Academic Calendar
This calendar represents academic days and any holiday or event that affects the academic calendar. Click Here to see a full list of cultural events or holidays celebrated by our diverse School District community.
TERM 1
Dates: 8/26/24-11/7/24
Full Instructional Days: 49
Early Dismissal Instructional Days: 1
Interim Reports Due: 9/23/24
Report Card Conf: 11/15/24
TERM 2
Dates: 11/8/24 – 1/22/25
Full Instructional Days: 38
Early Dismissal Instructional Days: 2
Interim Reports Due: 12/9/24
Report Card Conf: 1/30-25-1/31/25
TERM 3
Dates: 1/23/25-3/21/25
Full Instructional Days: 36
Early Dismissal Instructional Days: 4
Interim Reports Due: 2/19/25
Report Card Conf: 3/27/25-3/28/25
TERM 4
Dates: 3/24/25-6/13/25
Full Instructional Days: 46
Early Dismissal Instructional Days: 5
Interim Reports Due: 5/2/25
August 2024 | 5 Student Days; 9 Staff Days
- 20th: Staff Professional Development
- 21st: Reorganization
- 22nd-23rd: Staff Professional Development
- 26th: First day of school for students
- 26th-30th: Kindergarten interview day; Three Hour Early Dismissal (K only)
View Cultural Events & Holiday Calendar
September 2024 | 20 Student Days; 20 Staff Days
- 2nd: Labor Day; Schools closed for students and staff; Administrative offices closed
- 27th: Staff Professional Development (Half Day); Three Hour Early Dismissal for Students
View Cultural Events & Holiday Calendar
October 2024 | 21 Student Days; 22 Staff Days
- 3rd: Rosh Hashanah; Schools closed for students and staff; Administrative offices closed
- 25th: Staff Professional Development (Full Day); School closed for students
Additional Important Dates:
14th: Indigenous Peoples’ Day of Learning (In-school day)
View Cultural Events & Holiday Calendar
November 2024 | 17 Student Days; 18 Staff Days
- 5th: Election Day; Schools closed for students and staff
- 15th Term 1 Report Card Conferences (Full Day); School closed for students
- 27th: 3 hour early dismissal for students and staff
- 28th-29th: Thanksgiving Recess; School closed for students and staff; Administrative offices closed
Additional Important Dates:
3rd: Daylight Saving Time ends
11th: Veterans Day (In-school day)
View Cultural Events & Holiday Calendar
December 2024 | 15 Student Days; 15 Staff Days
- 13th: Staff Professional Development (Half Day); Three Hour Early Dismissal for Students
- 23rd-31st: Winter Recess; School closed for students and staff; Administrative offices closed
- 25th: Christmas Day; School closed for students and staff; Administrative offices closed
View Cultural Events & Holiday Calendar
January 2025 | 18 Student Days; 19 Staff Days
- 1st: New Year’s Day; School closed for students and staff; Administrative offices closed
- 1st-2nd: Winter Recess cont.; School closed for students and staff; Administrative offices closed
- 3rd: Staff Professional Development (Full Day); School closed for students
- 20th: Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Day; School closed for students and staff; Administrative offices closed
- 21st: Kindergarten Registration Opens
- 29th: Lunar New Year; School closed for students and staff; Administrative offices closed
- 30th, 31st: Term 2 Report Card Conferences (Half Day); Three Hour Early Dismissal for Students
Additional Important Dates:
6th-17th: Keystone Testing Window
View Cultural Events & Holiday Calendar
February 2025 | 19 Student Days; 19 Staff Days
- 7th: Staff Professional Development (Half Day); Three Hour Early Dismissal for Students
- 17th: Presidents’ Day; School closed for students and staff; Administrative offices closed
Additional Important Dates:
View Cultural Events & Holiday Calendar
March 2025 | 20 Student Days; 20 Staff Days
- 4th: Kindergarten Open House Day
- 7th: Staff Professional Development (Half Day); Three Hour Early Dismissal for Students
- 27th, 28th: Term 3 Report Card Conferences (Half Day); Three Hour Early Dismissal for Students
- 31st: Eid al-Fitr; School closed for students and staff; Administrative offices closed
Additional Important Dates:
9th: Daylight Saving Time starts
View Cultural Events & Holiday Calendar
April 2025 | 17 Student Days; 17 Staff Days
- 14th-17th: Spring Recess; School closed for students and staff
- 18th: Good Friday; School closed for students and staff; Administrative offices closed
Additional Important Dates:
21st: PSSA testing window begins
View Cultural Events & Holiday Calendar
May 2025 | 20 Student Days; 20 Staff Days
- 9th: Staff Professional Development (Half Day); Three Hour Early Dismissal for Students
- 12th-16th: Kindergarten Open House Week
- 20th: Election Day (tentative); School closed for students and staff
- 26th: Memorial Day; School closed for students and staff; Administrative offices closed
- 30th: Kindergarten Registration Closes
Additional Important Dates:
2nd: PSSA testing window ends
12th-23rd: Keystone testing window
View Cultural Events & Holiday Calendar
June 2025 | 9 Student Days; 9 Staff Days
- 6th: Eid al-Adha; School closed for students and staff; Administrative offices closed
- 12th: Staff Professional Development (Half Day); Three Hour Early Dismissal for Students
- 13th: Last Day of School for students and staff; Three Hour Early Dismissal for Students, Full day for Staff
- 19th: Juneteenth; Administrative offices closed
Additional Important Dates:
11th-13th: Graduation window
View Cultural Events & Holiday Calendar
July 2025
4th: Independence Day; School closed for students and staff; Administrative offices closed
Please note the following:
Some religious holidays begin at sundown on the evening before the holiday. Additionally, some holidays include fasting practices. Please be mindful of these holidays when scheduling tests, activities and events.
Board-approved 2/23/2023
Cultural Calendar
August
- Intersectionality Awareness Month
- August 13 – Tisha B’av
- August 25 – Arbaeen
- August 26 – Janmashtami
September
- September 2 – Labor Day
- September 7 – Brazilian Independence Day
- September 15 – The Start of Latina/o/x/e Hispanic Heritage Month
- Costa Rican Independence Day
- El Salvador Independence Day
- Guatemalan Independence Day
- Honduran Independence Day
- Nicaraguan Independence Day
- Day of Democracy
- September 16 – Mexican Independence Day
- September 18 – Chilean Independence Day
- September 20 – MIA/POW Recognition Day
- September 21 – International Day of Peace
- September 30 – International Translation Day
October
- LGBTQ History Month
- October 1 – International Day of Older Persons
- October 2 – 4 – Rosh Hashanah
- October 3 – 12 – Navaratri
- October 11 – National Coming Out Day
- October 11 – 12 – Yom Kippur
- October 14 – Indigenous People’s Day
- October 15 – White Cane Safety Day
- October 16 – 23 – Sukkot
- October 24 – 25 – Simchat Torah
- October 25 – International Dwarfism Awareness Day
November
- Native American Heritage Month
- November 1 – Diwali and Dia De Los Muertos
- November 3 – Birth of Baha’u’llah
- November 11 – Veterans Day
- November 16 – International Day of Tolerance
- November 20 – Trans Day of Remembrance
- November 25 – Day of the Covenant
- November 27 – Ascension of Abdu’l-Baha
- November 28 – Thanksgiving
- November 30 – St. Andrew’s Feast Day
December
- National Human Rights Month
- December 3 – International Day of Peoples’ w/ Disabilities
- December 8 – Bodhi Day
- December 21 – Winter Solstice
- December 24 – Christmas Eve
- December 25 – Christmas Day
- December 25 – Jan 2 – Hanukkah
- December 26 – Jan 1 – Kwanzaa
January
- National Poverty Awareness Month
- January 6 – Three Kings Day
- January 7 – Orthodox Christmas
- January 13 – Tu Bishvat
- January 14 – Mahayana New Year and Pongal
- January 15 – MLK Day
- January 27 – International Holocaust Remembrance Day
- January 29 – Lunar New Year
February
- Black History Month
- February 1 – National Freedom Day
- February 2 – Candlemas and Groundhog Day
- February 8 – Lailat at Miraj
- February 14 – Valentine’s Day
- February 15 – Parinirvana
- February 17 – Presidents’ Day
- February 20 – World Day of Social Justice
- February 26 – Maha Shivaratri
- February 28 – First day of Ramadan
March
- Women’s History Month
- March 1 – Zero Discrimination Day
- March 3 – World Hearing Day
- March 4 – Mardi Gras
- March 5 – Ash Wednesday
- March 8 – International Women’s Day
- March 10 – Harriet Tubman Day
- March 14 – Holi and Hola Mohalla
- March 17 – St. Patrick’s Day
- March 20 – Naw-Rúz
- March 21 – World Down Syndrome Day and International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination
- March 30 – Eid al-Fitr
- March 31 – Trans Day of Visibility
April
- Arab American Heritage Month
- April 2 – Autism Awareness Day and Autism Acceptance Day
- April 7 – World Health Day
- April 12 – April 20 – Passover
- April 12 – Hanuman Jayanti
- April 13 – Palm Sunday
- April 14 – Ambedkar Jayanti and Vaisakhi
- April 17 – Holy Thursday
- April 18 – Good Friday
- April 19 – Holy Saturday
- April 20 – Easter Sunday
- April 20 – May 2 – Ridvàn
- April 22 – Earth Day
- April 30 – International Guide Dog Day
May
- AAPI Heritage Month
- Jewish American Heritage Month
- May 5 – Cinco de Mayo, Buddha’s Birthday, African World Heritage Day
- May 11 – Mother’s Day
- May 12 – Vesak
- May 16 – Lag BaOmer and Malcolm X Day
- May 17 – Armed Forces Day
- May 21 – World Day for Cultural Diversity for Dialogue and Development
- May 22 – Harvey Milk Day
- May 26 – Memorial Day
- May 28 – Ascension of Baha’u’llah
June
- PRIDE Month
- June 1 – 2 – Shuvout
- June 5 – Ganga Dussehra
- June 6 – D-Day
- June 7 – Eid al-Adha
- June 8 – Pentecost and Odunde
- June 11 – Kamehameha Day
- June 12 – Pulse Nightclub Remembrance
- June 14 – Flag Day
- June 15 – Father’s Day
- June 16 – Bloomsday
- June 19 – Juneteenth
- June 20 – World Refugee Day
- June 21 – Summer Solstice
- June 26 – Islamic New Year
- June 27 – Helen Keller Day
- June 28 – Stonewall Riots Anniversary
Academic Calendar Overview
Our goal when making the annual Academic Calendar for The School District of Philadelphia is to create a year-long schedule that supports student learning and meets the diverse needs of students, families and staff. The process for developing the academic calendar is guided by Board Policy 803: School Calendar and its Administrative Procedures.
Included in the Administrative Procedures is a commitment to conducting extensive stakeholder engagement as part of the calendar development process, including a District-wide Academic Calendar Survey and various community feedback sessions. To view the results of stakeholder engagement completed to inform the 2023-24 and 2024-25 academic calendars select “Previous Calendar Decisions Rationale” below.
We are committed to engaging all of our stakeholders as we develop future calendars. If you would like to participate in upcoming feedback opportunities, please ensure you are following our social media channels. In addition, we encourage families to sign up for the Parent Portal to receive notifications from the District.
Educational Requirements for Calendar
Every year, our academic calendar must follow the requirements set by the Pennsylvania Department of Education and agreements made with Labor Unions. In addition, all school days in a given academic calendar year must fall between August 16th and June 15th because of the payroll contract year, which determines how 10-month employees are paid over 12 months. The calendar requirements include the following:
- 181 student learning days (24 P.S. § 1501) and 188 teacher work days must occur within July 1st and June 30th. (Article XVII, Article A, Collective Bargaining Agreement)
- OR, 900 instructional hours for elementary and middle school students; 990 instructional hours for high school students must occur (24 P.S. §15-1504).
- Five national holidays must be observed as days off for staff and students: Independence Day, Christmas, Thanksgiving, New Year’s Day, Memorial Day (24 P.S. § 1502)
- At least 28 professional development hours must be offered to teachers. (Article X, Section B, Collective Bargaining Agreement)
- 10 month employees under the PFT contract must have at least 12 paid holidays and 12 month employees must have at least 13 paid holidays, including the five holidays required by the State. (Article XXV, Article A, Collective Bargaining Agreement)
- There must be five (5) interview half days for all Kindergarten teachers during the first five (5) days of the student school year. (Article XVIII, Section D, Collective Bargaining Agreement)
- Each school must hold two (2) evening meetings per year and, provided there is joint agreement by the Principal, the Building Representative, and the President of the Home & School Association (if there is one), a third evening meeting per year. (Article XII, Article B, Collective Bargaining Agreement)
Previous Calendar Decisions Rationale
SY 23/24 and SY24/25 Academic Calendars: Executive Summary and Decision Rationale
When developing the annual Academic Calendar for The School District of Philadelphia, our primary goal is to establish a schedule that supports student learning and meets the diverse needs of students, families and staff, while also adhering to calendar requirements mandated by the Pennsylvania Department of Education and Collective Bargaining Units.
To finalize the 2023-2024 and 2024-2025 academic calendars, we engaged students, staff, community members, and District families in order to understand the priorities of our various audiences, and to ensure that our core beliefs, goals, and commitment to equity is reflected. To learn more about our methods, you can download our Executive Summary and Decision Rationale Deep Dive HERE.