Sunday, May 12, 2019

Dozens of U.S. Cities, No Dec. 23 School --Only Other Open Major NE School District--Philly, Just for P.D.

     *Big cities w/o Dec. 23 school listed    *MORE petition for making Monday Dec. 23 a vacation day
UFT President for Eternity, Michael Mulgrew, uses the excuse that the curious December 23, 2019 New York City school schedule is handed down from Albany.

QUESTION: Mulgrew has such clout in Albany? Then why can he not get accomplished democratic autonomy for New York City? We have no home rule. We are a petty fief of the state. Maybe Mulgrew and the UNITY clan like it this way: a little number of players can negotiate with each other in secret, unlike locales school districts that putting the decision on whether to open December 23 up an open public discussion. This fiasco shows the failure of having mayoral control where major decisions impacting the schools are addressed behind closed doors.

It will be pretty awkward and difficult leading classes and getting work accomplished, when all the news and other media will be mentioning vacations having begun over the weekend. Students exposed to this will be mighty jealous and embittered. Of all the days school will feel like confinement, this will be it.

Other big cities, unlike New York City, closed on December 23:
Los Angeles, Chicago, Houston, Phoenix (break begins on Dec. 20), San Antonio, San Diego.
Philadelphia will be open on Dec. 23 --only for professional development.

Other Northeast cities with populations over 100,000, closed on Dec. 23, these districts have already released their 2019-2020 school year calendars:
Washington, DC, Boston, Baltimore,
Worcester, Providence, Springfield (Dec. 20 is a p.d. day), Rochester, YonkersStamford, Allentown, Cambridge, Lowell (Dec. 20: 'Holiday Vacation Begins at the Close of Day'), Manchester, NH (Dec. 20: early release for elementary schools), Waterbury, CT, Lakewood, NJ.

And others:
New Bedford, MA ('from the close of school on Dec. 20'), Brockton, MA, Quincy, MA 

Exceptions:
Woodbridge, NJ (4 hour day, Dec. 23)

To be determined:
Newark, Jersey City, Buffalo, Syracuse, Paterson, Edison, Elizabeth,
Bridgeport, New Haven, Hartford

PLEASE CLICK TO SIGN THE PETITION TO CHANCELLOR CARRANZA TO REMOVE DECEMBER 23 FROM THE NEW YORK CITY DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION SCHOOLS SCHEDULE, AS NEARLY EVERY OTHER SCHOOL DISTRICT HAS DONE.


Monday, May 6, 2019

Mulgrew Gives 'Blame NY State' As Its Excuse for Dec. 23 School Day --So Why Do Other Cities Take Dec. 23 Off Their Calendars?

Michael Mulgrew's [Unity Caucus leadership] has negotiated away Monday December 23, 2019 as a functioning school day --in spite of the precedence of no school sessions for four previous instances of December 23 on Mondays.
President Mulgrew gave the excuse that the calendar constraints are dictated by New York State.

Yet, the districts in New York State that have so far released their 2019-2020 school calendars have all December 23 treated as part of Holiday Break.
So, NYC Is the only school system in New York yet to schedule 12/23/19 as a school day. In descending order of population. (Cities that have not issued their calendars are not listed.)
Since all known calendars exclude Dec. 23 why does NYC have school that day?

Yonkers: December 23 is off.
Clarkstown [Spring Valley is partly in the Clarkstown district]: December 23 is off. 
Long Beach: December 23 is off.
Harrison: December 23 is off.
Lindenhurst: December 23 is off.
Glen Cove: December 23 is off.
Rockville Centre: December 23 is off.
Garden City: December 23 is off.
West Hempstead: December 23 is off.
Lynbrook: December 23 is off.
Mamaroneck: December 23 is off.
Mineola: December 23 is off.
Scarsdale: December 23 is off.
Massapequa: December 23 is off.
Blind Brook-Rye: December 23 is off.
Babylon: December 23 is off.
Patchogue-Medford: December 23 is off.
Dobbs Ferry: December 23 is off.
Great Neck: December 23 is off.
Half Hollow Hills [Dix Hills, Melville, parts of Deer Park, East Farmingdale, West Hills]: December 23 is off.
Hastings-on-Hudson: December 23 is off.
Northport &  East Northport: December 23 is off.
East Williston: December 23 is off.
Pleasantville: December 23 is off.
New Paltz: December 23 is off.
Warwick Valley: December 23 is off.
Tuckahoe: December 23 is off.
Malone: December 23 is off.
Hilton: December 23 is off.
Elmsford: December 23 is off.
Ardsley: December 23 is off.
Gouverneur: December 23 is off.

SIGN THE PETITION: ASK NYC DOE CHANCELLOR RICHARD CARRANZA TO REMOVE DEC. 23 FROM THE 2019-2020 CALENDAR:

Make Monday, December 23rd a vacation day for NYC schools!