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Board discusses 2026-27 school-calendar priorities; members favor two-week winter break, Veterans Day off and a full spring break
Summary
Charles County school staff briefed the board on the calendar process for 2026-27. Board members expressed preferences for preserving Veterans Day as a system holiday, keeping a two-week winter break, a full week spring break, and generally retaining the traditional late-August start rather than moving to an after-Labor-Day schedule.
Shelley Mackie, director of communications and media relations, briefed the Board of Education on the calendar-development process for the 2026-27 school year during the Feb. 11 meeting and solicited the board's priorities for the calendar committee.
Mackie said the district typically presents school calendars two years in advance and emphasized the constraints the committee must respect: the state requirement that students attend at least 180 days, negotiated teacher workdays (190 for certificated staff including 10 early-dismissal days), federal and state holidays and the state rules on virtual instruction days.
Board members offered preferences that staff said will guide initial calendar drafts. Common suggestions included: - Preserve Veterans Day as a system holiday for students and staff; several members said Veterans Day should be observed systemwide. - Keep a two-week winter break that spans Christmas and New Year, with one board member noting that a winter start on Dec. 24 and return on Jan. 4 would be practical in 2026-27. - Maintain a full week spring break rather than a short midweek break; members said this supports family travel, senior schedules and college-application timelines. - Prefer the traditional late-August start (the week before Labor Day or the final week of August) rather than shifting the school year to begin after Labor Day; some members noted regional alignment with neighboring counties as a consideration.
Mackie said the calendar committee includes teachers, union reps, parents and community members. The committee will meet beginning Feb. 19 and present draft models to the board for discussion in March; the committee will open a public interest application and likely run a community survey once drafts are ready.
Why it matters: Calendar decisions affect families, staff schedules, school operations and extracurricular coordination with neighboring jurisdictions. Board guidance will shape the committee's work and the survey questions that inform public feedback.
