The Montgomery County Board of Education adopted the calendar for the 2017-18 school year at its December 13 meeting. In a unanimous decision, the Board decided that the school year will begin on September 5, 2017 and end on June 14, 2018.
The board agreed to follow Maryland Governor Larry Hogan’s executive order, signed in August, that required all school districts to start school after Labor Day. Initially, the board had said it would seek a waiver and also developed options that included starting school before Labor Day, as in past years. However, board member Patricia O’Neill said the board needed to abide by state law.
“I think we’ve had to throw up our hands and surrender. I don’t see any viable option other than abiding by the executive order,” O’Neill said in an interview with Bethesda Beat.
The school board tried to argue that the local jurisdiction should have control over the school calendar. However, Governor Hogan dismissed those who opposed his executive order by saying that the majority of the population supported a post-Labor Day school start. The governor amended his original order to make it almost impossible for school systems to receive a waiver from the State Department of Education.
The Board also proposed a contingency plan that includes a total of seven identified dates that could be used as instructional days if necessary to make up school due to snow days. Two of these days are the first two days of the scheduled spring break, March 26 and 27, 2018. The remaining five days would require the district to extend the school year until June 21, 2018.
“It will be nice to have an extended summer break, but if that means [potentially] cutting out vacation days during the school year, I am not in favor of this change,” junior Julia Federman said.
In November, the Board approved the start dates for the 2017-18 school year and instructed MCPS staff to continue to identify options to implement the instructional and operational elements of the calendar, including inclement weather make-up days.
“[The] recommended calendar for [next] school year is consistent with the Governor’s executive order [and] State regulations regarding inclement weather closings… and maximizes instructional time for students while preserving a multi-day break in the spring for families and staff,” MCPS Superintendent Jack Smith said in a December statement.
