By Ali Pierce, staff writer

Students were angry about their Christmas break being shortened by just a few days this year, and now the usual long weekend students are granted at the end of second trimester, which is considered their “mid-winter break” is no longer.

“It wasn’t fair every other school had a longer Christmas break, we should have gone a few more days into January,” said Shaunda Miller ‘18.

Many students said the time between Christmas break and spring break is too long to be in school without some time off.

“The fact that we won’t have a mid-winter break this year makes me mad, so many people are just done by this point, like we need a break,” said Miller.

“I think it is stupid, I can’t go this long without a break,” said Caleigha Lunarde ‘18.

Many of students feel in desperate need of a mid-winter break, but for some others they are just fine without one.  

“It is different, I’m used to having one, but it doesn’t bother me that much because it is just a couple of days,” said Mark Pierce ‘18.

The calendar is decided upon as part of the negotiating process between the teacher’s union and district administration. English teacher Andrea Villarreal, who is also a part of the negotiation committee, explains.

“Prior to this year we came to school 177 days and the Michigan legislature passed a law saying that all schools had to go 180 days. This means we had to add 3 days to the calendar,” said Villarreal.

Adding up all the time from Thanksgiving break, Christmas break, and spring break, there really isn’t any time for a mid-winter break unless the school year were to go later into summer. The school year was originally proposed to be done on June 16, but since Christmas break was cut a few days short, the last day of school is now June 9.

“We haven’t really had a real mid-winter break in years and years, instead we have added a February PD day so that students got a day off, but teachers always had to be here,” said Villarreal. PD is professional development for teachers.

Half days have been added back to the exam schedules this year to help, for second trimester the half day falls on March 10 this year, and the students will have March 13 off as well, so that is somewhat like a mid-winter break, she said.

Students may have been bothered by their Christmas break being shortened, and mid-winter break being almost non existent, but by the time the end of the school year comes students are so eager to get out that the few days that were taken off of their breaks won’t matter.

“No one is opposed to it. In fact I think teachers want one as bad as students! It’s just a matter of how late do you want to be here in June,” said Villarreal.