At the 6/14 school committee meeting a motion will be made to reevaluate the calendar for the 21/22 school year. The reason this is being done is that the date that was chosen to begin school is the first day of Rosh Hashanah, one of Judaism's holiest days. That means that there will be some teachers, students and administrators that will not be able to attend the first day of school. We all know how important the first day of school is in setting the tone for the school year. While I realize that there is a small minority of faculty, staff and students that observe the holiday, I am deeply concerned about the message it sends to our students and our community when even a small population is marginalized. The Providence Public School District has already made changes to its calendar to accommodate the holiday and Bristol-Warren Regional School District should do the same. It is the right thing to do if we are to be the inclusive community that we claim to be.  

Please consider showing your support for a change in the school calendar by signing this petition to tell the school committee to place the needs of our students and their community over a desire to adhere to some arbitrary beginning and end dates for the school year. Thank you for your anticipated support.

The Bristol-Warren Education Association (BWEA) leadership is in full support of this initiative.

Donna Stouber

Science Teacher

Kickemuit Middle School