muslim, Jewish, Hindu — holidays from the calendar all together. Give a few days at the end of each term and be done with it…

State law requires schools close on Christian holidays and on the days adjacent to Christian holidays.

Just some. Orthodox Easter and Good Friday are ignored.

Good Friday is required by the state.

As the made-up holiday of “Easter Monday.”

The language the state uses is "The Friday before Easter and from then through the Monday after Easter."

Not applied to Orthodox Easter which is also Easter

OK?

Anonymous wrote:Now that there will be 4-5 snow days, they have to use the contingency days. Otherwise kids will be in school until almost July.

And yet they won’t. They’ll lean on trying to get a waiver from the state instead

Anonymous wrote:According to the school calendar, March 20 (which is a professional development day for teachers) is marked as a contingency day for snow. Place your bets on whether MCPS uses that as a learning day….

I really wish they would. But bet the chances are slim to none….

I wish they would too, particularly since MCPS professional education is terrible.