Ever tried to drop your kid off at school only to realize the parking lot is a ghost town? It’s a specific kind of local heartbreak. If you live in Shreveport or the surrounding areas, the caddo parish school calendar is basically the heartbeat of your household planning. It dictates when you can finally take that Disney trip or when you need to scramble for a babysitter because of a "Professional Development" day you totally missed on the fridge magnet.
Honestly, the 2025-2026 academic year has some quirks that caught a few people off guard. Between the traditional breaks and those random Monday closures, keeping it all straight is a full-time job.
The Major Breaks You Need to Circle
The big ones are easy to remember, but the exact dates change enough to be annoying. For the 2025-2026 stretch, the district kept a fairly standard rhythm, but the placement of Fall Break is always the one that saves or ruins a vacation budget.
Fall Break landed right in early October, specifically October 6th through the 10th. It’s that perfect sweet spot where the Louisiana humidity finally starts to take a back seat.
Then you’ve got the heavy hitters. Thanksgiving is a full week off. Always has been, likely always will be. In 2025, that meant schools were ghost towns from November 24th to the 28th.
Christmas Break—or Winter Break, depending on who you're talking to—is the marathon. It kicked off on December 18, 2025, and students didn't actually haul their backpacks back to class until January 6, 2026. That’s nearly three weeks of "I'm bored" echoing through the house.
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Why the Spring Schedule is Different
Spring 2026 is looking a bit busy. Spring Break is set for March 9th through the 13th.
But wait. There’s a curveball.
Caddo Parish often includes a "Winter Break" or Presidents’ Day weekend. In 2026, that falls on February 13th through the 16th. It’s a short four-day weekend, but if you don't account for that Friday off, you're going to be that parent sitting in the carpool lane alone.
Easter also creates a gap. Schools are scheduled to be closed from April 3rd to April 6th, 2026. It’s a quick breather before the madness of May sets in.
Navigating the Professional Development Trap
This is where the caddo parish school calendar gets tricky. You see "PD Day" and your brain skips it. Don't.
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These are the days where teachers are working, but your kids are definitely not. Usually, they tack these onto the end of a reporting period. For example, January 5, 2026, was a teacher-only day right after the long Christmas break.
- October 17, 2025: PD Day (No students)
- December 17, 2025: End of Semester/PD Day
- March 6, 2026: PD Day
Missing one of these means you're frantically calling your mother-in-law at 7:15 AM. We've all been there.
Important Milestones and Graduation
May is basically a blur of ceremonies and stress. For the seniors, the "Last Day" is usually a couple of weeks before the rest of the pack. For 2026, senior high schoolers are looking at May 8th as their final official day of freedom.
The rest of the district wraps up on May 21, 2026.
Graduation dates for specific schools like Byrd, Captain Shreve, or Southwood are typically handled on a staggered schedule at the Shreveport Convention Center. While the district calendar sets the "window," the individual schools usually blast out their specific hour-by-hour schedules closer to the spring.
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How to Stay Ahead of Changes
The Caddo Parish School Board (CPSB) isn't known for making massive mid-year changes unless a hurricane or a freak ice storm rolls through. However, it's worth noting that the "Reporting Periods" (the 9-week blocks) are the real anchors.
- First Period Ends: October 17, 2025
- Second Period Ends: December 17, 2025
- Third Period Ends: March 6, 2026
- Fourth Period Ends: May 21, 2026
If you’re tracking grades on JCampus, these dates are your deadlines. Everything usually goes dark a few days before these dates as teachers scramble to input those last-minute late assignments.
Actionable Next Steps for Parents
Don't just leave this tab open and hope for the best.
First, sync your digital calendar. Most people try to remember this stuff, but the February break always slips through the cracks. Go into your Google or Apple calendar right now and block out March 9-13 for Spring Break and February 13-16 for that Winter gap.
Second, check your specific school's "Bell Schedule." While the district sets the holidays, the start and end times can vary slightly between elementary and high schools.
Finally, keep an eye on the CPSB official website for "inclement weather" updates. In North Louisiana, a single inch of sleet can turn the whole calendar upside down, often resulting in "make-up days" being pulled from the Easter or Spring breaks.