Two new holidays added to B.B. Schools calendar
January 18, 2024 at 12:40 a.m.
Following a request for input from the Blind Brook School District community, development of the 2024-25 school calendar is well underway, according to Superintendent of Schools Dr. Colin Byrne. And it’s on track to be proposed at the next Board of Education meeting on Tuesday, Jan. 23.
It’s a project that’s been in the works since October 2023 when Byrne, in an effort to provide a more inclusive atmosphere, took an additional step than has been practiced before—he requested involvement from students, parents and faculty.
In October, at the regular monthly school board meeting, Byrne provided what the district’s past practices had been, as well as what factors must be at play while crafting the calendar. Those factors include contract obligations, federal and state holidays, state laws and assessment scheduling.
Additionally, however, he proposed the possibility of adding days off to the calendar for religious observances or cultural celebrations that are not currently considered.
At the last Board of Education meeting on Jan. 10, Byrne presented a draft of the 2024-25 calendar, which included some new elements for the district.
The calendar sees days off for students on two new holidays: the Lunar New Year on Jan. 29 and Diwali on Nov. 1.
The Lunar New Year is to be expected—Governor Kathy Hochul signed legislation declaring it a public school holiday across the state on Sept. 9, 2023. Though the district had planned to recognize the holiday this year, it ended up being irrelevant in the juggle because the date fell on a Sunday. The holiday is commemorated by a variety of Asian cultures and has been celebrated in Blind Brook schools in the past, though it has never been a day off for students.
While the Lunar New Year school holiday was put forward by the state, Diwali was introduced into the calendar by popular demand. “We had a variety of feedback, including (about) new holidays,” Byrne said in a phone interview. “Diwali was a common one.”
Diwali is a major cultural and religious festival in India celebrating the triumph of light over darkness and is observed by several faiths including Hinduism and Sikhism.
With the added holidays, the school district would see 183 days of student attendance, three more than the New York State requirement of 180 days. However, Byrne noted that additional changes are still required.
“For contract reasons, we need 181 school days,” he said at the Jan. 10 meeting. During the presentation, Byrne spoke of some options the district had to reach that goal. Those options include adding more snow days, adding to the December holiday break or the April spring break, ending the school year early or introducing a day off in March, which currently sees students attend school with no respite apart from weekends.
The board members discussed what could be done about the extra two days. Board President Jeffrey Mensch suggested adding to the December break, making it two weeks in total. Katherine Hallissy Ayala was in favor of incorporating two more snow days in the schedule, adding that they can be used for any kind of facility emergency, weather or otherwise.
As the board weighed the options, Byrne said the calendar did not have to be finalized at that meeting, reiterating that he was open to hearing what the public and staff had to say on the issue.
In the later interview, he said that while some parents have given their opinions, there’s no clear agreement yet.
“People have said to extend holiday breaks, end the year earlier, start the year earlier,” the superintendent said. “But there hasn’t really been an overwhelming consensus.”
He mentioned that he expects to receive more faculty input in the coming days.
“There’s a section in the [Teachers’] Federation contract for administration to ask faculty for input on the calendar,” he said. All opinions are welcome and will be taken into consideration when the final iteration of the datebook is drafted.
“We want to get something out as quickly as possible,” Byrne said. He wants families to be able to make vacation plans without having to worry about when their children will be in school. “We’re working towards having our final proposal at the next board meeting.”
Anyone who would like to reach out to Superintendent Byrne with thoughts or suggestions can reach him at [email protected].
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