Similar LCPS School Calendar Schedule Chosen Over Late May End Date

LOUDOUN COUNTY, VA — Loudoun County Public Schools won't see a drastic change to the school calendar schedule in 2026-2027 after action by the school board Wednesday.

The Loudoun County School Board voted for option 1, an 180-day school year with the first day on Aug. 17, 2026 and the last day on June 11, 2027. By comparison, the first day of school in the current school year was Aug. 22, 2024 and the school year will end on June 13, 2025.

Other options would have set an earlier first day and last day of school. The second option had a 180-day school year starting on Aug. 4, 2026 and ending on May 28, 2027. The third option was a 174-day option from Aug. 12, 2026 to May 28, 2027. The fourth option proposed a 174-day school year from Aug. 13, 2026 to May 28, 2027. Under Virginia code, the K-12 school year must provide 180 days or 990 hours of instruction.

LCPS approves calendars more than a year in advance, giving families and staff time to adjust to any potential changes. An LCPS survey showed families preferred option 1, which is closest to the current school calendar's start and end dates. Staff preferred option 4 with the Aug. 13 start date. The second option with the Aug. 4 start date was the least favorite option for families and staff.

To make a compromise school calendar, Leesburg District representative Lauren Shernoff had proposed a hybrid option starting on Aug. 17, 2026 and ending on June 4, 2027. However, the option differed from the other four by providing cultural observances on a school day rather than a student holiday on Sept. 21, 2026 (Yom Kippur), Nov. 9, 2026 (Diwali observance), Feb. 5, 2027 (Lunar New Year) and March 9, 2027 (Eid al-Fitr observance).

Members who voted for Shernoff's hybrid option were Shernoff, at-large representative Anne Donohue, and Ashburn District representative Deana Griffiths.

Donohue said she first had concerns about eliminating the religious holidays. However, she supported Shernoff's hybrid option with the condition of only being for one year. That would provide a transitional time as LCPS eyes an ultimate goal of starting and ending the school year earlier.

"I don't love not observing the religiously inclusive holidays," said Donohue. "But I think on the circumstances of this calendar option, to me, I'm thinking that it is an acceptable tradeoff for one year to be able to accommodate our adjusting schedule to meet those goals of instructing our kids and not having too severe of a transition of the calendar of the beginning or the end of the year."

Algonkian District representative April Chandler, who introduced the motion for the adopted option 1, said she didn't want to compromise on the religious holidays.

"The holidays that we offer are reflective of the students that we serve," said Chandler. "I think we heard from students how it impacts them, and it's just not something that I can do. I want to also acknowledge the fact that our teachers and staff are also reflected in these inclusive holidays and would be impacted if they would be expected to work."

In a social media post to constituents, Shernoff expressed disappointment that the school board chose another option. The school board representative said the hybrid option sought a "shift towards more meaningful instruction."

"I put forward my proposal that I thought balanced the concerns of all parties—teachers, families, and students," Shernoff wrote. "It wasn’t easy, and it certainly wasn’t perfect, but it was a genuine attempt to make progress, to provide our students with the best possible instructional timeline, and to show that we can come together and find common ground."

A motion by Little River District representative Sumera Rashid to adopt calendar option 4 was rejected, with only support from Rashid, Broad Run District representative Linda Deans and Sterling District representative Arben Istrefi.

In the final vote for calendar option 1, school board members voting in support were Griffiths, Chandler, Deans, School Board Chair Melinda Mansfield of the Dulles District, Istrefi and Rashid.