Falls Church Public Schools To Start Before Labor Day In 2020

FALLS CHURCH, VA — Falls Church City Public Schools will start the 2020-2021 school year before Labor Day after a Tuesday school board vote. The Falls Church School Board voted 4-2 to adopt the calendar with Aug. 24 as the first day of school.

The calendar gives students a two-week winter break and June 10 as the last day of school. For the current school year, the first day is Sept. 3, winter break is Dec. 23 to Jan. 3, and the last day is June 17. Students will have a four-day Labor Day holiday in the 2020-2021 school year. Labor Day falls on Monday, Sept. 7 in 2020.

A previous Virginia law nicknamed the "Kings Dominion Law" prevented school districts from opening before Labor Day. Districts could apply for a waiver if there a large number of snow days were used in the previous school year. The new law allows districts to open up to two weeks before Labor Day if they give students a four-day Labor Day weekend break.

Superintendent Peter Noonan endorsed the calendar change. A November survey indicated the adopted pre-Labor Day option received the most votes, George Mason High School's student newspaper reported. Examining the results more closely, students and staff's top choice was the pre-Labor Day option, while parents largely chose a post-Labor Day option.

Neighboring Fairfax County has used waivers to start before Labor Day for several years. Arlington County Public Schools recently surveyed families on a possible start before Labor Day in the next school year, ARLNow reported.