The Austin Independent School District (AISD) in Texas is facing backlash after approving a 2025-2026 calendar that removes Good Friday as a student and staff holiday but keeps César Chávez-Dolores Huerta Day that same week, according to local media.
The change means students and staff will attend school on April 3, 2026 — Good Friday — but have March 31 off for the other observance, which AISD has reportedly recognized since 2019. The district’s calendar describes the holiday as one that “honors the leadership of labor and civil rights activist César Chávez and Dolores Huerta, who co-founded the United Farm Workers union.”
Faith-based advocacy group Texas Values accused the district of placing “political viewpoints over religious freedom” and urged officials to reverse the decision, Austin ABC affiliate KVUE-TV reported.
“Many churches hold religious services on Good Friday and students and staff should be able to have the day off to attend or prepare for those events,” Mary Elizabeth Castle, Texas Values’ director of government relations, said in a statement. “Instead, students will be off in the middle of the week to celebrate political heroes Austin ISD has deemed important.”
In an Oct. 21 letter to Superintendent Matias Segura, Texas Values said other Texas districts manage to close for both holidays, adding, “Thus, Austin ISD had an option to accommodate both holidays but chose to remove Good Friday.”
“It appears that the goal was to highlight a controversial and divisive figure like Dolores Huerta over acknowledging a holiday that a significant portion of Americans observe and ties to our state and nation’s Christian heritage,” the group wrote.
The letter also cited a 2025 Bureau of Labor Statistics report showing 31% of state and local government employers and 19% of private employers nationwide offer Good Friday as a paid holiday.
In response to the group’s criticism, AISD said it chose to give students Easter Monday instead, after reviewing two calendar drafts presented by a 30-40 member “Calendar Task Force,” according to Austin NBC affiliate KXAN-TV. Texas Values countered in its letter that the Easter Monday holiday “does not appear to be an off day where the campus is closed because it is a ‘campus staff development day.’”
District officials said giving students both Good Friday and March 31 off would have created a fragmented week, with holidays on both Tuesday and Friday, the outlet reported. AISD said teachers who wish to observe Good Friday or other religious days may request personal leave per district policy.
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