2019-20 key dates for school calendars
Here are some special days you may want to note on your 2019-20 school year calendar or take into consideration as you establish programs for next year. They are from Resources for Planning the School Calendar, published and distributed by the National School Public Relations Association, 15948 Derwood Road, Rockville, MD 20855. Order online at www.nspra.org/products or call (301) 519-0496. The price is $40 per copy plus shipping and handling.
2019
Date — Observance/holiday
Sept. 1-30 — Library Card Sign-Up Month
Sept. 2 — Labor Day
Sept. 8 — International Literacy Day
Sept. 8 — Grandparents Day
Sept. 8-14 — National Arts in Education Week
Sept. 11 — Patriot Day
Sept. 15-Oct. 15 — Hispanic Heritage Month
Sept. 15-16 — Mexican Independence Days
Sept. 16 — Mayflower Day
Sept. 17 — Citizenship/Constitution Day
Sept. 17-23 — Constitution Week
Sept. 21 — International Day of Peace
Sept. 23 — First day of autumn
Sept. 28 — National Good Neighbor Day
Sept. 29-Oct. 1* — Rosh Hashanah
Oct. 1 — Child Health Day
Oct. 1-31 — Crime Prevention Month
Oct. 1-31 — Czech Heritage Month
Oct. 1-31 — Italian-American Heritage and Culture Month
Oct. 1-31 — National Bullying Prevention Month
Oct. 1-31 — National Principals Month
Oct. 1-31 — Polish American Heritage Month
Oct. 1-31 — Trick or Treat for UNICEF Month
Oct. 2 — International Walk to School Day
Oct. 6 — German-American Day
Oct. 6-12 — Fire Prevention Week
Oct. 6-12 — National Educational Office Professionals Week
Oct. 6-12 — National Metric Week
Oct. 8-9* — Yom Kippur
Oct. 14 — Canadian Thanksgiving
Oct. 14 — Columbus Day
Oct. 14-18 — National School Lunch Week
Oct. 16 — World Food Day
Oct. 20-26 — National Character Counts Week
Oct. 21-25 — National School Bus Safety Week
Oct. 23-31 — Red Ribbon Week (Drug-Free America)
Oct. 24 — United Nations Day
Oct. 26 — Make a Difference Day
Oct. 31 — Halloween
Nov. 1-30 — Native American Heritage Month
Nov. 3 — Standard time
Nov. 5 — Election Day
Nov. 11 — Veterans Day
Nov. 16 — Substitute Educators Day
Nov. 18-22 — American Education Week
Nov. 19 — Gettysburg Address anniversary
Nov. 20 — Education Support Professionals Day
Nov. 21 — National Parental Involvement Day
Nov. 24-30 — National Family Week
Nov. 28 — Thanksgiving Day
Dec. 1 — World AIDS Day
Dec. 7 — Pearl Harbor Day
Dec. 10 — Human Rights Day
Dec. 15 — Bill of Rights Day
Dec. 21 — First day of winter
Dec. 22-30* — Hanukkah
Dec. 25 — Christmas
Dec. 26-Jan. 1 — Kwanzaa
2020
Date — Observance/holiday
Jan. 1 — New Year’s Day
Jan. 1 — Emancipation Proclamation anniversary
Jan. 1-31 — School Board Recognition Month
Jan. 19 — World Religion Day
Jan. 20 — Martin Luther King Jr. Day
Jan. 25 — Chinese New Year
Feb. 1 — National Freedom Day
Feb. 1-29 — African-American History Month
Feb. 1-29 — National Children’s Dental Health Month
Feb. 2 — Groundhog Day
Feb. 2-6 — National School Counseling Week
Feb. 12 — Abraham Lincoln’s birthday
Feb. 14 — Valentine’s Day
Feb. 17 — National PTA Founders Day
Feb. 17 — Presidents Day
Feb. 22 — George Washington’s Birthday
Feb. 22-29 — National FFA Week
Feb. 25 — Mardi Gras
Feb. 26 — Ash Wednesday
Feb. 26-April 11 — Lent
March 1-31 — American Red Cross Month
March 1-31 — Irish-American Heritage Month
March 1-31 — Music in Our Schools Month
March 1-31 — National Middle Level Education Month
March 1-31 — National Nutrition Month
March 1-31 — Social Work Month
March 1-31 — Women’s History Month
March 1-31 — Youth Art Month
March 2 — NEA’s Read Across America Day (Dr. Seuss’s Birthday)
March 2-6 — Classified School Employees Week (Dates differ in some states. Usually scheduled for first or second week in March.)
March 2-6 — National School Breakfast Week
March 2-8 — National Foreign Language Week
March 8 — Daylight saving time
March 8 — International Women’s Day
March 11 — Johnny Appleseed Day
March 15-21 — National Poison Prevention Week
March 17 — St. Patrick’s Day
March 19 — Absolutely Incredible Kid Day
March 19 — First day of spring
March 20 — Bahá’í New Year’s Day
March 21 — International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination
April 1 — April Fools’ Day
April 1-30 — National Poetry Month
April 1-30 — National Autism Awareness Month
April 1-30 — School Library Month
April 2 — International Children’s Book Day
April 7 — World Health Day
April 8-9 — Passover* (first days)
April 10 — Good Friday
April 12 — Easter
April 15-16 — Passover (concluding days)
April 19-25 — Administrative Professionals Week
April 19-25 — National Library Week
April 19-25 — National Student Leadership Week
April 19-25 — National Volunteer Week
April 20 — Patriot’s Day
April 20-21 — Holocaust Remembrance Day*
April 20-24 — Public School Volunteer Week
April 22 — Administrative Professionals Day
April 22 — Earth Day
April 23 — Take Our Daughters and Sons to Work Day
April 24 — First day of Ramadan
April 24 — National Arbor Day
May 1 — Law Day
May 1 — School Lunch Hero Day
May 1-7 — National Physical Education and Sports Week
May 1-31 — Asian Pacific American Heritage Month
May 1-31 — Better Hearing and Speech Month
May 1-31 — Food Allergy Action Month
May 1-31 — National Physical Fitness and Sports Month
May 1-31 — Preservation Month
May 3 — World Press Freedom Day
May 3-9 — Be Kind to Animals Week
May 3-10 — National Music Week
May 4 — Horace Mann’s birthday
May 4-8 — Teacher Appreciation Week
May 5 — Cinco de Mayo
May 5 — National Teacher Day
May 6 — National Bike to School Day
May 6 — National School Nurse Day
May 8 — World Red Cross Day
May 10 — Mother’s Day
May 16 — Armed Forces Day
May 18 — Victoria Day (Canada)
May 25 — Memorial Day
May 31 — World No Tobacco Day
June – July — Fireworks Safety Month
June 1-30 — Caribbean-American Heritage Month
June 1-30 — Great Outdoors Month
June 5 — World Environment Day
June 14 — Flag Day
June 14 — Race Unity Day
June 16 — International Day of the African Child
June 19 — Juneteenth
June 20 — First day of summer
June 21 — Father’s Day
*Begins at sunset on the preceding day
Please note: Some groups or states celebrate appreciation days or weeks on different dates, particularly those for classified school employees and teachers.
The benefits of critical comments on your social media channels
In the old days, naysayers and critics showed up at your board meetings and wrote letters to the editor of the local newspaper. Now, they are more likely to appear on your district social media channels or the email inbox attached to your website. They are still there, and they are more important than ever to your district’s success.
Social media and email provide effective tools for engaging cynics and getting the best out of their perspectives. But, it takes discipline and hard work to use online forums to move your district in a positive direction without providing a platform for negativity and division. Naysayers are more than just concerned citizens. They are people who are passionate enough to call you out when they think you are making mistakes. This can be disturbing, but their voices should be welcomed.
The days of ‘sit down and be quiet’ are gone
For decades, dissenting opinions were tolerated at best and silenced at worst in school board rooms. The conventional wisdom held that you had to let them have their say to a point, but you didn’t have to let them slow you down — unless they happened to be politically powerful. It was a given that free-speech rights applied to everyone to a point. There was grudging acceptance in school board rooms that the naysayers needed a chance to briefly vent before being told to sit down.
This sit-down-and-be-quiet attitude was sometimes overtly rude. But more often, it took the subtler tones of restrictions on testimony length and parliamentary maneuvers to shut off the conversation and move the issue to a speedy resolution. The idea was to briefly give the naysayers their say, get the business done and maintain a sense of unity in the district.
Understand and embrace your dissenters
Fast forward a few decades, and we see a new emphasis on embracing and protecting the dissenters’ voice. Part of this move has no doubt been due to the tireless effort of advocates for equity in the schools. Another component is the concept of adaptive leadership, which has evolved throughout business, education and many other organizations.
Adaptive leadership is based on the theory that there are two basic types of challenges — technical and adaptive. Technical problems can be solved by the existing knowledge of experts. Adaptive challenges require new learning. One of the greatest challenges for school leaders is correctly differentiating between the two types of challenges.
Adaptive problems require changes to behaviors and can create dissenters
A simple change in school security may seem like a technical problem with a simple solution — just lock the back gate and make everyone enter campus through the front driveway. However, it might actually be an adaptive challenge in disguise, because the whole school community will have to learn new ways of getting children to and from school safely — crossing new streets, walking through different neighborhoods and coming into contact with people from different cultures. These things could add up to challenges that require new ways of thinking and acting instead of a simple technical fix. In this example, an adaptive change would benefit from hearing all voices, not just those who support the change.
In sorting the technical from adaptive challenges, the naysayer has an important role. The dissenting voice is the one that needs protecting, because it is the one that will help move the community to new learning by pointing out concerns that may not have been considered in the decision-making process.
This results in courageous conversations, because it challenges the status quo of the system or decision. And, when it comes to adaptive changes, the status quo is automatically no longer an option.
If listened to, dissenting voices are most likely to encourage creative thinking. It is human nature to look for solutions and collaborate. But until the real issues are addressed via uncomfortable conversations, those solutions will never even be explored.
When the tension becomes great enough in a community conversation, a true leader becomes willing to take risks. He or she wants to change the paradigm and get the dialogue unstuck. And most often, that leader can look back and thank a naysayer or dissenting voice for getting the ball rolling.
Nurturing your dissenters via social media
So, how do you encourage dissenting voices in school communications? Social media provides a great opportunity to do just that. However, social media is neither self-policing nor self-operating. You have to work to make it meaningful. The same goes for email communications. The inbox attached to your school website is useless without a commitment to take questions seriously and do the work to answer them thoroughly. You are better off not asking for feedback if you are just going to ignore it or answer with canned responses.
All social media in a district must start with a solid social media policy, which ensures that all opinions are treated with respect and all people are treated with dignity. Spell out what will not be tolerated, such as discrimination, profanity and hatred. Many good policy examples are online. The key is creating an environment where everyone feels welcome, and people who are not OK with that are not allowed to stay.
Once the policy is in place, allow the discussions to become real, not real personal. Bashing people is not acceptable. But bashing on ideas can be encouraged. That is the value of dissent — the heat-testing of ideas. If your newest initiative cannot stand up to a heated discussion on social media, it might not stand up in real life either.
The best way to honor dissenting voices is to listen to them, provide feedback and answer their questions. And truly answering the tough questions requires research and perseverance on the part of the communicator. If customer concerns are all addressed by rote talking points, it will become obvious that you are prepared to defend positions rather than engage in dialogue. Effective conversation on social media means a commitment to pausing the discussion to find the answers and taking the time to present them accurately and fairly. The payoff is there, because for every vocal critic you answer, there could be another 100 silent people who had the same opinion or concern. By answering one, you are answering many.
Now, when someone has said the same thing several times or several people have said essentially the same thing, it is OK to say, “We have addressed that several times in a previous post on the topic, which is readily accessible at the following link.” The conversation does not have to go on and on without end, but when a tough question has been asked, the answer should stand. And if the answer changes after getting customer feedback, that should be noted as well. A sign of strength is admitting shortcomings and making necessary adjustments.
But what if the critics are filling your email inbox? If it is just a few, they should be answered individually, and their feedback should be shared up the line of district leadership. If a major campaign of form-letter emails has been launched against your district, it is appropriate to respond with a copy-and-paste message that acknowledges receipt and explains that due to the high volume of messages on this topic, individual responses will not be possible.
However they reach you, the naysayers should be valued. Dissenting voices are necessary when it comes to tackling the toughest problems in schools. By considering them a helpful part of courageous conversations, the critical voices become part of strong solutions. Social media and email provide tools for the diligent school district to embrace those contrary voices.
Contributed by Jay Remy, communications consultant
Celebrate your staff during appreciation week events
In May, several important employee groups will be honored for their work to support students. School Lunch Hero Day is May 1; Teacher Appreciation Week is May 3-9; National School Nurse Day is May 6; and National Educational Bosses and National Music weeks are May 19-25.
May is a busy month for recognizing and appreciating specific staff groups, but there are other similar events throughout the year for important groups and people who help make school successful for students. These events include:
- National Principals Month, October
- National Educational Office Professionals Week, Oct. 6-12, 2019
- Education Support Professionals Day, Nov. 20, 2019
- Substitute Educators Day, Nov. 16, 2019
- School Board Recognition Month, January
- National School Counseling Week, Feb. 2-6, 2020
- Classified School Employees Week, generally the second week in March, although the dates differ in some states.
- National Library Week, April 7-13, 2019
- National Volunteer Week, April 7-13, 2019
- National Student Leadership Week, April 21-27, 2019
- Administrative Professionals Week, April 21-27, 2019
See additional events in the key dates publication in this month’s issue.
Recognize and thank these important contributors
Education is a labor-based business. Student achievement would not be possible without the tremendous people power supporting our schools and students. All of these people, except volunteers and school board members, get paid for their work, but we know they don’t dedicate themselves to their jobs just because of the money. The majority of staff in our schools sincerely care about students.
Surely they are thanked for their efforts during the normal course of their work. However, the extra boost that a special tribute brings can help them feel truly appreciated. Mark your calendar with these annual events, and make plans to celebrate staff with a little something extra that says you appreciate their work and are glad they are serving students.
How to recognize staff contributions
Staff recognition can be personalized or broadcast. If there is a budget, a catered meal for a small group or even the whole school may be appreciated. If not, special recognition at a meeting or in the school newsletter can also be the best gesture.
The goal in recognizing people is to make them feel valued, respected and appreciated. Be sure to offer sincere and heartfelt thanks, and let your staff know that you appreciate them all year but are taking this opportunity to express your gratitude.
If the staff recognition involves someone you work closely with, a handwritten note of appreciation, a phone call or a shout-out during a staff meeting lets them know you notice and appreciate them.
Everyone responds differently to being the center of attention. Tailor your thank you to the comfort level of your staff. If they are embarrassed at being in the spotlight, something less public would suit them better. If they are the lucky recipients of student artwork in their own classrooms, a student-made creation may not have the same impact for them as it would for staff who do not work directly with students.
Online resources for national recognition events
Most of the appreciation and recognition events are celebrated nationally, which means there is a sponsoring entity. The organization behind the event generally has helpful background information on its website that explains when and why the event was started, how to describe the event’s objective and a list of resources and activities to help you in your districts.
A good example is National Music Week, which has as an objective “to create an understanding and appreciation of the value of music in the home, the community, the nation and the world.” National Music Week is sponsored by the National Federation of Music Clubs (NFMC) (http://links.ohioschoolboards.org/21502).
Additionally, the website includes why to celebrate during this week, forms and requirements for official participation, who might be target participants or sponsors, contact information for event organizers and the event’s history and key dates. This site offers ideas for local celebrations for target audiences that include businesses, public and private schools, libraries, service clubs, churches and music clubs.
NFMC has provided a comprehensive resource for this event. Most, but not all, of the national recognition events also have suggestions or resources to help localize the events.
Recognition roundup: Additional ideas to help staff feel appreciated
- Personal profile: Highlight a different staff member every week on your school or district website or in your school newsletter.
- Invite others to recognize coworkers: Close each staff meeting with time for staff shout-outs, allowing staff to thank colleagues for any reason.
- Public address announcement: Thank staff during the morning announcements for going above and beyond.
- Food: Food is always appreciated. Organize a staff breakfast or bring special treats for staff meetings.
Recognizing volunteers and other partners
- Public thanks: This is what social media is for. Offer a special thanks for an individual or group on your social platforms. Try to include a photo. Add the message to the school reader board and/or post it in the school newsletter.
- Public thank you: Present a certificate of appreciation at a school board meeting, or introduce the volunteer or community partner at a basketball game or other school event.
- Use the media: Have the superintendent write a letter to the editor or an op-ed piece in the local newspaper, acknowledging the contribution of volunteers and business partners who make a difference in your school.
- Enlist students: Volunteers are there for the kids. This is a good time for hand-made student art tributes.
- Handwritten card: Never underestimate the impact of a handwritten note in gratitude for a specific task or dedicated commitment in service to the school.
Contributed by Marcia Latta, communications consultant
An elementary student dies of cancer. Two high school seniors are killed in a car crash on the way to school. A middle school teacher commits suicide.
Such tragedies can rock a school, and it’s important to communicate quickly with students, staff and parents when they happen. But knowing what to say — and what not to say — is not easy. That’s why it’s essential to have a protocol in place for what to do when death impacts your school.
The shock and grief that occur when a tragedy happens generate a wide range of reactions. For staff members, it can be a particularly hard time because they need to be available for students when they may be grieving themselves.
With a crisis plan, schools can be ready to react quickly if a tragedy occurs. This plan should spell out in detail what needs to be done when a tragedy happens, listing the steps that need to be taken and identifying the individuals responsible for taking them. It also should include sample letters and announcements that can be modified to address different scenarios.
A key piece of this plan is having a crisis response team ready to respond. The crisis response team typically consists of school counselors and mental health specialists who are trained in dealing with deaths and other tragedies. As soon as they are informed of the death, response team members meet to determine the correct information and the wishes of the deceased’s family. They then work with school staff to communicate with staff, students and parents and support them in dealing with the news.
Fortunately, there are many resources available to guide schools dealing with the death of a student or staff member. The Dougy Center, at www.dougy.org, includes tip sheets for school personnel, links to articles and other information about helping students deal with grief.
Two books that address this issue are “Helping the Grieving Student: A Guide for Teachers” and “When Death Impacts Your School: A Guide for School Administrators.” Both are available in the Dougy Center online bookstore at http://links.ohioschoolboards.org/43024.
The National Association of School Psychologists offers the following advice on what to do when your school experiences the death of a student or staff member.
Inform staff
A briefing meeting with staff members should occur to inform them about circumstances of the death and provide teachers with guidelines on how to share information about the death with students. Present information about how students grieve and what behaviors might be expected. Stress the need for maintaining routines during the day as much as possible, allowing flexibility to talk about the death and its impact when students need such a discussion. Establish referral procedures for students requiring additional support.
Communicate with parents
Parents should receive a letter informing them of what happened, how the school responded, how they can help their children and where they can receive help.
Inform students
Information should be shared on a class-by-class basis. Assemblies and using a public address system should be discouraged. Encourage discussion, and recognize that the day will not be a normal day. Students and staff will need to discuss and review the life and death of the person and process their own reactions. Have counselors available to provide support.
Encourage students and staff to reach out to the family
Students may need help knowing what to say and do. School personnel should have a presence at the funeral. Shape a group response. It may be helpful for students and staff to respond as a group. Depending on the needs, circumstances and culture, responses include contributing flowers or memorializing the deceased in other ways.
It is important to respond in the same manner for every student or staff member who dies.
Think ahead
Schools often allow students to play a role in memorializing the person who died. However, it’s smart to have a policy regarding memorial services or other commemorations so you are prepared in advance. The policy should include the answers to these questions:
- Will your school provide the opportunity to acknowledge the death of a student or staff member through some kind of memorialization?
- What kind of memorialization activities will be allowed?
- Under what circumstances will your school consider memorialization activities? The death of a staff member or student? What if the death is from suicide or a violent death? Whatever policy or precedent the school sets should apply to all deaths.
Contributed by Connie Potter, communications consultant