The Jewish community of Mercer Island, along with our allies, are petitioning the Mercer Island School District to include Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur as school closure calendar days.

These are the most holy days in Judaism. They take place in the fall, right after the start of the school year. Jewish holidays are observed from sundown to sundown. Rosh Hashanah is the Jewish New Year, and Yom Kippur is the Day of Atonement. On Rosh Hashanah, Jewish people observe the holiday by attending synagogue and hosting family meals. Yom Kippur is a day for prayer, fasting and reflection. 

Jews are forbidden to work or attend school on these days. But the start of the school year is a time when students establish their initial rapport with teachers and classmates, learn about their educators’ expectations for the coming year, and launch into learning new material. Students are reluctant to miss this critical learning and bonding period. And they often return to class having missed tests or test preparation time, and find themselves already falling behind in their homework assignments even though it is so early in the school year.

Mercer Island has one of the densest Jewish populations in the Pacific Northwest—close to 25% of our island is Jewish. Many of our Jewish families have been here for generations. It is past time for our school system to acknowledge the needs and values of a large segment of the Island’s community by closing the schools on these holidays. This action is well-precedented in public schools throughout the United States with substantial Jewish populations, like ours.

We appreciate your support in making our school calendar reflect the needs of our diverse community. Please sign this petition to support inclusivity in our schools and share the petition with others.