March 20, 2021
Fairfax school calendar recognizes religious holidays, but kids won’t have off
InsideNoVA
“We are deeply disappointed,” said the group’s associate director Guila Franklin Siegel. “The stunning lack of cultural competency and the lack of empathy for the experience of minority faiths we have seen throughout this process make clear that a great deal of education remains necessary.”
March 19, 2021
Fairfax County schools to recognize additional religious days but won’t give students day off
FOX 5 Washington DC
Parents of students who are Hindu, Muslim and Jewish and leaders of several religious communities in Fairfax County argued for the School Board to give them the same privileges of closing their schools for observance of their holy days as they would for days like Christmas.
March 19, 2021
Fairfax declines to add four Jewish, Muslim and Hindu holidays to calendar
The Washington Post
On Friday, the Jewish Community Relations Council of Greater Washington wrote a letter to the Jewish community in the D.C. area calling Fairfax’s calendar decision “deeply disappointing.” “We hoped that meaningful progress was finally within reach after years of struggling with [Fairfax] over unfair treatment of Jewish students forced to miss school on our holidays, endure inappropriate Christmas-related activities, and bear the brunt of increasing incidents of anti-Semitism,” the letter reads. The leaders of the council vowed in the letter that they will continue petitioning Fairfax until it adopts a calendar that is “inclusive, equitable [and] accommodates the needs of minority faith communities.”
March 19, 2021
Fairfax Co. school calendar recognizes religious holidays but kids won’t have off
WTOP News
The decision not to give students off for Rosh Hashanah, Yom Kippur, Eid and Diwali — holidays recognized by members of the Jewish, Muslim and Hindu communities — did not please the Jewish Community Relation Council of Greater Washington.
March 19, 2021
Virginia’s largest school system votes down inclusion of non-Christian holidays
Forward
“We are very disappointed and pained by the school board’s decision last night,” Guila Franklin Siegel, the associate director of the Jewish Community Relations Council (JCRC) of Greater Washington said in an interview on Friday.
March 19, 2021
Fairfax school board votes no to closing on High Holidays
Washington Jewish Week
The school board’s decision to deny all four requested closures on days coinciding with Rosh Hashanah, Yom Kippur, Diwali, and Eid was a slap in the face to Fairfax County’s Jewish, Muslim, Hindu, and Sikh communities,” a JCRC statement read. “There is no way to sugar-coat the disrespectful, dismissive, and ill-informed approach that too many school board members adopted towards our interfaith coalition throughout this process.”
March 19, 2021
Fairfax County recognizes additional religious days in academic calendar
WDVM
Guila Franklin-Siegel, associate director of the Jewish Community Relations Council, said, “The impacted communities are feeling pained and upset, and frustrated, but also resolved because we know this fight is far from over and we will not stop advocating.”
March 19, 2021
FCPS School Calendar Vote: A letter from the JCRC
JCRC of Greater Washington
Dear Friends:
As Shabbat nears, we want to take a moment to reflect on last night’s deeply disappointing vote by the Fairfax County School Board. Like so many of you, we hoped that meaningful progress was finally within reach, after years of struggling with FCPS over unfair treatment of Jewish students forced to miss school on our holidays, endure inappropriate Christmas-related activities, and bear the brunt of increasing incidents of antisemitism.
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March 18, 2021
Letter to Montgomery County Board of Education on Proposed 2021-2022 Calendar Options
JCRC of Greater Washington
To: Hon. Brenda Wolff and Members of The Montgomery County Board of Education
cc: Dr. Jack Smith
Dr. Monifa McKnight
Mr. Troy Boddy
Dear President Wolff and fellow Board of Education members:
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March 18, 2021
FOX 5 Washington DC
Palle, along with the Jewish Community Relations Council of Greater Washington (JCRC) and other interfaith coalition partners, argue that the current calendar does not accurately represent the diversity that Fairfax County has. ... "The school system has already by its own admission, failed at implementing and consistently enforcing these regulations and we have no reason to believe that would change," said Guila Franklin Siegel, Associate Director at JCRC. Siegel said that at least 1,000 Fairfax County residents have also emailed their school-board representatives demanding a calendar change. She noted that the Jewish population in northern Virginia, which includes Fairfax, had swelled by 80 percent between 2003 and 2017, and said that Hindu and Muslim populations in the district have "dramatically increased" as well."
March 18, 2021
Fairfax County Public School's academic calendar under fire for not 'pursuing equity'
ABC7 WJLA
Guila Franklin Siegel, the Associate Director of the Jewish Community Relations Council of Greater Washington says the county is far more diverse than it has ever been, “Fairfax county remains a hold out in terms of adjusting its school calendar to reflect that diversity.” ... Franklin Siegel says, “This message that is being received in the community is that Fairfax County is lagging behind and is not committed to truly pursuing equity for all of its residents.”
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March 8, 2021
In Virginia, an interfaith coalition fights to get non-Christian holidays on school calendars
Forward
Guila Franklin Siegel, the associate director of the Jewish Community Relations Council (JCRC) of Greater Washington, said that at least 1,000 Fairfax County residents have also emailed their school-board representatives demanding a calendar change. ... “The JCRC has for years been receiving complaints from parents, rabbis, and students about consistent failures in the Fairfax county public schools’ ability to successfully implement and enforce guidelines for religious accommodations,” Siegel said. “It’s something we deal with every year, and it’s a source of tremendous frustration and stress for Jewish students.”
March 4, 2021
School Board Directs FCPS to Draft New Calendar Ahead of Vote
reston now
"Meanwhile, 286 students have signed a petition, and 76 clergy and faith organizations have signed a letter initiated by the Jewish Community Relations Council of Greater Washington (JCRC) urging the board to add the holidays."
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March 3, 2021
School Board to Debate Adding New Religious Holidays to Calendar
reston now
"The religious groups involved in the task force — including the All Dulles Area Muslim Society (ADAMS), the Durga Temple of Virginia, Hindu American Foundation, McLean Islamic Center, Northern Virginia Hebrew Congregation, Sikh Foundation of Virginia, and the Jewish Community Relations Council of Greater Washington (JCRC) — expressed “deep disappointment” in the new turn of events in a letter sent to the school board on Feb. 9."
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March 2, 2021
Back to drawing board over proposal to add four religious holidays to Fairfax schools’ calendar
The Washington Post
But the board postponed its vote, instead requesting more time to weigh the decision after some members signaled they would prefer a calendar that did not include the holidays. The delay angered religious leaders in Northern Virginia, who wrote a scathing letter to the board.
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March 1, 2021
The Washington Post
For years, members of minority faiths within FCPS have felt marginalized and disadvantaged because of their religious identity and observance. Students face review days or classroom tests on Diwali; assessment tests scheduled during Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur; and assignments due on or the day after Eid al-Fitr. Teachers and staff are forced to take personal days to observe or, worse, feel unable to take those days at all.
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February 23, 2021
Group pushes for recognition of minority religions in Fairfax County school calendar
ABC7 WJLA
Last year, the school board created a task force to find options for a new calendar that would reflect the growing religious diversity in Northern Virginia. The task force proposed two options, which would have closed school on days coinciding with four Jewish, Muslim, Hindu, and Sikh observances.
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February 16, 2021
Hogan outlines accomplishments for Jewish community
Washington Jewish Week
"Hogan’s appearance was part of Maryland Jewish Advocacy Day, hosted by The Associated: Jewish Federation of Baltimore, the Jewish Federation of Greater Washington, the JCRC of Greater Washington, the Jewish Federation of Howard County, and the Jewish Community Relations Council of Howard County and Baltimore Jewish Council."
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February 12, 2021
Interfaith community pushes Fairfax County Schools to include religious holidays in their calendar
WDVM
“Both of the drafts included closures on the days that coincide with Rosh Hashanah, Yom Kippur, Eid, and Diwali, and without any notice, the board included a third option that does not include those days off,” said Franklin-Siegel.
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February 11, 2021
The Washington Post
“Since I joined JCRC four years ago, I have set my sights on working on this issue in Fairfax,” Siegel said. “It would be a game-changer for a huge segment of the Northern Virginia Jewish community.” -- Fairfax spokeswoman Lucy Caldwell said the school board is scheduled again to vote on the calendar at a March 18 meeting. Ahead of that, Siegel said the JCRC and other religious groups are joining forces to launch an “education and advocacy campaign” in Fairfax County. They hope to change board members’ minds.
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February 11, 2021
Fairfax Co. school board considers new calendar to address learning loss from pandemic
WTOP News
Guila Franklin Siegel, associate director of the Jewish Community Relations Council of Greater Washington, said her organization and others represented on the task force were not notified that a third option had been proposed. “We were very, very shocked and disappointed,” she said. “We don’t feel that removing closures on four days in an entire school year is going to meaningfully address that issue (of learning loss).”
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February 7, 2021
Jewish group assists food insecure neighbors at Holy Cross Hospital
Washington Jewish Week
Last fall, Kemp Mill Synagogue received a call from Holy Cross Hospital in Silver Spring asking for their help. Holy Cross Hospital had identified nearly 100 employees who were food insecure due to pandemic-related issues.
February 3, 2021
Repairing the world from the Virginia statehouse
Jewish Insider
Eileen Filler-Corn, the fast-rising speaker of the House, maintains strong ties to the Jewish community in a state that has turned solidly blue
January 25, 2021
‘I don’t recognize our country’: Jewish lawmakers under siege respond
The Jerusalem Post
The new Congress has at least 33 Jewish members, in the House and Senate, among those who would have been present today.
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January 25, 2021
Barbara Leaf could play a key role in Biden’s Middle East policy
Jewish Insider
In the October JCRC talk, Leaf encouraged the next administration to take its time in addressing rapprochement with Iran.
