Read from the district on October 8, 2026
McDowell County school calendar, 2026–2027
Key dates for 2026–2027: first day of school (some grades) August 24; Thanksgiving break November 23–27; winter break and one more day off December 23 to January 1; spring break March 29 to April 2; last day of school May 28.
Next time off
Nov 3
No school · November 3
As of October 8, 2026, the day this calendar was read
School days off this year
25
across 10 separate closures
Last day of school
May 28
Friday
First day of school (some grades) August 24; Thanksgiving break November 23–27; Winter break + 1 more day off December 23 to January 1; Spring break March 29 to April 2; Last day of school May 28;
Key dates and the month grids, on one or two sheets
Add these dates to your phoneEvery date below, in your calendar app.
Month by month
Days off: school breaks, holidays and staff days. Not days off: early releases and term milestones.
August 2026
SMTWTFS
26
27
28
29
30
31
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
1
2
3
4
5
- 20Staff day
- 21Staff day
- 24First day
- 25First day for some grades
- 26First day for some grades
- 27First day for some grades
- 31First day for some grades
September 2026
SMTWTFS
30
31
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
1
2
3
- 1First day for some grades
- 2First day for some grades
- 7Labor Day
- 23Staff day
October 2026
SMTWTFS
27
28
29
30
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
- 27First Quarter Report Cards Home
- 30Early release
November 2026
SMTWTFS
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
1
2
3
4
5
- 3No school
- 11Veterans Day
- 23–27Thanksgiving break
December 2026
SMTWTFS
29
30
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
1
2
- 23Staff day
- 24 onWinter break
January 2027
SMTWTFS
27
28
29
30
31
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
1
2
3
4
5
6
- to 1Winter break
- 7Testing
- 8Testing
- 13Semester ends
- 18MLK Day
- 19Second Quarter/First Semester Report Cards Home
February 2027
SMTWTFS
31
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
1
2
3
4
5
6
- 11No school
- 17Early release
March 2027
SMTWTFS
28
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
1
2
3
- 3Staff day
- 23Third Quarter Report Cards Home
- 29 onSpring break
April 2027
SMTWTFS
28
29
30
31
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
1
- to 2Spring break
- 21Early release
May 2027
SMTWTFS
25
26
27
28
29
30
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
1
2
3
4
5
- 17Testing
- 18Testing
- 21Graduation
- 24Testing
- 25Testing
- 27Semester ends
- 28Last day
- 31Memorial Day
June 2027
SMTWTFS
30
31
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
1
2
3
- 1–7No school
School break
Holiday, no school
Staff day, no students
Early release
Term milestone
Key dates
| What | Dates | School days | Back to school | Same dates in West Virginia |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| First day of school (some grades) | August 24 | — | — | 1 of 11 · West Virginia first day of school 2026, by district |
| Thanksgiving break | November 23–27 | 5 | Monday, November 30 | 8 of 11 · West Virginia Thanksgiving break 2026, by district |
| Winter break + 1 more day off | December 23 to January 1 | 8 | Monday, January 4 | 1 of 11 · West Virginia winter break 2026–27, by district |
| Spring break | March 29 to April 2 | 5 | Monday, April 5 | 3 of 11 · West Virginia spring break 2027, by district |
| Last day of school | May 28 | — | — | 2 of 11 · West Virginia last day of school 2027, by district |
- Longest closure
- Winter break + 1 more day off, December 23 to January 1 (8 school days)
- One-day closures
- 7
- Closures starting Tuesday to Thursday
- 6
- Staff days, no students
- 3: Sep 23, Dec 23, Mar 3
- Early-release days
- 3: Oct 30, Feb 17, Apr 21
- Most days off in one month
- December, 7 school days
- Months with no day off
- August, October and May
- Longest run of school days
- 40, April 5 to May 28
Shortest winter break of the 11 West Virginia districts we read: 7 school days, December 24 to January 1.
Every date
| Date | What it is | Time off | District’s own wording |
|---|---|---|---|
| August 20 | Teacher work day, no students | — | Professional Learning Day |
| August 21 | Teacher work day, no students | — | Professional Learning Day |
| August 24 | First day of school | — | First Day of School for Grades 1-12 |
| August 24 | Kindergarten Orientation/All Locations 1:00 | — | Kindergarten Orientation/All Locations 1:00 |
| August 25 | First day for some grades | — | First Day for Kindergarten Students/Last Name A-K |
| August 26 | First day for some grades | — | First Day for Kindergarten Students/Last Name L-Z |
| August 27 | First day for some grades | — | First Day for ALL Kindergarten Students/Last Name A-Z |
| August 27 | PreK Orientation/All Locations 1:00 | — | PreK Orientation/All Locations 1:00 |
| August 31 | First day for some grades | — | First Day for PreK Students/Last Name A-K |
| September 1 | First day for some grades | — | First Day for PreK Students/Last Name L-Z |
| September 2 | First day for some grades | — | First Day for ALL PreK Students/Last Name A-Z |
| September 7 | Labor Day | 1 school day | Labor Day Holiday-Schools Closed |
| September 23 | Teacher work day, no students | 1 school day | Professional Learning Day/No School for Students |
| October 27 | First Quarter Report Cards Home | — | First Quarter Report Cards Home |
| October 30 | Early release | — | Faculty Senate/3-Hour Early Release for Students |
| November 3 | No school | 1 school day | Election Day/Schools Closed |
| November 11 | Veterans Day | 1 school day | Veterans Day Holiday/Schools Closed |
| November 23–27 | Thanksgiving break | 5 school days | Out of Calendar Day/Schools Closed; Nov 23: Curriculum Development Day/No School for Students; Nov 26: Thanksgiving Day Holiday/Schools Closed; Nov 27: OSE Day/Schools Closed |
| December 23 | Teacher work day, no students | 1 school day | Professional Learning Day/Faculty Senate-No School for Students |
| December 24 to January 1 | Winter break | 7 school days | Out of Calendar Day/Schools Closed; Dec 25: Christmas Day Holiday/Schools Closed; Jan 1: New Year Day Holiday/Schools Closed |
| January 7 | Testing | — | High School Semester Exams |
| January 8 | Testing | — | High School Semester Exams |
| January 13 | End of semester | — | End of Second Quarter and First Semester |
| January 18 | Martin Luther King Jr. Day | 1 school day | Martin Luther King Jr. Day Holiday/Schools Closed |
| January 19 | Second Quarter/First Semester Report Cards Home | — | Second Quarter/First Semester Report Cards Home |
| February 11 | No school | 1 school day | Curriculum Development Day/No School for Students |
| February 17 | Early release | — | Faculty Senate/3-Hour Early Release for Students |
| March 3 | Teacher work day, no students | 1 school day | Professional Learning Day/No School for Students |
| March 23 | Third Quarter Report Cards Home | — | Third Quarter Report Cards Home |
| March 29 to April 2 | Spring break | 5 school days | Out of Calendar Day/Schools Closed |
| April 21 | Early release | — | Faculty Senate/3-Hour Early Release for Students |
| May 17 | Testing | — | High School Senior Finals |
| May 18 | Testing | — | High School Senior Finals |
| May 21 | Graduation | — | High School Graduations 6:00pm |
| May 24 | Testing | — | High School Underclassmen Finals |
| May 25 | Testing | — | High School Underclassmen Finals |
| May 27 | End of semester | — | End of Fourth Quarter and Second Semester |
| May 28 | Last day of school | — | Last Day of Instructional Term |
| May 31 | Memorial Day | — | Memorial Day Holiday/Schools Closed |
| June 1–7 | No school | — | OSE Day/No School . OSE Days may be converted to instructional days. |
Sources
- District’s calendar: https://boe.mcdo.k12.wv.us/events (the source)
- District website: https://boe.mcdo.k12.wv.us
- Calendar feed read on October 8, 2026:
https://thrillshare-cmsv2.services.thrillshare.com/api/v4/o/11778/cms/events
How these dates are read and labeled: Methodology.