Schools to Have Good Friday Off Next Year

LAKELAND | Good riddance to school on Good Friday.

After receiving numerous complaints from parents and teachers about having classes on Good Friday this year, Polk County School District made the day a holiday for next year.

In exchange, the last day of classes before winter break next year will be Friday, Dec. 19. Previously, winter break was to start a day earlier.

School Board members asked district officials to tweak the schedule after receiving a flurry of e-mails and phone calls earlier this spring from parents upset that classes were held on Good Friday.

For decades, Good Friday had been a student holiday.

Before this year, Good Friday had been a work day for teachers, but a holiday for students.

Few teachers and students missed class this year, but some parents criticized the new schedule.

Board member Lori Cunningham said she heard dozens of complaints from parents about the change.

Cunningham and other board members discussed the schedule then asked district officials to make the change.

School officials denied that they tried to make a more secular calendar this year.

At the time, they said that the day "just happened" to be a school day after fulfilling requirements to meet the state-mandated 180 school days, such as determining the first day of school, spring break and having off on federal holidays.

Before Good Friday this year, Bruce Tonjes, associate superintendent of school-based operations, sent a letter to principals asking that they be flexible with parents and students.

"We do need to continue to treat tomorrow as a normal day of school, but since having school on Good Friday is not a practice we have done recently, flexibility in dealing with accepting notes and calls from parents is the recommended approach," Tonjes

wrote.

Good Friday next year is April 10.