Dear CMS, please don’t end the school year on a random Tuesday
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You have to be a pretty big education nerd to pay attention to how the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools board sets the academic calendar for upcoming years.
Luckily, I am.
Generally, the school district will release two options to the public about a year and a half ahead of time and let them weigh in. I don’t think many people do.
Some years, the options are very different — including with different numbers of days in the school year.
Here are this year’s two possibilities: Option A. Option B.
The two options for the 2018-19 school year are the same length: 177 days. Both have August 27 as the first day of school.
But several differences make Option B the better choice.
1) The end of the school year. Option A has the last day of school on a Tuesday. Tuesday!?! What are parents supposed to do with that week? Option B ends the year on a Friday, as it should be.
2) Spring break. Option A has the respite during the first week in April, beginning and ending on a Monday. That means the kids go back to school on a Tuesday.
Option B is later in the month and in a more traditional spot, the week before Easter on April 21. It also begins with a Friday off, and then the kids go back on a Monday. Makes a lot more sense.
3) Winter break. This isn’t a huge deal, but the two options are shifted by one day. Option A has the winter intermission begin a day later, and the kids go back a day later (January 3). Option B ends a day earlier, and students return January 2.
I don’t know about you, but I’m way ready for winter break to be over by the end of it. Option B wins again.
You can weigh in yourself through this survey.