Anonymous wrote:It’s not racist. I had students of all races take off for two or three weeks in January. Yes, white children, too. The family was always on another continent. Always.

This. It's very common in this area because of how many international families live here. Not just immigrant families (but yes, also many immigrants) but also multi-national families and people living in this area for diplomatic postings or to work at international organizations. Many school districts don't have these populations and thus don't have this issue, but it's common in this area.

I think it's tough for schools because they understand students aren't missing school just because families don't care about academics or are lazy or something, but also the schools are under pressures from the district and the state to hit certain attendance targets, and those targets do no distinguish between a student who is truant for two weeks because they are skipping school to do drugs (or a parent who turns a blind eye to that) and student who is spending that week visiting his grandparents, diligently doing homework overseen by parents, and even having an educational experience visiting another country and conversing in another language.

I don't think it's racist, I think it's just a reflection of trying to reconcile the unique population of DMV schools with the traditional expectations of American public school.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:They should have sent this email about at the start of the school year. People bought their tickets months ago. Too little too late.

+1 Talking about this days before a family is about to step on to a plane is useless. Their plans are already set into motion. They need to harp more on this in August.

FCPS publishes its calendars way in advance. So why would you buy tickets knowing your kid has school? You can't see relatives in the summer? Or winter breaks? I have family abroad too.

I didn’t get this email. Who was it sent to?

Anonymous wrote:They should have sent this email about at the start of the school year. People bought their tickets months ago. Too little too late.

+1 Talking about this days before a family is about to step on to a plane is useless. Their plans are already set into motion. They need to harp more on this in August.

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Anonymous wrote:I am kicking myself that we did not travel for the full week of Thanksgiving. There was no content taught and no assessments and so many kids were out that the school sent several emails begging parents to not call, but to send in absenses through SIS.

Parents, take your children out of school when you need do, especially before breaks. There is nothing going on the days leading up to Winter Break.

Of course families are leaving early.

Wow, PP, you sure come off as arrogant. Do you have kids in every grade? Are you a teacher? If not, I don't think you're qualified to say thst " nothing " is going on during this time.

No content taught, yet in HS they have tests on those 2 days before the break. DS had 4 tests before the break. And if you miss the tests, GL playing catch up. Learn are short, returns are scarce, and many teachers are either out after school or the kids are too exhausted after 8 hours. You can't win.

FCPS is a joke.

Anonymous wrote:NP - school accreditation can be affected by higher numbers of student absenteeism (10% or more missed days for ANY reason).

My straight A honor roll sophmore was out with pneumonia for three days in October. I got a Talking Points message that she would be required to stay after school to make up time missed. She was PULLED five minutes before the bell from her last class and marched to the library for her make up hour. It was like a forced detention/study hall. And she was excused and is an honor roll student.

But I also understand the serious pressure coming from VDOE on absentism and it's defintely showing up in the schools and how they choose to handle it.

THIS is why schools are pushing attendance.

You're thinking about vacations and families; schools are tracking absences and seeing how much closer they are to losing accreditation. Schools can't stop you from pulling your kids out, but they will send message after message because that's pretty much all they can do.

The forced detention is new to me, and that doesn't seem right.

This may change with a new VA governor, and if she changes the school accreditation requirements.

This is not racist. However, I think it's hilarious that FCPS is lecturing families about school attendance when we haven't had two full weeks on the calendar since September.

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Anonymous wrote:Yeah I don't care what they say. Not planning on missing much, but might plan a last minute short trip in early January that spills over into the first day or two after winter break, because the prices do drop a lot and it's one of the only times I can take off work without consequence. We can't use the holidays or teacher workdays to take long weekends because I never have off work during those times and I can't just call out; nor can I travel around Thanksgiving or during FCPS spring break.

Well aren’t you the rebel? Good for you. That will show FCPS.

Not trying to show them anything. Just not going to care about my kids missing a day or two when they’ve decided 39 days off is fine.

Anonymous wrote:They waste all of June once the SOLs are over!

There might be a few schools where this is the case but my kids school has been busy with work through to the last week or so of school, this was ES and MS. There is more then enough to cover and his Teachers have kept going until the end.

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Anonymous wrote:Oh look: another FCPS thread bashing the calendar. Managed to sprinkle in some references to COVID. We get it. You don’t like the calendar. Do you people have anything better to do? I bet if Jeff pulled the IP addresses of these threads, he’d find the same 10 posters.

Including yours, riding to the defense of FCPS against all those meany parents who dare discuss the school calendar on a parenting board 🙄🙄🙄🙄

💯%!!!!

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Anonymous wrote:What absolute bs. I hope no one actually listens to them. Don’t forget how they treated school during Covid. It wasn’t important then and we only got 4 days of school for an entire freaking year on a computer! My child’s teacher actually moved out of the area during the school year and was allowed to still be employed by FCPS.

F off, FCPS.

People who are continuing to post about Covid need serious help. It was 4.5 to 5.5 years ago. Move on.

Why do you care where your child's teacher lived? If he/she was still logging in to Blackboard Collaborate and was teaching, how is it your business where he/she lived? Do you have any concept of how many FCPS teachers live "out of the area," yet still teach in FCPS? There are teachers who live in West Virginia, Eastern MD, Baltimore, Stafford, etc. It's no one's business!

Nope. We parents will never forget how teachers jumped the line to get vaccinated and then refused to come into work. We will never forget the hell that was virtual school.

So we parents will take a vacation when we damn well want to.

"WE" parents?

The vast majority of "we parents" have our mental health in check, so we moved on from Covid-related closures, years ago.

The majority of "we parents" don't hold grudges against people, especially ones who probably weren't remotely involved in decisions regarding return to school.

The majority of " we parents" don't process emotion like a toddler, "I don't like what you said, so I'm taking my toys and going home."

The majority of "we parents" have more intelligence than a gnat, so we don't have our children miss additional school when the concern is missed instructional hours.

I’m a DP but I think the majority of parents who had kids in school during COVID no longer consider the schools credible on the specific issue of attendance. The 2025-2026 calendar, which even the school board realizes is brutally unpopular, makes it worse.

💯 %

The PPs response is obviously from someone who didn’t have multiple kids doing virtual school during Covid and who just doesn’t get it.

I had four children in FCPS during Covid, and both my husband and I were working full-time as well. While I was frustrated back then, I moved on several years ago, [b]as did most people.

I mean, this would be a fascinating thing to study, but I’ve found almost no one in my peer group who thinks schools have a leg to stand on for attendance issues and the mockery around messages like this is immediate. But maybe it was always this way and my sample size is limited to parent's who experienced the COVID years.

+100

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Anonymous wrote:What absolute bs. I hope no one actually listens to them. Don’t forget how they treated school during Covid. It wasn’t important then and we only got 4 days of school for an entire freaking year on a computer! My child’s teacher actually moved out of the area during the school year and was allowed to still be employed by FCPS.

F off, FCPS.

People who are continuing to post about Covid need serious help. It was 4.5 to 5.5 years ago. Move on.

Why do you care where your child's teacher lived? If he/she was still logging in to Blackboard Collaborate and was teaching, how is it your business where he/she lived? Do you have any concept of how many FCPS teachers live "out of the area," yet still teach in FCPS? There are teachers who live in West Virginia, Eastern MD, Baltimore, Stafford, etc. It's no one's business!

Nope. We parents will never forget how teachers jumped the line to get vaccinated and then refused to come into work. We will never forget the hell that was virtual school.

So we parents will take a vacation when we damn well want to.

"WE" parents?

The vast majority of "we parents" have our mental health in check, so we moved on from Covid-related closures, years ago.

The majority of "we parents" don't hold grudges against people, especially ones who probably weren't remotely involved in decisions regarding return to school.

The majority of " we parents" don't process emotion like a toddler, "I don't like what you said, so I'm taking my toys and going home."

The majority of "we parents" have more intelligence than a gnat, so we don't have our children miss additional school when the concern is missed instructional hours.

I’m a DP but I think the majority of parents who had kids in school during COVID no longer consider the schools credible on the specific issue of attendance. The 2025-2026 calendar, which even the school board realizes is brutally unpopular, makes it worse.

💯 %

The PPs response is obviously from someone who didn’t have multiple kids doing virtual school during Covid and who just doesn’t get it.

I had four children in FCPS during Covid, and [b]both my husband and I were working full-time as well. While I was frustrated back then, I moved on several years ago, as did most people.

Got it. You actually weren’t home witnessing the debacle as it occurred. You actually have no idea what was happening online.

Where were your kids while you guys were both working? Did you have them join a pod? That’s a completely different experience then.

Just because you got over it at a certain time, doesn’t mean everyone else has to or did. Sit down and stfu. Go back to working
and buring your head in the sand.

They should have sent this email about at the start of the school year. People bought their tickets months ago. Too little too late.

Anonymous wrote:Oh look: another FCPS thread bashing the calendar. Managed to sprinkle in some references to COVID. We get it. You don’t like the calendar. Do you people have anything better to do? I bet if Jeff pulled the IP addresses of these threads, he’d find the same 10 posters.

Including yours, riding to the defense of FCPS against all those meany parents who dare discuss the school calendar on a parenting board 🙄🙄🙄🙄