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Following a lengthy discussion of calendar options on November 5, the Lincoln-Sudbury (L-S) Regional High School School Committee appears to have settled on a direction for changes to their school calendar.
The committee largely agreed that they would prefer to add holidays, including Eid and Diwali, to the school calendar. It remains undecided which holidays will be added, and some could be added by way of adjustments to early release days. But the committee had clear consensus that they would be attempting to add holidays, and would not be cutting longstanding holidays in an effort to slim down to State and Federal holidays only.
That puts L-S on a different trajectory than the Sudbury Public Schools (SPS) School Committee, which earlier in the week expressed a preference for reverting back to State and Federal holidays only.
The tri-district calendar review process was initiated to bring the Sudbury, Lincoln and Lincoln-Sudbury school district calendars into greater alignment. With roughly a week to go before the committees from the three districts reconvene, it appears as though they could become more misaligned than before.
The majority of the L-S School Committee expressed several concerns about shifting to State and Federal holidays only. Such a move would eliminate two Jewish holidays and Good Friday from the calendar. Chair Ravi Simon pointed out that some families moved to Sudbury precisely because those days were days off on the school calendars. He added that they had been on the school calendar for decades.
Member Maura Carty supported a shift to State and Federal holidays only, and expressed that it was important not to add significantly to the end of the school year if the district were to add holidays.
Member Charles Morton said that he felt it would be problematic to eliminate existing holidays in response to a request from community members to add new holidays. That sentiment was echoed by several members of the committee.
While no formal decisions have been made, it was clear that Lincoln-Sudbury would endeavor to add holidays while minimizing disruptions to the academic experience at L-S. That may include changes to how other holidays are observed, creative use of early release days, or adjustments to school breaks. Much still depends on upcoming discussions both at the next meeting of the three districts, and ongoing L-S School Committee meetings.
