PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — Next year’s proposed School District of Philadelphia academic calendar would begin the year after Labor Day while eliminating a pair of traditional holidays.
Under the proposed calendar for 2023-24, the first day of school would be Sept. 5, the day after Labor Day. In previous years, starting before Labor Day often led to school closures or early dismissals because of excessive heat.
For the 2024-25 school year, students would return before Labor Day in order to keep the full winter and spring breaks, but the district said it will make efforts to have the school year begin after Labor Day “whenever possible.”
The district said it would “work closely with the Office of Capital Projects and Facilities to expand cooling systems in our buildings to address heat concerns in August.”
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The proposal also eliminates Indigenous Peoples’ Day and Veterans Day as holidays. Students would be in school on those days, learning about the contributions of indigenous peoples and veterans.
The district says it’s prioritizing cultural and religious days off instead of Veterans Day. Starting this fall, the proposed calendar for the year will make the Muslim holiday Eid al-Adha a day off of school.
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District leaders said the teachers' contract requires that the last day of school must be on or before June 15.
The district says the changes came after community feedback and surveys.
The school district also plans to make the day before Thanksgiving a half day, because parents and staff wanted to prepare for holiday travel and the district says attendance on that day has always been light.
The Board of Education votes on the proposed calendar at its meeting on Feb. 23.
Read the School District of Philadelphia proposed calendar for 2023-24.
Read the School District of Philadelphia proposed calendar for 2024-25.