DC Public Schools students go back to school on Monday, August 24, 2026, for grades K-12. Pre-K students follow on a staggered start date of Thursday, August 27. Across the DMV, most districts return the same week: Fairfax County and Montgomery County both start August 24-25.
In brief
DC Public Schools students go back to school on Monday, August 24, 2026, for grades K-12. Pre-K students follow on a staggered start of Thursday, August 27. Across the DMV, most districts return the same week: Fairfax County also starts August 24, and Montgomery County opens August 25. Charter school families should check directly with their school.
DCPS: the official dates
The first day of school for DC Public Schools students in SY 2026-27 is Monday, August 24, 2026. Pre-K students have a staggered start beginning Thursday, August 27, 2026. That four-day gap gives the youngest kids a quieter first week before older students fill the hallways.
The DC Public Schools Calendar 26-27 covers all 116 DCPS schools across all eight wards. Dr. Kim Jackson serves as Interim Chancellor, appointed in June 2026 after Dr. Lewis D. Ferebee stepped down. Central offices are at 1200 First Street NE.
The rest of the year: DCPS winter break for SY 2026-27 runs from Monday, December 21, 2026 through Friday, January 1, 2027. School resumes Monday, January 4, 2027. Spring break runs Monday, March 22 through Friday, March 26, 2027, with school resuming Monday, March 29. The last day of school for DCPS students in SY 2026-27 is Thursday, June 17, 2027. Snow-day make-up days are scheduled for June 22-23 if needed.
One thing to watch: each of DC's 123 public charter schools sets its own academic calendar. Many align with DCPS for major holidays, but first day and last-day dates vary - sometimes by weeks. If your child goes to a charter, the school's own website is your best source.
Montgomery County (MCPS)
Student Transition Day, a non-instructional day, falls on Monday, August 24, 2026. The first day of school is Tuesday, August 25, 2026. The last day of school is Wednesday, June 16, 2027. Winter break is December 23, 2026 through January 3, 2027. Spring break is March 26 through April 4, 2027.
MCPS uses its Transition Day to ease the jump into a new building. Montgomery County Public Schools launches a Transition Day to help incoming pre-K, kindergarten, 6th grade, 9th grade, and Christiansburg Elementary School 3rd grade students prepare for the move to a new school. During the day, students meet teachers and staff, learn about school procedures, and become familiar with their new building.
Fairfax County (FCPS)
Fairfax County Public Schools students return to classrooms Monday, August 24, for the first day of the 2026-27 school year. Nearly 180,000 students are expected to return to Fairfax County Public Schools on August 24, according to school board at-large member Ryan McElveen.
Before classes begin, new teacher training is scheduled for August 10-13. Professional workdays for staff follow August 14 and August 17-21. The calendar includes Thanksgiving break from November 25-27, winter break from December 21 through January 3, and spring break from March 22-26. The final day of school will be June 16, with an early-release schedule.
Prince George's County (PGCPS)
Tuesday, August 25, 2026 is the first day of school for all PGCPS students. August 24 is student orientation day, with the first full day of class on August 25.
DC Public Schools (DCPS): Monday, August 24, 2026 (grades K-12); Pre-K staggered start Thursday, August 27, 2026
Fairfax County Public Schools (FCPS): Monday, August 24, 2026
Montgomery County Public Schools (MCPS): Tuesday, August 25, 2026
Prince George's County Public Schools (PGCPS): Tuesday, August 25, 2026
Dates may change - verify directly with DCPS before planning around them. For weather emergencies, DCPS posts closure and delayed-opening status before 6:00 AM. The official DCPS calendar lives at dcps.dc.gov.
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CAN I KICK IT? screens New Jack City at the Sylvan Theater, Washington Monument, on Aug. 22. (Courtesy SHAOLIN JAZZ)
The live-cinema series CAN I KICK IT? returns to the National Mall this month with what its producers are calling the "Gangsters on the Mall" chapter of their free outdoor summer run. On Saturday, August 22, the SHAOLIN JAZZ production brings the 1991 crime classic New Jack City to the Sylvan Theater at the Washington Monument for a night of film, music, and community under the DC summer sky.
What sets the event apart is the sound. As the film plays, DJ 2-Tone Jones builds an original score in real time, reimagining one of the most iconic crime movies of the ’90s through hip-hop, soul, funk, and more. It is less a movie screening than a live performance built around the film.
The details:
Film: New Jack City (1991), with a live soundtrack by DJ 2-Tone Jones
When: Saturday, August 22 — seating opens at 7:30 p.m. (bring lawn chairs and blankets); film begins at 8:30 p.m.
Where: Sylvan Theater at the Washington Monument, Independence Ave SW & 15th St NW
A parking note from the organizers: expect road closures and restricted parking east of 14th Street NW due to a separate race event in the District. Roads west of 14th Street NW will be accessible and available for parking.
New Jack City is the second of three screenings in this year’s free CAN I KICK IT? outdoor series, which opened with Black Panther at Skyland Town Center and concludes with Scarface at the Lincoln Memorial on September 5. Produced by the Washington, DC-based multimedia arts company SHAOLIN JAZZ, the series has presented more than 150 live cinematic experiences at venues across the country, from Lincoln Center to SXSW.
"I wanted to be able to tell good stories with substance and remove the ‘ego’ out of the art," said Andrew Huang during a recent interview. Now, he’s building his career at the intersection of discipline, creativity and innovation.
Andrew Huang, founder of New Place Studios. (Courtesy photo)
As a Chinese American, Huang was reared with a deep respect for hard work, consistency and excellence. He describes his childhood as "not so affluent" and later attended college to hone his passion for videography. "In college I tried to do something I loved, which was video, but along the way I knew that I had to find a job. And so I thought, ‘what was the low hanging fruit to get to that stable 9 to 5 job?,’" he stated.
Later in life, Huang found himself working for corporations where his creativity was often limited, eventually leading to burnout. "I worked in a corporation for a long time and there were a lot of missing pieces. I wanted to fill in gaps missing in corporate video production," said Huang.
He later described how his upbringing and a mindset of "survival" led him toward a corporate career. However, his desire for balance and authentic storytelling ultimately pushed him to take the entrepreneurial leap.
"I founded a new place where you can create video and film with ‘substance and style,’" said Huang. His desire for work-life balance and passion for storytelling naturally evolved into a small business based in Virginia. With the launch of New Place Studios, the entrepreneur quickly found himself reconnecting with the values that would become the foundation of everything he creates behind the camera.
Huang said being a business owner has allowed him to first embrace himself. While others may see video as simply capturing moments, he sees it as a way to preserve stories that inspire, connect and leave a lasting imprint.
By combining cinematic visuals with cutting-edge production techniques and a keen understanding of branding, Huang helps organizations and individuals communicate their vision with purpose. He said understanding a client’s "why" serves as the compass for delivering the services they need.
One benefit of working with a small business, he said, is that clients get to see the production process unfold through a micro lens while working with the same faces throughout the entire project. "The work feels personal," said Huang.
Huang does not regret leaving behind the flash-over-substance mentality and corporate hustle culture. That does not mean the Asian American entrepreneur has been without challenges in the industry. "It’s relatively hard to find other Asian American creatives or people who would want to work with me in the DMV," said Huang.
He identifies the industry culture in which everyone is trying to blend in, creatives may fear displaying their Asian identity and some feel pressure to adopt an American corporate persona. He also points to what he describes as a level of gatekeeping within the industry. According to the U.S. Small Business Administration’s 2024 statistics, Asian American and Pacific Islander entrepreneurs own more than 3 million businesses and employ 5.2 million people in the United States.
After tapping into organizations such as SCORE, which offers free small business mentorship, New Place Studios has become a trusted creative partner throughout the DMV (Washington, D.C., Maryland and Virginia). The company produces a range of creative services, including commercials, corporate branding, documentaries, film, 2D animation, motion graphics and photography.
For Huang, entrepreneurship has become more than a departure from corporate life. It has given him the freedom to create with intention, build meaningful connections and tell stories that go beyond the surface.
The 2026 CAN I KICK IT? outdoor series. Poster courtesy of SHAOLIN JAZZ.
For three Saturdays this summer, some of Washington’s most familiar public spaces will do something they rarely do after dark: fill up with blankets, lawn chairs, and the sound of a movie being scored live, in real time. CAN I KICK IT?, the traveling “live cinema” series produced by the DC-based multimedia arts company SHAOLIN JAZZ, is bringing a free outdoor run to the city — pairing three era-defining films with an original soundtrack performed on the spot by DJ 2-Tone Jones.
The premise is what sets it apart from a normal screening in the park. Rather than simply pressing play, 2-Tone Jones builds a score as the film unfolds, pulling from hip-hop, soul, funk, jazz, rock, electronic music, and sounds from around the world. The result, the organizers say, is less a movie night than a one-time performance — the same film you know, wired to a soundtrack you have never heard and will not hear again. Guest DJs warm up the crowd starting at 7:30 PM before each 8:30 PM screening.
The 2026 outdoor schedule
All three events are free and open to the public.
Saturday, August 8 — Black Panther at Skyland Town Center. A pop-up marketplace and community activities kick off the evening; guest DJs at 7:30 PM, film at 8:30 PM. Marvel’s superhero epic gets a one-night-only live score in Southeast DC.
Saturday, August 22 — New Jack City at the Sylvan Theater, Washington Monument. Seating begins at 7:30 PM; the film starts at 8:30 PM. The 1991 crime drama plays out at the foot of one of the country’s most recognizable landmarks.
Saturday, September 5 — Scarface at the Lincoln Memorial. Seating at 7:30 PM; film at 8:30 PM. The series closes with Brian De Palma’s crime saga against the backdrop of the Memorial, scored live from start to finish.
First up: Black Panther at Skyland Town Center on August 8. Poster courtesy of SHAOLIN JAZZ.
A DC company with a national footprint
SHAOLIN JAZZ describes itself as a Washington-based arts company working at the intersection of music, film, art, and culture, and CAN I KICK IT? is its signature production. According to the organizers, the series has staged more than 150 live cinematic experiences around the country — at performing arts centers, museums, festivals, and cultural institutions including Lincoln Center in New York, SXSW, the Denver Center for the Performing Arts, Republic Square in Austin, the Tacoma Armory, and The Cary Theater.
“CAN I KICK IT? has always been about creating a shared experience,” said Gerald Watson, co-founder of SHAOLIN JAZZ. “When you combine iconic films with live music in public spaces, something special happens. People aren’t just watching a movie — they’re experiencing it together. That’s what makes these nights so memorable.”
Cinema as a community event
The DC run lands as cities across the country look for new ways to activate public space through arts and culture — and this series is a straightforward pitch for how to do it: take a landmark everyone already knows, add a film everyone has an opinion about, and let a live soundtrack turn the evening into something neighbors experience shoulder to shoulder. Families, film buffs, and music fans are all invited, and admission won’t cost a thing.
The CAN I KICK IT? outdoor series runs August 8, August 22, and September 5. All events are free; check SHAOLIN JAZZ (shaolinjazz.com) for the latest details and any weather updates before heading out.
