By Mike Hutchens, UC Schools Communications Director
The Union City School Board gave its official stamp of approval to the 2026-27 school calendar on Monday morning.
It’s a schedule that checks all boxes for everyone involved.
Director of Schools Wes Kennedy submitted the proposed calendar for the next school year at the Board’s monthly meeting, which includes 176 days of instruction, a full week of Fall Break for students, and observance of other traditional holidays and breaks.
Kennedy sought input from building administrators and considered state law changes and faculty/staff needs when putting together the calendar.
“Each of our schools has unique needs and desires as it pertains to their students, and we’ve tried to accommodate them the best we could,” claimed Kennedy, who is in his ninth year as the system’s top administrator. “It is important to everyone to not begin a school year before August 1, and they all want to be done before Memorial Day. This calendar checks those boxes.
“Most importantly, it gives our teachers and staff the classroom time they need to continue to provide a top-quality education for our students. It allows them to plan accordingly to have what they need time-wise, and to develop their plans while also allowing them to enjoy their breaks.”
“It also has a good Christmas Break with two full weeks and three weekends, and has our traditional week-long Spring Break along with our federal holidays. The extended Fall Break is something we’ve been looking into for the last couple of years, and we finally made it work.”
The 2026-27 calendar has four significant breaks for both students and teachers, the longest being Dec. 18, 2026, through Jan. 3, 2027, for Christmas and New Year’s. Teachers will return for an in-service day, Jan. 4, with students due back on Jan. 5, 2027.
The first day of classes for the 2026-27 school year is set for Aug. 10. Graduation is set for Saturday, May 15th.
The final day for classes will be May 20, 2027.
Teachers will report for in-service on Aug. 3, completing professional development for three days before registration (Aug. 6) and then the last of three prep days. Two prep days will be required during June and July.
Classes will be dismissed for Fall Break, Oct. 5-9, and again for Thanksgiving, Nov. 25-27.
Spring Break is slated for April 5-9, with weekends both before and after those dates.
UC Schools will continue to observe traditional holidays – Labor Day (Sept. 7, 2026), Martin Luther King Day (Jan. 18, 2027), and President’s Day (Feb. 15, 2027).
There will be early dismissal for students on Dec. 18, 2027, and on the final day of classes (May 20, 2027).
Any more than five inclement weather days will be made up at the end of the year.