Student Opinions on MCPS’ Winter Break Proposal

Written by CAPA-JRC Reporter Jessica Zhang

On Sep. 17, two calendar drafts for the 2025-2026 school year were proposed during the Montgomery County Public Schools Board’s policy management committee meeting. The drafts, which included a difference between an eight-day and 10-day winter break proposal, are being surveyed for feedback. Students around the county have a few differing opinions on the proposed changes.

Both proposals included a transition day on the first day of school, Aug. 25, 2025. The transition day would be a non-instruction day for students, and was intended to help new students entering kindergarten and sixth and ninth grades to adjust to their new schools. A difference in the proposals was that the last day of school for the eight-day winter break would be Jun. 16, 2026, while the last day of school for the ten-day winter break would be Jun. 18, 2026.

Some students felt that the 10-day winter break proposal was better because it offered more time for students to rest. Junior Esther Lim noted how it would help relieve stress. “I would say it might be good to extend it…because it’s like right in the middle of the school year,” said Lim. “A lot of people get really stressed out during the year and it would be helpful to have a longer break in the middle.”

However, other students thought that a two week break would be too long. Junior Daniel Hoang believed that he wouldn’t be able to retain information he learned in school. “I think that’s a lot of time, more than we kind of need,” Hoang said. “I feel like that gives enough time for everyone to forget what happened and might make [them] feel too lenient when everyone comes back.”

The MCPS Board of Education usually finalizes calendars for the next school year in early December. In the end, it will be up to MCPS to decide what will happen next.

This article was provided by the Chinese American Parents Association Junior Reporter Club (CAPA JRC) with members who interviewed, audio recorded, wrote, translated, and video recorded. CAPA JRC has 25 Montgomery County middle to high school students. They have created a bilingual platform delivering news and serving the community.

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