Fairfax conservatives have been saying it for years: the School Board doesn’t answer to parents. It answers to ideology. This week, even the Washington Times editorial board caught up.

The Fairfax County School Board met this month to discuss the 2026-2027 school calendar. Parents asked for fewer teacher workdays, fewer early releases, fewer disruptions to the school week. The Board had a choice between listening to families and making a political statement.

They chose the political statement.

Veterans Day Gone. Indigenous Peoples Day Stays.

Democrats on the Board recommended eliminating two federal holidays — Veterans Day and Indigenous Peoples Day — to build more consistency into the calendar. That part made sense. Then they voted.

They kept Indigenous Peoples Day and killed Veterans Day.

Not the teacher workdays parents asked them to cut. Not the ballooning early release days that force parents to scramble for childcare. Veterans Day — the one federal holiday that honors the men and women who served this country.

More than 7% of Fairfax County Public Schools students come from military-connected families. The Board told those families exactly where they rank.

The Worst Calendar in America

Fairfax County students now spend only 52% of the school year attending five-day school weeks. That’s the lowest percentage in Fairfax County history — and the lowest among the largest school districts in the country.

Six cultural holidays. A growing pile of early release days for elementary students. Teacher workdays scattered through the year like confetti. And the result?

• Roughly one in four students failed their 2025 Standards of Learning exams in math, reading, and science
• Only 5 of 25 high schools have an average SAT score above the minimum considered acceptable for a competitive college
• The district spends $22,600 per pupil — more than the $19,000 average annual tuition at Fairfax County’s 191 private schools

Read that again. You’re paying more per student for public school than private school costs — and getting worse results.

Families Are Voting With Their Feet

Fairfax County schools saw the largest decline in student enrollment among Virginia school districts from 2015 to 2020. Registration rolls are on pace to shrink another 6.6% by 2030 — while neighboring districts are gaining students.

Parents aren’t confused about what’s happening. They’re leaving because 12 Democrat-endorsed School Board members — Chair Sandy Anderson (Springfield), Vice Chair Robyn Lady (Dranesville), Karl Frisch (Providence), and every other seat — run this district like a political project instead of a school system.

Superintendent Michelle Reid, who serves at the Board’s direction and collects a salary north of $300,000, implements whatever they decide. And what they decided this month is that honoring veterans matters less than honoring their own political calendar.

One-Party Rule Starts at the School Board

This is what happens when every seat is held by the same party. No dissent. No debate. No one standing up and saying, “Maybe we should listen to what parents actually asked for.”

All 12 School Board seats are on the ballot in November 2027. Every one of them. Remember this vote when that day comes.

Further reading: “Fairfax County School Board eliminates Veterans Day holiday, disappoints once again” — The Washington Times, April 17, 2026.