Loudoun County School Board Adopts 2028-29 Calendar After Months Of Debate

LOUDOUN COUNTY, VA — Loudoun County students will continue to receive days off for several religious and cultural observances during the 2028-29 school year under a calendar adopted by the Loudoun County School Board Tuesday.

The board voted 5-4 on Tuesday to approve an amended variation of a calendar proposed by Little River District representative Sumera Rashid. The calendar schedules 178 days of instruction, fewer than the 180 set by the state as standard, but includes more than the required 990 hours of instruction.

The calendar includes holidays or student holidays for Easter, Rosh Hashanah, Diwali and Eid al Fitr, among other days off.

The schedule was amended during the course of the meeting to add two more holidays on Jan. 4 and 5 to make the winter break two full weeks, LCPS Public Information Officer Dan Adams told Patch.

According to the new calendar, classes will begin on Aug. 17, 2028, and end on June 1, 2029.

The final choice was made after months of discussion, especially over how to handle a variety of religious and cultural holidays. LCPS staff initially presented five student calendar options to the board in April. The school division surveyed families and employees in May and reviewed the results with the School Board in June. Additional proposals and revisions emerged as board members continued discussing the issue. By September, the board was considering eight possible calendars, and a parents' group submitted a ninth option.

The full calendar will be published on the LCPS website.