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Syracuse Schools Not Exactly Making History With Juneteenth Syracuse Schools Not Exactly Making History With Juneteenth

By Mat Mlodzinski

Mat Mlodzinski
The push to make Juneteenth a federal holiday is now virtually complete. But the education system sometimes lags behind. In Syracuse, some teachers call on students to learn outside of school.

Ryan Blackwell
From a parent, I have a daughter now, and as a coach and a teacher I would really push these kids to go out and try to learn things on their own. Not always have to rely on what you learn in school.

Mlodzinski
At least for this year, that does ring true to a sense. Although the exact date falls on Saturday, most Syracuse area schools have no mentions of a Juneteenth observation on school calendars.

Blackwell
If they ever put that in, that’s great. It’s another opportunity to celebrate our history and our culture which is always good.

Mlodzinski
The Syracuse City School District was perhaps under the most fire. Complaints on social media reference a Juneteenth observation that hinted at no school. But more current updates to the calendar show a celebration on the weekend. However, they were not available for comment. But when a holiday is recognized at the federal level, schools are mandated to be out of session. For Juneteenth, that means celebrating the freedom of our Black brothers and sisters.

SYRACUSE, N.Y. (NCC News) – June 19, more commonly known as Juneteenth, celebrates the final emancipation of slaves in Texas in 1866. It’s always been widely known in African American communities, and in recent years has since spread in the overall national eye.

Last summer’s outrage following the murder of George Floyd, the Black Lives Matter movement and the still ongoing battle to end racism rooted in America brought Juneteenth to the forefront. The cry for a holiday to celebrate the freedom from the oppression of slaves finally began to be met. In October, Andrew Cuomo, the governor of New York signed a bill making Juneteenth a state holiday.

Eight months later and a whole year since this active movement picked up and with President Joe Biden’s signature, Juneteenth is now a federal holiday. This makes it now just the 11th federal holiday in the United States of America.

Despite all of this — and given that hey wouldn’t know this would happen during the school year — most of the school districts in the immediate Syracuse area didn’t recognize Juneteenth on their academic calendars.

The Syracuse City School District (SCSD) originally listed Juneteenth as a day of observance on Friday, June 18, according to an anonymous Facebook post. However, on the school’s website, it was moved to the weekend. NCC News reached out to the school district to find out the reason, but they did not get back with an answer.

Fayetteville-Manlius, Jamesville-Dewitt, Liverpool, and West Genesse school districts all had no mention of Juneteenth on their academic calendars.

Part of this could be Juneteenth falling on a Saturday this year. However, in the case of the SCSD, there are multiple graduations this week. That could be another possibility for the switch, but nothing was confirmed.

Ryan Blackwell, most known for his time as a Syracuse basketball player, now coaches and teaches at Liverpool High School said making Juneteenth a school holiday would be another opportunity to celebrate history.

“From a parent, I have a daughter now, and as a coach and a teacher, I would really push these kids to go out and try to learn things on their own. Not always have to rely on what you learn in school,” Blackwell said.

By making  Juneteenth a federal holiday, it will be mandatory for all schools to make it an official day off on the calendar.

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