June Is Here. School Ends in Five Weeks: 7 Things NYC Parents Need to Wrap Up

Dana thought she was done.

In mid-May, she had sorted out Summer Rising, locked in a backup camp, and marked every closure day on the new school year calendar. She had opened a bottle of wine the night she finished. She felt, for about a week, that she was ahead of something.

Then her neighbor Cynthia sent a message to the parent group chat: "We're flying back to China on June 20th. The kids won't go the last week. Should be fine, right?"

Three people replied within minutes. "It's fine, everyone does it." "Nobody cares about the last week." "Just go."

One person wrote: "I wouldn't."

Dana stared at the thread. She didn't know which answer was right. She decided to find out for herself—what actually had to get done before the final day, what happens if you leave early, and what she still hadn't done. What follows is the list she made.

The June Calendar at a Glance (Tape This to Your Fridge)

No exams are scheduled on June 19. For non-testing grades, whether your child needs to be in the building during the Regents period varies by school. Check your school's specific notice.

1. Makeup Exams and Grade Recovery: The Final Window Is the First Half of June

Most makeup exams are concentrated in the first two weeks of June. Some schools started as early as late May. If your child has a failing grade in any subject or missed a major exam, this is the window, and it will close.

Regents makeup reference schedule (confirm with your school; these are typical dates from prior years):

• ELA: June 9
• Algebra II: June 10
• Algebra I / Global History: June 17
• Biology / Earth Science: June 18
• U.S. History / Geometry: June 23
• Chemistry: June 24

What to do now: Contact your child's guidance counselor directly. Do not wait for the school to reach out. Ask for the "make-up exam schedule" by name. Makeup exams are not automatic—you must request them. If you wait until after June 26, the window is gone.

If your child needs review materials, free platforms like Khan Academy are available for targeted practice. High school families in particular should note: if a student needs to pass a Regents exam to graduate, that makeup must be completed before the last day. Missing this window can delay a summer diploma or fall college enrollment.

2. Summer School, Summer Rising, and ESY: Final Confirmation

Summer School: If your child has been recommended for summer school, confirm the specifics now. Most programs begin in early July and run four to six weeks. Ask about daily hours, whether meals are provided, and whether transportation is available. Some districts offer transportation subsidies for summer school but do not actively inform parents. Ask.

Summer Rising: Offers went out on April 21. The acceptance deadline was May 5. If you already accepted, now is the time to check your specific schedule, location, and transportation arrangements. If you are still on a waitlist, rankings updated in mid-May; log into MySchools and check your current status. If you were not matched at all, confirm that your backup childcare plan from May is fully in place. (If you still need a backup plan, see the quick reference guide at the end of this article.)

ESY (Extended School Year): For students with IEPs who qualify for summer special education services. Confirmation notices typically go out in May or early June. If you haven't received anything, contact your school's Special Education Coordinator or IEP team immediately. You must confirm participation before June 26 to secure the spot.

3. Administrative Deadlines: Health Records, Proof of Residency, Bus Applications

June is the deadline month for many of the documents your child will need for the next school year. Schools often require updated vaccination records, dental and physical exam forms, proof of residency, and emergency contact information by mid-to-late summer—but gathering these documents now saves you from a panic in August.

What to do now: Log into your NYC Schools Account (NYCSA) at www.schoolsaccount.nyc and check whether there is a pending document checklist. If there isn't one, contact your school's Parent Coordinator directly and ask what will be due over the summer and when.

Bus service: If your child is eligible for general education bus service in NYC, the application deadline is typically June 1. If you haven't submitted it yet, contact your school immediately. Deadlines vary by district outside NYC; search "Transportation Request Form" on your district's website to confirm.

Return all school property: Library books, textbooks, iPads or Chromebooks, sports equipment, lunch cards. Unreturned items can result in withheld report cards, blocked fall registration, or fees for replacement. Start a pile in your house this week.

Unpaid fees: Lunch balances, activity fees. Unpaid charges can freeze report cards or block next-year registration. Clear them now.

4. Report Cards and Record Verification

Many schools distribute paper report cards on June 26 or upload them to NYCSA around that date.

What you must do: Check every grade and every attendance record for accuracy. If something is wrong, raise it with the teacher that day. Once the school enters summer mode, correction timelines slow to weeks.

Additional steps for high school families: Official transcripts may be required for college applications or school transfers. Some colleges require final transcripts to be sent by late June. Confirm the deadline with each institution now and initiate the request through your child's guidance counselor. If your child is a graduating senior, verify whether any graduation-related documents still need to be signed or submitted.

5. If You're Planning to Leave Early: Three Things You Need to Know Before You Go

Cynthia came to Dana's kitchen table with her phone in one hand and the parent group chat still buzzing in the other. "Everyone says it's fine," she said. "But I want to know what 'fine' actually means."

Dana had already called her own child's guidance counselor to ask. Here is what she told Cynthia.

The first thing: Absence records don't disappear just because "everyone does it."

If you leave before the last day without a doctor's note or prior written approval, those absences are recorded as unexcused. The school's automated system generates a notification. The more immediate problem: the final week's absences can push a full-year attendance rate across a threshold. Chronic absenteeism is defined as missing 10% or more of instructional days—roughly 18 days in a standard year. A family that leaves a week early can cross that line in a single trip.

The second thing: Absence records can affect what your child can access next.

For elementary and middle school students, attendance is factored into promotion decisions and written into end-of-year evaluations. For high school students, missing the final week can mean missing a Regents makeup window or final grade submission, with direct consequences for GPA and graduation timelines. Across all grades, chronic absenteeism flags can affect eligibility for Summer Rising, ESY, and free summer meal programs.

The third thing: If you must leave early, file a written request now.

Provide at least two weeks' notice in writing. Attach your travel documentation—flight itinerary or equivalent. Request an excused absence. Some schools accept "family emergency" or "religious observance" as valid grounds. Format your email with: your child's full name, OSIS number, grade, the exact dates of absence, the reason, and your supporting documents. Send it to both the guidance counselor and the homeroom teacher. Copy the Parent Coordinator.

Cynthia drafted the email that night at Dana's kitchen table. She hit send before she finished her tea. Two days later, the school confirmed her children's absences would be recorded as excused. She picked up their report cards before the airport.

6. Special Education Families: End-of-Year IEP and 504 Confirmation

Beyond ESY, students with IEPs or 504 plans have additional end-of-year items to verify. Check whether the current plan extends through the summer and whether any new assessments need to be signed before the school year closes.

The end of the school year is also a legally recognized moment to request an evaluation or call a meeting. If you are dissatisfied with your child's current services, send a written request for an emergency meeting to the school's IEP team or Special Education Coordinator. Do this before June 26.

7. Three Numbers to Save in Your Phone

During the final weeks of school, reaching the right person directly is faster than waiting for a general notification.

Guidance Counselor: Grades, makeup exams, grade transitions. All academic questions.

Parent Coordinator: Administrative procedures, calendar changes, bus applications. If you don't know who to call, start here.

District Family Support Office: The escalation point when school-level communication doesn't resolve the issue.

Save these three numbers in your contacts now. You may not need all of them in June. You will need them in September.

If You Still Need a Backup Childcare Plan

If you were not matched with Summer Rising and haven't locked in alternative childcare, three things you can still do in June:

Community programs: Libraries, parks departments, and community centers often run low-cost summer programs with more flexible enrollment than commercial camps. Search "[your neighborhood] summer youth program 2026."

Camp sharing: If you know another family with a camp spot, ask about carpooling or rotating care. Some camps allow last-minute additions for siblings of enrolled children.

Employer resources: Your HR department may offer summer childcare subsidies or flexible scheduling. June is often the last month to apply.

For a full walkthrough of what should have been started in May, see the Mid-May checklist.

Do These Three Things This Afternoon

Dana finished everything on her list over two afternoons. After helping Cynthia write her absence letter, she sat down with her own paperwork and cleared it, line by line. When she was done, she said: "At least I won't get a call from the school in July telling me I'm missing a form."

Three things to do this afternoon:

1. Log into NYCSA and check your child's attendance record and grades.
2. Email your child's guidance counselor. Ask whether there are any makeup exams your child needs to take.
3. Save or print the June calendar at the top of this article. Tape it to your fridge.