Changes Add Three Early Release Days, Systemwide Closure Over Winter Break

At its Dec. 2 business meeting, the Montgomery County Board of Education approved a modified school calendar for the remainder of the 2021-2022 school year.

MCPS recognizes that teacher planning time is critical for the preparation of meaningful and engaging lessons for students each day. To support this, three early release days have been added to this school year’s calendar to allow for important work time for staff. Wednesday, Jan. 12; Thursday, March 24; and Wednesday, May 18, 2022 are now early release days for both traditional and innovative calendar schools. MCPS is piloting a variety of out-of-school time opportunities with community partners to provide engaging activities for students during the afternoons on early release days.

The district is also adding systemwide closures during winter break on Dec. 23 and Dec. 27 through Dec. 30, 2021, as well as during spring break on April 13 and April 14, 2022. MCPS facilities will be available for public use, such as childcare and other scheduled events, through the Montgomery County Office of Community Use of Public Facilities (CUPF).

In alignment with the federal and state holiday recognizing Juneteenth, MCPS will also add a systemwide closure on Monday, June 20, 2022.

These changes maintain 181 days of instruction and keep the last day of school on June 15, 2022. It is important to note that MCPS will still exceed the minimum number of hours of instruction required by the state. At the elementary school level, MCPS will exceed the minimum number of required hours by more than 60 hours. At the middle school level, MCPS will exceed the minimum number of required hours by more than 120 hours. At the high school level, MCPS will still exceed the minimum number of required hours by more than 30 hours.