New York City public schools have been in the news this week. There is news on the upcoming school calendar, cellphones and cafeteria food.
Per the NYC Department of Education website Mayor Bill de Blasio and the Schools Chancellor Carmen Fariña announced that Eid al-Fitr and Eid al-Adha will be added as holidays on the official school calendar. This fall schools will close on September 24th for Eid al-Adha. Eid al-Fitr which falls in the summer will be a holiday the summer in 2016 for those attending summer school. By adding the Muslim holidays to the school calendar means New York City will become the largest school district in the nation to recognize Eid al-Fitr and Eid al-Adha as holidays on the official school calendar. The Mayor and Chancellor also made a speech in Brooklyn at PS/IS 30 today. At PS/IS 30 the last time Eid al-Adha fell on school day 36 percents of the students were absent. You can read his speech on the NYC DOE website and the 2015-2016 school calendar is also available on the website.
Earlier this year on the NYC website it was announced that Mayor Bill de Blasio and Schools Chancellor Carmen Fariña were lifting the ban on cellphones in public schools. The ban was lifted this week and now the school children will be able to take their cellphones into the schools which I am sure makes a lot of parents happier.
Also this week dnainfo.com reported that antibiotic-free chicken is coming to the cafeterias of NYC public schools. Cafeterias served about 15 million pounds of chicken last year and they will start phasing in the change spring of 2016.
So many changes!