2013-14 Hamden School Calendar Eliminates February Vacation

With a dozen school days and the April vacation lost to inclement weather this year, the Board of Education isn't taking any chances with next year's school calendar.

The board this week approved the 2013-14 school calendar that virtually eliminates the February vacation, replacing it instead with a long weekend.

"This is a very different calendar," Supt. of Schools Fran Rabinowitz told the board. "This year we have experienced storms and snow and and I am strongly recommending curtailing the February vacation to a long weekend."

The calendar sets the last day of school at June 12, 2014, but if it is another bad year and the district is forced to use more snow days, that day could change, she said.

This year between the recent blizzard and last October's hurricane, the district used 12 days, Rabinowitz said. After the blizzard struck on Feb. 8, school was cancelled for the six school days leading up to the February vacation, which went on as planned, putting children out of the classroom for more than two weeks.

It also forced the cancellation of the April vacation, which caused issues for some, Rabinowitz said.

"That was a huge issue," she said, so looking to avoid a repeat next year, she opted to eliminate the February vacation from the start, instead making it a long weekend around the President's Day holiday.

"Having a February vacation was very nice," she said, but it makes more sense to eliminate it and preserve the April vacation.

"This assures that we will have no snow next year," she joked after the board approved the calendar.

Make sure to like Hamden Patch on Facebook and follow on Twitter for breaking news, daily updates and more!