This year, fewer than half of the school weeks in Fairfax County Public Schools (FCPS) are five-day weeks. The school calendar is interrupted with multiple days off that are coded as “teacher workday,” “staff development day,” “school planning day,” and “religious and cultural observance day.” There were also 12 “early release” days intended to give teachers more time for grading, planning, and training.
In response, parents in Virginia’s largest public school district are demanding more consistent instructional time for their children. School board members attest that they have received thousands of emails from parents about the school calendar. One of them, Melanie Meren, said, “Parents are seeking help. They want their kids in school for as many five-day school weeks as possible.”
In a school board meeting on April 9, Meren put forth multiple motions to expand five-day school weeks during the year. After extensive debate, the 12-Democrat endorsed school board members voted against all of the motions except reducing early-release days from 12 days to eight days, and omitting Veteran’s Day as a school holiday.
On June 5, Fairfax County Public Schools emailed parents a survey regarding potential changes to the school calendar. The email notified parents that they have until Monday, June 22, at 11:59 p.m. to complete the survey. One of the questions is, “If the school calendar required modifying one of the following, which would be the most acceptable to you? (Select one).”
Among others, one of the options is, “Eliminating holidays recognizing religious and cultural observances (e.g., Christmas, Diwali, Eid-al-Fitr, Rosh Hashanah, and other observed holidays).”
Strangely, the survey implies that teacher planning days are untouchable, but Christmas is not.
Christmas is not only a sacred, religious holiday celebrated since the founding of our nation, it is also a federal holiday. Given that Fairfax County is a short commuting distance from our nation’s capital, and many of the district’s parents are federal workers, it would seem that Christmas in particular would be off-limits.
But maybe that’s the point. By presenting parents with a completely unrealistic alternative, Fairfax County’s leaders are reinforcing that parents don’t really get a choice at all.
Sadly, this is not the first time FCPS’s leaders waved the proverbial middle finger at families—and Christians in particular. In 2022, the district’s school board members voted to change spring break with the sole purpose of separating it from Easter.
A couple years later, in 2024, the county’s Board of Supervisors voted to commemorate “Transgender Visibility Day” on Easter—a move that offended many Christians on their holiest day.
One would think district leaders would share parents’ concerns about continued shortened school weeks considering Fairfax County’s students are behind academically, and have been for the past few years. About a quarter of the district’s 177,000 students are not proficient in reading, math, and science.
In other words, this debate is about priorities. Fairfax County’s parents are asking for a school system that focuses first on its fundamental mission: educating children. When nearly one in four students is not proficient in reading, math, or science, district leaders should be concentrating their efforts on improving academic outcomes rather than advancing controversial initiatives or conducting surveys that are ignored.
The school calendar should be designed around maximizing consistent instructional time, supporting families, and respecting longstanding community traditions, including federal holidays such as Christmas. Parents deserve confidence that their feedback matters and that decisions are being made in the best interests of students rather than to satisfy political or ideological goals.
