Islamic Holidays Will Not Be Added to MCPS Calendar
County school board asks that absenteeism be monitored on Islamic holidays to determine if holidays should be declared no-school days.
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Islamic holidays will not be added to Montgomery County Public Schools' list of no-school days in the foreseeable future, The Washington Post reported.
Members of the county school board said Tuesday that they could not add a school holiday just for religious reasons, but asked that attendance be monitored closely on Islamic holidays to determine if closing school on those days would be warranted, The Post added. Students who miss school for religions reasons are excused from class, but still need to make up the work from the school day.
"There are no exact figures on Muslim students or teachers in Montgomery, but Muslim leaders say the population is sizable and growing. ... [Still, in] recent years, absenteeism on Muslim holidays has not been high," according to school officials, The Post reported.
The Montgomery County Public Schools calendar already includes several holidays related to the Christian calendar (Christmas, Good Friday, the so-called "Easter Monday") and to the Jewish calendar (Yom Kippur, Rosh Hashanah).
Major Islamic holidays include Eid al-Fitr (which next begins at the end of Ramadan on Aug. 8, 2013—starting at sundown the previous day) and Eid al-Adha (which next begins on Oct. 15, 2013—also starting at sundown the previous day). Islamic holidays are celebrated 11 days earlier each year.
In Cambridge, MA, public schools began closing for one Islamic holiday a year starting in the 2011-2012 school year, The Boston Globe reported.
Public schools in Dearborn, MI, began closing for Islamic holidays 12 years ago, due to the district's large Muslim population, and public schools in Burlington, VT, also have observed Islamic holidays, The Globe added.
Read more about the issue on The Post's website.
Do you think Islamic holidays should be added to the county's list of no-school days? Do you think there are too many holidays on the school calendar?
Is monitoring absenteeism on Islamic holidays a useful way to measure the number of students and staff who would benefit from not having school on Islamic holidays?
Tell us in the comments.
sprite
8:49 am on Thursday, November 15, 2012
I have a disagreement first with calling Jewish Holidays by their names, but Christian Holidays are Winter Break and Spring Break. So, they should be called, like they used to be, Christmas Break and Easter Break. Then, secondly, if there is a large enough population for a Islamic Holiday, then they should be included and called by their religious name. What is fair for one, should be fair for all.
Hassan A.
9:45 am on Thursday, November 15, 2012
100% agreed. Same goes with food, and extra curricular activities. Cater to the needs of the students and parents while producing a high level of academics.
David A Kearns
2:36 pm on Thursday, November 15, 2012
I am Muslim and I think MCPS made the correct decision.
John
4:04 pm on Thursday, November 15, 2012
Why not just give everyone a holiday for whatever their persuasion may be and eliniate school altogether. It seems to be headed in that direction. The current ones seems to have lost their real true meaning and are only looked at as ameans to put money in pockets. Let's have only one holiday at a time. Next thing you will see black Friday will eliminate Thanksgiving!