After weighing several options for the 2025-26 school year calendar, the Dartmouth School Committee voted 3-2 in favor of making Dec. 22 a full day and Dec. 23 a half day with a return to school on Monday, Jan. 5. The school year would tentatively end June 11, but this is dependent on factors such as snow days.

Arguments in favor of having students come to school Monday, Dec. 22 and Tuesday, Dec. 23 included not wanting to disrupt students’ routines, making sure there’s enough time over the summer to get schools “reset” for the upcoming year and taking into consideration the parents who would need to find additional child care.

School Committee member Elizabeth Coughlin added that since none of the schools have air conditioning, giving students two weeks off would be pushing the school year into days that could be “really hot.”

School Committee Chair Chris Oliver and School Committee member Kathleen Amaral voted in favor of giving students a two week long winter break, with Oliver arguing there would be a lot of student absences on Dec. 23 and, despite teachers’ efforts, not much learning. 

Amaral added that while she’s heard arguments for both options from members of the community she “overwhelmingly heard from people who made a great case for … recharging battery and some other really compelling reasons to … giving two weeks.”

There will also be no school the Friday before Labor Day and the Wednesday before Thanksgiving will be a half day.