End the school daze

New York City public schools closed earlier this month in observance of the Muslim holy day Eid al-Adha. Schools will also be shut for the Muslim holy day Eid al-Fitr in June. As a result, the end of the school year is receding further toward July with a high chance that attendance will plummet.

Last year, when the final full school day fell on a Monday, the attendance rate drop to 71% from an average above 90%.

This year, the final full week of school ends Friday, June 23. Then schools close for a three-day weekend because Eid al-Fitr falls on Monday. Then, classes resume Tuesday, the 27th, followed by a half day to pick up report cards on Wednesday, the 28th.

The solution is simple. Move two early-June school closings that force parents to scramble for child care to the end of the year.

June 8, a Thursday, is Anniversary Day — a throwback to when the holiday was called Brooklyn Queens Day and children from those boroughs got the day off. Now all students are off and teachers have staff development.

June 12, a Monday, is a clerical day on which elementary and middle schools are closed. The kids have off while teachers show up for work.

Here’s what would happen if Chancellor Carmen Fariña shifted the closings:

The last half day of school for students would fall on Friday, the 23rd. The schools would then be shut for the Monday Muslim holy day. On Tuesday, teachers would have their Anniversary Day staff development and Wednesday would be clerical day. Attendance would likely hold. The child care scramble would be over. And parents and kids would cheer Fariña.