Columbus Day, Holidays Back On Randolph School Calendar

RANDOLPH, NJ — The Randolph Board of Education's Columbus Day journey ended where it began. The board voted Monday to return the school calendar to its earlier state, with holiday names including Columbus Day.

The board held a special meeting Monday, which featured hours of boos, jeers and comments from people who supported putting Columbus Day back on the calendar. The governing body previously replaced the holiday with Indigenous People's Day.

After receiving criticism from the public and Italian-American groups, they chose to take labels off holidays on the school calendar, instead referring to them as "days off."

Despite backpedaling from their prior decisions, the board sustained nearly four hours of criticism, including calls for their resignations. Most speakers accused to board of bringing "cancel culture" into the school system, and the few who spoke in the board's defense were booed and shouted down, according to the Daily Record.

The board released the following statement after the meeting:

"The Randolph Board of Education is grateful to the community for its feedback regarding designating school holidays and days off. After a reconsideration, the school calendar returns to its prior form, adding ALL state and Federal holidays.

The very essence of education is to learn, to grow and to apply lessons learned. The last few weeks have showcased a concerned community, an interested public and a responsive Board of Education that acknowledged a decision made without proper consideration. In the future, a review committee will seek community input on any proposed calendar changes.

Randolph has a reputation for academic integrity, and a strong sense of community. It is the sincere hope of the School Board that those values are once again on display and any past negativity will dissipate as we focus on our students and their educational needs."

The lone vote against returning the calendar to its prior form came from Board Member Susan DeVito, who criticized the media's reporting and said critics of the decision took on "broader issues than just Christopher Columbus," according to the Daily Record.

The issue of the school calendar became a lightning rod within the community and national — primarily conservative — media. Right-wing political commentator Dan Bongino said on Fox & Friends that the decision represented an "ideological war" to make people sound xenophobic. Read more: Amid Columbus Dispute, Randolph Schools Take Names Off Holidays

Last month, the board followed a recommendation from its Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Ad Hoc Committee to change Columbus Day to Indigenous People's Day on the school calendar. The board faced backlash and protest from critics and Italian-American groups, who say the holiday recognizes their shared heritage.

The board changed course June 10 and instead opted to recognize all holidays originally on the school calendar as "days off." But they continued to face criticism that's spanned from residents to Italian-American groups to national media.