3 More Holidays Added to New York State Public Schools IN OCTOBER

This year in New York State, many districts will have off 2 holidays in the month of October. These will be two extra days IN ADDITION to the Columbus Day holiday therefore there will be 3 days off.

Last year, many districts such as the Williamsville School Districts and many in central New York State added these to their calendars for students and staff.

Many parents are divided about the extra days off this year.

SOME PARENTS: Say that it is great that these are being recognized in their distrcits.

OTHER PARENTS: Are saying that it is already hard to find child care during the weekdays that students have off and with more and more holidays being added, the school year is ending extremely late with some school districts in New York State ending almost to July.

There are two more holidays that have been added to the public school calendar for many New York Schools. It is very important to double-check your school district's calendar to double-check if you, in fact, have these 2 holidays on your calendar. According to the Schools.nyc.gov website:

Thursday, October 2, 2025: Yom Kippur, schools closed
Monday, October 20, 2025: Diwali, schools closed

These two are in addition to the Columbus Day holiday.

What is the new name for Columbus Day in New York State?

Over the years, the Columbus Day holiday has been extremely controversial regarding the behavior and stories of Christopher Columbus. A lot of districts in New York State have adopted different names for Columbus Day, including Italian Heritage or Indigenous Peoples' Day.

When is Columbus Day 2025?

The day for Columbus Day, Italian Heritage and Indigenous Peoples' Day, schools closed Monday, October 13, 2025, and all New York State Public Schools have off.