The beloved days of spring break that carried us to new places on vacation and led to hours of leisure have been cut. Due to the turbulent snow days that have drifted upon our lawns, students have been placed in a precarious position. Spring break in the 2024-25 school year has been cut, leading to somewhat mixed reactions. Some students accept this cut, reasoning that their sudden days off made up for the days later in the year, while others are in disbelief that their break has been fully removed. Spring break is a crucial time to recharge and get ready to bounce back from the troublesome schoolwork that fills students’ folders and brains.
On March 4th, Dr. William J. Barnes, superintendent of the Howard County Public School System (HCPSS), made the grand decision to remove spring break from the school year as a whole. He reasoned that the snow days had already taken off so many days of school, extending the days until summer break to an unreasonable level. Due to this, the decision was swiftly made. Dr. Barnes figured that his verdict wouldn’t be calmly accepted and has since deleted all of his social media platforms to silence the influx of parents and students who have since flooded his emails.
The majority of the students at MRHS are furious, as well as the rest of the schools that fill HCPSS. Students are already furious about the phone ban recently implemented on March 3rd and have struggled to adapt to the new changes. This new wave of sudden inconveniences the student life has led to student outrage. To get a sense of student opinions, several students were asked to share their opinions for this article.
“When spring break was canceled, I couldn’t believe it. A true 0/10 year to say the least. No more late-night LeBron highlights?” junior Nick Riggs said.
This sudden change in student schedule has led to outrage, and students want answers.
“I’m beyond frustrated, I had a girls’ trip to Wales planned with the girls. This is unfair!” senior Sami Janakiraman shares.
Despite the anger, Dr. Barnes has chosen to hold his position and keep his judgment firm. As well, parents have reached their breaking point, demanding that all trips and plans that are non-refundable be excused absences.
Interestingly enough, something similar has happened in recent years. Eight years ago, MRHS spring break was cut down to two days! As expected, most students skipped. This is a current worry for the school district for the upcoming days. Will students attend? Or will they skip, enjoying their break regardless of what Dr. Barnes is to say? With the current situation, it’s impossible to say. Will the urge for a break prevail, leaving halls empty with the scent of beaches and resorts? Or will they be full of students, imagining they were elsewhere on this spring break?