Federal Holidays: Evolution and Current Practices

[Excerpt] Since 1870, numerous proposals have been introduced in Congress to establish permanent federal holidays. Only 11, however, have thus far become law. Although these patriotic celebrations are frequently referred to as “national holidays,” legally they are only applicable to federal employees and the District of Columbia. Neither Congress nor the President has asserted the authority to declare a “national holiday” that would be binding on the 50 states, as each state individually determines its legal holidays. Creating a holiday for federal employees does, however, affect each state in a variety of ways, including the delivery of mail and conduct of business with federal agencies. Federal holidays have been created for a number of reasons. In several instances, Congress created federal holidays after a sizeable number of states created state holidays. In other instances, Congress took the lead. Additionally, each holiday was designed to emphasize a particular aspect of American heritage or to celebrate an event in American history. particular aspect of American heritage or to celebrate an event in American history

Notice the Mistletoe

Selection of African-American folklore on the winter holidays

Voices Raised, Issue 18

Included in this issue: Women and Politics; Native American Woman Author comes to UD; Unity Week; Marianist Sisters on Campus; Christmas on Campus Leaders Keeping the Tradition; What is Really Important During the Holidays; Avoiding the Holidays Stress; Rape and personal safety/self-defense.https://ecommons.udayton.edu/wc_newsletter/1017/thumbnail.jp

Units of Study on Eight American Patriotic Holidays

This materials development project consists of information and lesson plans related to eight patriotic holidays in the United States. It is intended to be used by English as a Second Language teachers in intermediate classes. Each unit consists of background information on a specific holiday, a lesson plan which included culture and grammar points, and follow-up activities. Each lesson includes three objectives: a sociolinguistic/cultural objective, a linguistic objective, and an interpersonal objective, which deals with the atmosphere in which the learning takes place. Similar interpersonal objectives are stated in each lesson and emphasize the importance of a supportive, no-threatening learning atmosphere where students are encouraged to help each other instead of compete with each other

What happened to God's time? The evolution of secularism and hours of work in America, evidence from religious holidays

Are American workers less likely to observe a religious holiday now than they were 30 years ago? In this paper I use evidence from religious holidays to explore the evolution of market hours' flexibility and religious observance during the last thirty years. To do so, I take advantage of three different sources of exogenous variation: the first is the timing of the Current Population Survey, which allows me to observe data that is collected during different holidays in different years. The second is the timing of the religious holiday, as most are scheduled either with the lunar or the solar calendar. The third is the required observance of the holiday: in some holidays believers are called to abstain from work (Yom Kippur), in other holidays not (Tu b'Shevat), some holidays have been secularized (Saint Patrick's Day), and other holidays not (Good Friday). Additionally, I differentiate between any changes in hours of work during religious holidays across time and changes across cohorts. My results suggest that work schedules' flexibility has changed little during the sample period, yet less people are taking time off from work during Good Friday, while more people take time off from work during Yom Kippur, Rosh Hashanah, Mardigras and Saint Patrick's Day. These results are consistent with the increasing secularization of Christians in America, the Baal Teshuva movement among Jewish Americans, and the commercialization of Mardigras or Saint Patrick's Day. These results suggest a change in which holidays workers choose to observe

Intercom 1992 March 9

Art Lectures to be Presented, In The Spotlight, Keyboard Festival Features Guest Artist, Personnel Update, New Employee, Service Recognition, Spring Holidays, American Dental Network, Repertory Theatre Presents Pulitzer Prize-Winning Play, Earth Day Activities Planned April 11-12

Teaching the English Language through American Holidays: Halloween and Thanksgiving

ABSTRACT Culture remains one of the crucial issues in foreign language education research worldwide, and theories related to linguistics suggest that culture must be emphasized as an important part of language classrooms. Learning any foreign language without learning the focal culture of it is less meaningful, so it is important to include cultural instruction in every language class. Compounding these already tenuous issues in Mongolia, students have little chance to be exposed to real-life situations where they can interact with native speakers from different cultural backgrounds, so the students face great challenges of not being able to become fluent speakers of English. To meet students’ needs, the lessons should include practical, productive, and authentic context, so that teachers can continue to use materials that will motivate students and make them feel like enthusiastic learners. In addition, teaching culture can engage students in the classroom actively because culture-based activities and tasks are appealing to students. Therefore, when the students are learning English, not only they need to know the culture and traditions of the language, but they should also know how to use their language skills on a daily basis or in their career. The handbook created for this project demonstrates how culture can be integrated with English language teaching through American holidays such as Halloween and Thanksgiving. It serves as an example of teaching the English language in a way that integrates American culture, using the most relevant teaching model and a wide variety of exercises. It can be an additional text for English as a Second Language and English as a Foreign Language teachers. The handbook consists of an introduction, overview, and two units under the topics of Halloween and Thanksgiving. Each unit includes a teachers’ guide and a wide variety of activities integrated with vocabulary, reading, listening, speaking, and writing skills

Synapsis: Georgia Campus (2010)

This yearbook includes White Coat Ceremony, Orientation, Races, Formals, Student Government Association, Class Officers, Student National Medical Association, SNMA, Student Osteopathic Medical Association, SOMA, Clubs, Athletic Club, Awards, Softball, Ob/Gyn Club, Surgery, PCOM Learning About Youngsters, PLAY, Student Interest Group in Neurology, SIGN, Family Medicine, Christian Medical And Dental Association, CMDA, Undergraduate American Academy of Osteopathy, UAAO, Internal Medicine, Emergency Medicine, Special Olympics, American Osteopathic Association, AOA, AOA Sports Medicine Conferences, Suwanee Day, D.O. Day on the Hill, Halloween, Holidays, Tripshttps://digitalcommons.pcom.edu/yearbooks/1106/thumbnail.jp

Raziskave (post)socialističnih koledarskih praznikov

V članku je predstavljen pregled etnološkega oziroma antropološkega preučevanja koledarskih praznikov po letu 1945. Najprej so orisane značilnosti evropskih in ameriških študij postsocializma, nato pa še raziskav v nekdanjih republikah bivše Jugoslavije. Podrobnejša pozornost je namenjena predvsem preučenosti koledarskih (post)socialističnih praznikov v Sloveniji. Avtorica ugotavlja, da so raziskave etnologije oziroma antropologije postsocializma zelo skromno zasnovane na slovenskem gradivu in da je to vsaj v zvezi s koledarskimi prazniki še redkeje tudi interpretirano. *** The article presents an overview of ethnological and anthropological research of seasonal holidays after 1945. First the author gives a brief outline of characteristics of European and American postsocialist studies and then she focuses on the postsocialist studies in the former republics of Jugoslavia. How much and in what way seasonal (post)socialist holidays in Slovenia were or are researched is analysed in more detail. The author ascertains that the ethnological and anthropological research of postsocialism in Slovenia is very poorely based on slovenian material and that the material considering seasonal holidays is even more rearely interpreted

Transatlantic tales

Yes it’s that time of year for those “What I Did On My Holidays” essays. Or in my case, “What Media I Consumed” on holiday in California. It raises that age-old comparison of American and British journalism. We speak the same language, but it sure sounds and looks different. Let’s take two examples of Stateside journalism at its best and possibly worst