In the 2023-24 academic year, winter break will be 12 days. In 2024-25, it will be 14 days. Why?

This academic year, the Loudoun County School Board has decided on having a 12-day winter break between Dec. 21, 2023 and Jan. 1, 2024. Since the 15-day winter break in the 2022-23 year, students and staff find this shortened break disappointing.

Complaints about the limited time can be heard throughout the hallways as we approach the upcoming time off. “It’s not just about having time off; it’s about ensuring that students are mentally prepared to tackle their studies effectively when they return,” said an anonymous LCPS student petitioning online to extend the winter break within the county.

There are several different factors that go into the upcoming year’s calendar decisions, including the 180 instructional day requirement, starting the school year on a Thursday, and balancing work days in order to plan around high school level exams. “I don’t think there’s any political reason or anything other than how the calendar fell,” said Potomac Falls High School Principal Dr. Brandon Wolfe.

The Loudoun County School Board seeks student family and school faculty opinions in the calendar during the planning process. “Given the information the Board considers, winter break is a factor, but it is weighted and evaluated against other key factors and community feedback,” said Loudoun County School Board Algonkian District Candidate April Chandler.

Next year, the school board decided in a meeting earlier this year to have a 14-day winter break between Dec. 21, 2024 and Jan. 5, 2025. The year after that, the 16-day winter break will take place between Dec. 20, 2025 and Jan. 4, 2026.

As planning continues beyond the foreseeable future, the School Board mentions that they hope to make their calendars more consistent in order to help staff and family in their annual planning.

Some believe in a year-round schooling system, which advocates for three to four weeks off in the winter, spring, and summer. This method is thought to increase consistency and reduce recovery efforts from what students forget after longer breaks. “It just keeps momentum up, throughout the year, if you take a month off and come back for three months and another month off,” said Wolfe. 

Until then, the School Board is going to continue to figure out how to satisfy every party with the length of winter break in regards to the rest of the school year. “Luck of the calendar. However the calendar falls, whatever day it’s on, that’s what’s going to impact how long it is,” said Wolfe.