Any New englanders losing april break?

[3girls4me05]

Same here. I'd be fired too. Most employers wouldn't tolerate that...

See my post above yours. I am not worried about it but IF they did take some April vacation days away and people had already paid and planned their vacations then how can they cost people all that money in lost vacation funds? I have already paid for my trip in full, including the air fare. We are talking about thousands of dollars. If you have gotten your vacation approved, paid thousands of dollars for your trip and then had your boss change his mind four weeks before you left, what would you do? Keep in mind that we aren't talking about then you would have to push back your vacation by a week or two. It would be cancelled and you would be out a ton of money

 

[MareSINY]

Heck, in NJ they took away every holiday between New Year and Easter. And the kids will be in school to the very end of June. Every time we hear snow predictions we worry because next they'll take away Spring break. Dang hurricane did a number on us!!

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[3girls4me05]

I just read on another thread about a teacher whose vacation week has been changed. The policy is that if you can show proof that you had a vacation already planned then you can go with no dock in pay or other negative ramifications. They will get a sub to cover your room.

So it looks like districts are being reasonable and acknowledge that plans have already been made. Good to know if it ever happens to me.

So to the previous posters: guess I wouldn't be fired.

 

[ccgirl]

Hopefully I won't have to do it and find out. The problem is that my vacation is in the school calendar. If they change that calendar after I have made my vacation plans are they allowed to cost me those plans? It would be a huge financial hit for us.
It would be as if your vacation was approved by your boss and then after you planned and paid of it, your boss came back and said "Actually you can't go that week after all"

It has happened before. I have had a few vacations paid for and had to reschedule due to my time off being rescinded by my Director. Sadly, for me, my deadlines change frequently. That is why I only fly with Southwest or Airtran were I can reschedule.

I would check with your district to find out the policy.

Good luck.

 

[nfceagles]

I'm in CT. We missed one day for Sandy, two for the Blizzard, and one other random snow day. That's not enough to affect our breaks yet. We don't have any built in snow days and we make all of them up at the end of the year. We just go into the year not knowing until March-ish when the exact last day of school is. Our spring break is also April 15-19 which I much prefer to an Easter based week.

 

[wallawallakids]

Wow! That is awful! I doubt our school district will ever do that. We have 5 snow days built in. (We have only lost 3 school days so far from Sandy and Nemo). Last year, they added on to our school year when we were over the 5. An extra 2 days in June.
My Jr year in high school they did the same thing. (I went to school in MA then). We went until July 3rd!!! It was supposed to be July 4th and we had to get a waiver from the state to get out on the 3rd. It was so hot in that school. (NO air-condition!) Plus the Seniors all still got out in May. I remember thinking how lucky they were. They hardly got any school that year and I was praying for the same to happen for my senior year. No such luck!!!

 

[LadyBeBop]

My Jr year in high school they did the same thing. (I went to school in MA then). We went until July 3rd!!! It was supposed to be July 4th and we had to get a waiver from the state to get out on the 3rd. It was so hot in that school. (NO air-condition!) Plus the Seniors all still got out in May. I remember thinking how lucky they were. They hardly got any school that year and I was praying for the same to happen for my senior year. No such luck!!!

My initial thought was that the class who graduates in front of you always get the breaks...until I remembered it happened my Senior year.

And I hated it.

We lost nearly a month of school due to snow, cold and the energy crisis (this was 1977, probably the coldest winter ever for my part of the country). We didn't have to go longer; in fact I don't think many of us had to go longer. What was cut out was a lot of important school and college prep days. I took college-level Calculus; however we lost out on so much school time that no one in my class felt comfortable enough to take the advanced placement exam to test out in college.

Funny thing is...the next year, I was in college in Wisconsin..where frigid temps are the norm.

 

[3girls4me05]

It has happened before. I have had a few vacations paid for and had to reschedule due to my time off being rescinded by my Director. Sadly, for me, my deadlines change frequently. That is why I only fly with Southwest or Airtran were I can reschedule.

I would check with your district to find out the policy.

Good luck.

I'm not worried as we have only missed two days so far. I was simply saying if it did and I already had a Disney vacation paid for and planned that I would be going anyway. Since this happens so rarely, I don't think there is even anything written in to our contract about it. However I am sure that I would be allowed to go as my trip was already planned and paid for. A teacher on another thread said the same thing..her district has had to make up some days over April break and if a teacher could show proof of their travel plans then they were able to still go. You have to remember that if a teacher isn't able to go in April then they can't go again till summer. It isn't a matter of moving it a few weeks.
A bit different then a private sector jobs where vacations aren't set in to the calendar at rigid intervals.

 

[SweetMissy]

Awww that stinks! I'm in upstate NY and luckily wasn't effected by any storm, so no days were taken away. Our kids vacation is the 2nd week of April which is when we're going.

 

[mom2rtk]

We have built-in days for Snow Days, I think 3... But, that said, in our New England state, if there's a weather event where more then 90% of other schools, or if state offices and services close, the day is "forgiven" and we don't have to make it up.

When I was going to school, losing days and pushing back the last day of school was always a big deal... We wouldn't know when the last day of school was until April. Then in 1999, we got slammed with storm after storm and we missed so much school that there were talks of half days on Saturdays just to make sure they didn't extend school for the underclassmen until July and change the date of graduation for the seniors (as all the invites were all purchased, printed, and distributed). Another horrific storm rolled in, actually the "big ice storm" of that year, and they didn't cancel school in our district because it would have been the drop that overflowed the bucket in our threat of a prolonged school year. We were one of only a handful of schools in New England, much less NH, that didn't cancel. Unfortunately, a car driven by a student went off the road on the way to school due to the bad weather and it resulted in the death of a foreign exchange student and the surviving students were stuck in the car with a dead classmate for several hours. Word got back to the school about it, people freaked out, and they sent us all back home right after lunch, and a bus went off the road stranding a group of elementary kids for hours.

Long story short, the school system was sued to Timbuktu and back for not closing, the state was sued, and laws were changed. Now the state forgives days and schools aren't penalized, therefore the theory is that they won't keep school open when it should be closed.

But now, the last day is the last day and it's put on the calendar in Oct. It's pretty hard and fast and we'd never lose a vacation. As a result of all of that, our state is actually pretty fanatical about making sure that appropriate days are forgiven and nobody is penalized for calling off school on days where it's appropriate.

Not sure why adding days at the end of the school year is such an unthinkable option. In our district in the midwest (with lots of snow) they don't even build in snow days. Parents (and teachers) just know not to schedule anything that can't be changed in the week or 2 immediately following the end of the year. Snow days are added on at the end. Seniors still graduate on time, as printed on the invitations.

It's funny but I just told my own senior he got the short end of the stick having had only 2 snow days to get out of so far this season. Now there's a huge storm rolling in and it appears he'll be up to 4 freebies soon.

 

[lorli]

This year has not been a problem for our central New York schools however other years we have had to make up snow days during our Spring Break. This did not bode well for teachers who had already made travel plans. What our district did was if you had plans that could not be changed or cancelled they let you take personal time if you had the time still coming. this is how I had to handle my two days. We had booked and paid for a cruise and could not undo it. I was able to get a sub and take off on vacation as planned.

 

[TBdisneyMC]

Heck, in NJ they took away every holiday between New Year and Easter. And the kids will be in school to the very end of June. Every time we hear snow predictions we worry because next they'll take away Spring break. Dang hurricane did a number on us!!

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My district didn't get hit as bad, but of course, we weren't in the worst hit areas (Woodbridge). We were out of school for 2 weeks during Sandy, but one of those weeks was already a scheduled break (conventions). We have 3 days built in so we only have to make up 2. But just to be safe, they took out all 5... We lost the Friday before Presidents day and all but one day of Spring Break (Good Friday? or Monday?). They're supposed to add the 3 days back in if we don't use them, but we don't know if that will be spring break or Memorial day weekend.

 

[aristocatz]

We are not losing any of our April break. We lost 2 days, due to Nemo, but one of them was declared a state emergency & the governor forbid anyone to be on the road, so that day was forgiven.

 

[woodyrn]

We have missed 7 days so far. 2 for the hurricane, and 5 for the blizzard. We got hit hard. They can not take away April vacation, i think its in the teachers contracts.
I am so glad we start before Labor Day.
What do you mean "forgiven". Every year, no matter if its a state of emergency. you need to go 180 days, so if you have a snow day, you make it up in June. Short summer break this year.

 

[amyemann]

Forgiving days is allowed but the governor has to put in an order to do so. Governor of NJ had that option after the hurricane but said he would not excercise it.

 

[rdevine10]

Another CT family here. I have lost count we have lost so many days due to storms this year! We already made one up- it got turned into a half day instead of a full day for teacher inservice. Right now we can miss 1 more and then they can take away from april break. Alas, I am not worried, as we are going NO MATTER WHAT!

Our april break always falls the week of the 18th, which happens to be my birthday. I agree, its a great week especially when easter is no where near it. Alas, next year will be a problematic traveling week for us, with easter being that week.

I graduated HS in 93 and that year we graduated on the 4th of July weekend! Crazy snow year then too!

 

[runmommyrun]

We are from IL and I canNOT believe we are going on our second year without a snow day. It's as if Chicago has been missed by every snow storm for the last two years. I say this as a possible storm is heading our way this Friday, so it is possible our no-snow day ride is over!

But a couple years ago we got hit hard with snow on several occasions and our schedules were readjusted for spring break and end of year. My DH is a teacher and we went nonetheless at break. Took a few no pay days, but it was cheaper than canceling the trip. Plus we had a great time. We've come to expect that if we book on those days that may be adjusted (mainly spring break and "last day of school"), we better be prepared that the days may be moved and we may have to readjust our plans. Regardless, we've found that when we still have gone, the trip is worth it! Happy travels!

 

[WorldWacky]

I just read on another thread about a teacher whose vacation week has been changed. The policy is that if you can show proof that you had a vacation already planned then you can go with no dock in pay or other negative ramifications. They will get a sub to cover your room.

So it looks like districts are being reasonable and acknowledge that plans have already been made. Good to know if it ever happens to me.

So to the previous posters: guess I wouldn't be fired.

Another Long Islander here. We lost President's Week, the Friday before Memorial Weekend and the Monday of Spring Break. DH is a teacher in another district and was told that if you could show documentation that your trip was planned before Sandy and non-refundable, you could use personal days. Our trip for Pres. Week was still in the refundable stage, so we had to cancel. Luckily, DH's district did not lose any Spring Break days so we rescheduled for then. It will be a lot more $, but we didn't want to miss out on our trip.

If we took the original trip, DH would have been docked a week's pay.

 

[ryalluvdiz]

Ok... A little off topic... Im a teacher in Las Vegas...... If i have personal days ( we get 4 if we do not use any sick days the year prior) then i can use then any way i want.... I only have to give two weeks notice that i want to use them. I keep reading that teachers in other states are not allowed to use personal days for vacations. What do you use them for then????

 

[3girls4me05]

Ok... A little off topic... Im a teacher in Las Vegas...... If i have personal days ( we get 4 if we do not use any sick days the year prior) then i can use then any way i want.... I only have to give two weeks notice that i want to use them. I keep reading that teachers in other states are not allowed to use personal days for vacations. What do you use them for then????

Funerals, accompany a family member to a medical procedure, other personal business that can't be conducted during school hours.

Our district is strict too, we can't use a personal day before a vacation week. If you call out sick then you risk being called in to the Superintendent's office too. Luckily I work in a position that means I have Fridays off. So I can call out for the Thursday and leave Wed. night (therefore saving me over $1000 in airfare) and go early. Which is what I plan to do