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Speakers urge Austin ISD to restore Good Friday as a district holiday
Summary
Three in-person speakers and two recorded messages asked the Austin ISD board to restore Good Friday to the academic calendar, framing the request as an issue of religious liberty and student equity; a Maplewood Elementary parent also urged clarity on school-closure processes to stem student departures.
Several community members urged the Austin Independent School District board on March 26 to restore Good Friday as a district holiday and to provide clearer guidance on future school closures.
Carol Frederick told trustees she has repeatedly urged the board to put Good Friday back on the calendar and framed the request in explicitly religious terms: “Good Friday is vital because God so loved the world…He was beaten and tortured and nailed to a cross where he died on a Friday,” she said. Mary Elizabeth Castle told the board she asked trustees to restore Good Friday so students could observe the religious holiday; she said parents and Texas advocacy groups had sent letters asking the district to respect students’ religious liberty. Jonathan, who identified himself as policy director for Texas Values, said excluding Good Friday sends “the message that some beliefs matter more than others” and urged trustees to “please restore Good Friday to the calendar.”
Two prerecorded messages reinforced the request. One caller, Stephanie, asked that Good Friday be returned as “a traditional religious holiday for Christians.” Adam Sparks, a Maplewood Elementary parent who left a recorded comment, also used the public-comment portion to press for more clarity about future school closures and the registration process, saying uncertainty prompted some families to pull children from the district.
The board did not take immediate action on the calendar during the public-testimony portion; staff noted that non-agenda public comments may be followed up but that the board cannot deliberate on items not on the posted agenda. Trustees asked for clarifications from staff after testimony and were told the district would accept additional written comments to trustees via trustees@austinisd.org.
The public testimony placed cultural-observance concerns alongside operational questions about school closures and registration, with speakers framing Good Friday as both a matter of religious accommodation and a signal of district priorities.
