JFGH Statement on Farmington School Board Decision

The Jewish Federation of Greater Hartford applauds the December 5, 2022 announcement that the Farmington School District will add back Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur to its school calendar and will reconsider the request from the South Asian community to add its holy day of Diwali.  Over the past two weeks we have heard from dozens of faith and community leaders united in their concern that failure to include these holidays will have a significant impact on students and teachers in Farmington.

As our communities become increasingly diverse, it’s more important than ever to embrace that growing diversity by enshrining values of respect and inclusion in our schools’ policies and practices. We believe the leadership of the Farmington Public School system is committed to these values.  We will continue to work with the Farmington School Board and other faith communities to ensure that Diwali and other significant religious holidays are also recognized on Farmington’s school calendar.