Diwali and Eid al-Adha added in US district school calendar

WASHINGTON: In a historic decision, a US school district has added two Indian festivals in the list of their school calendar, for the first time in history of school system.

In addition of Indian festivals, Diwali and Eid al-Adha(Bakreid) the school system has also included Chinese Lunar New Year’s Eve in their list.

The decision of Howard County Public School System has been dubbed as ‘historic’ by the Indo-American community. The Howard County Public School System manages 71 schools which serve around 50,000 students.

"I am extremely pleased by the Board's ability to discuss and unanimously agree to seek ways to recognise the diverse backgrounds of Howard County's students and families," Board of Education Chairwoman Christine O'Connor said in a statement after the eight member board unanimously supported such a motion.

"We want to do our best to find flexibility within the calendar to provide opportunities for all students to experience all cultures within our community," O'Connor said.