Any time off from school is worth being excited about. We can take the time to relax, catch up on work and have some fun. When the idea of a break comes up most people don’t think too much about it, but rather , like senior Daniel Bortoluzzi, that it’s “just another break.”

Many students today have no knowledge on the origins as to why we receive this mid winter break. In a survey of 20 students asked whether they knew why we had the break or not, not one knew why we have this time off from school each year.

According to the New York Times, it goes all the way back to the 1970s. Our week off began as an energy saving measurement imposed during the oil crisis. In 1977 it was agreed upon by the board of education that during 1977-1978, students and faculty would have the week off as an experiment to save energy. The number of instructional days were not ultimately changed but the days off were moved around so that school building could fully shut down all their lights and thermostats for a week. However, today saving energy is not the reason behind the break. Our mid winter break today is a result of a budget cutting deal made in 1991 between the board of education and the teachers union. The agreement was prompted by the need to cut the school budget by $90 million through the reduction of teachers salaries. The agreement included tradeoffs, one in which is our February break.

All the time spent in school can be considered “difficult and stressful,” according to senior Tore Levander, so the break is a benefit for everyone, allowing us all to catch up on the world around us.