The Grimes Brief
The district calendar is a one-page PDF with twelve tiny grids and a color legend. It works fine on a bulletin board. It does not work on a phone at 9:40 pm when you are trying to figure out whether Friday is a school day. So I typed the whole thing out: every date parents actually need, in order, with the day of the week attached. Nothing here is guessed. It all comes from the board-approved Dallas Center-Grimes 2026-2027 calendar, linked at the bottom.
School started Monday, August 24, 2026 (preschool August 31). Winter break is December 21 through January 1. Spring break is March 15 to 19, and the Friday before it is off too. The last day is Friday, May 28, 2027, unless snow days push it back. Almost every Wednesday is a 1:00 pm early out.
Early dismissal means 1:00 pm at the high school, middle school, and all four elementaries; 12:30 pm at Oak View. Preschool does not meet on Wednesdays at all. Regular full days run 8:15 am to 3:15 pm everywhere except Oak View (7:45 am to 2:45 pm).
| Date | Day | What | Detail |
|---|---|---|---|
| Aug 11 | Tue | Staff only | New teacher orientation (no students) |
| Aug 12 | Wed | Staff only | New teacher orientation (no students) |
| Aug 13 | Thu | Staff only | New teacher orientation (no students) |
| Aug 17 | Mon | Staff only | All-staff professional development (no students) |
| Aug 18 | Tue | Staff only | All-staff professional development (no students) |
| Aug 19 | Wed | Staff only | All-staff professional development (no students) |
| Aug 20 | Thu | Staff only | All-staff professional development (no students) |
| Aug 21 | Fri | Staff only | All-staff professional development (no students) |
| Aug 24 | Mon | First day | First day of school, TK through grade 12 |
| Aug 26 | Wed | Early dismissal | Early dismissal, 1:00 pm |
| Aug 31 | Mon | First day | First day of preschool |
| Date | Day | What | Detail |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sep 2 | Wed | Early dismissal | Early dismissal, 1:00 pm |
| Sep 7 | Mon | No school | Labor Day holiday |
| Sep 9 | Wed | Early dismissal | Early dismissal, 1:00 pm |
| Sep 16 | Wed | Early dismissal | Early dismissal, 1:00 pm |
| Sep 23 | Wed | Early dismissal | Early dismissal, 1:00 pm |
| Sep 30 | Wed | Early dismissal | Early dismissal, 1:00 pm |
| Date | Day | What | Detail |
|---|---|---|---|
| Oct 1 | Thu | Conferences | DCG High School parent/teacher conferences |
| Oct 7 | Wed | Early dismissal | Early dismissal, 1:00 pm |
| Oct 14 | Wed | Early dismissal | Early dismissal, 1:00 pm |
| Oct 21 | Wed | Early dismissal | Early dismissal, 1:00 pm |
| Oct 23 | Fri | Term | End of 1st quarter |
| Oct 26 | Mon | Teacher workday | Teacher workday, no school PK-12 |
| Oct 27 | Tue | Term | Start of 2nd quarter |
| Oct 28 | Wed | Early dismissal | Early dismissal, 1:00 pm |
| Date | Day | What | Detail |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nov 4 | Wed | Early dismissal | Early dismissal, 1:00 pm |
| Nov 9 | Mon | Conferences | Grades PK-8 parent/teacher conferences, 4 to 8 pm |
| Nov 11 | Wed | Early dismissal | Early dismissal, 1:00 pm |
| Nov 12 | Thu | Conferences | Grades PK-8 parent/teacher conferences, 4 to 8 pm |
| Nov 13 | Fri | No school | Teacher comp day |
| Nov 18 | Wed | Early dismissal | Early dismissal, 1:00 pm |
| Nov 25 | Wed | Break | Thanksgiving holiday, no school |
| Nov 26 | Thu | Break | Thanksgiving holiday, no school |
| Nov 27 | Fri | Break | Thanksgiving holiday, no school |
| Date | Day | What | Detail |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dec 2 | Wed | Early dismissal | Early dismissal, 1:00 pm |
| Dec 9 | Wed | Early dismissal | Early dismissal, 1:00 pm |
| Dec 10 | Thu | Conferences | DCG High School parent/teacher conferences |
| Dec 16 | Wed | Early dismissal | Early dismissal, 1:00 pm |
| Dec 21 | Mon | Break | Winter break, no school |
| Dec 22 | Tue | Break | Winter break, no school |
| Dec 23 | Wed | Break | Winter break, no school |
| Dec 24 | Thu | Break | Winter break, no school |
| Dec 25 | Fri | Break | Winter break, no school |
| Dec 28 | Mon | Break | Winter break, no school |
| Dec 29 | Tue | Break | Winter break, no school |
| Dec 30 | Wed | Break | Winter break, no school |
| Dec 31 | Thu | Break | Winter break, no school |
| Date | Day | What | Detail |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jan 1 | Fri | Break | Winter break, no school |
| Jan 6 | Wed | Early dismissal | Early dismissal, 1:00 pm |
| Jan 13 | Wed | Early dismissal | Early dismissal, 1:00 pm |
| Jan 14 | Thu | Term | End of 2nd quarter and 1st semester |
| Jan 15 | Fri | Teacher workday | Teacher workday, no school PK-12 |
| Jan 18 | Mon | No school | Martin Luther King Jr. Day (staff PD) |
| Jan 19 | Tue | Term | Start of 3rd quarter and 2nd semester |
| Jan 20 | Wed | Early dismissal | Early dismissal, 1:00 pm |
| Jan 27 | Wed | Early dismissal | Early dismissal, 1:00 pm |
| Date | Day | What | Detail |
|---|---|---|---|
| Feb 3 | Wed | Early dismissal | Early dismissal, 1:00 pm |
| Feb 10 | Wed | Early dismissal | Early dismissal, 1:00 pm |
| Feb 17 | Wed | Early dismissal | Early dismissal, 1:00 pm |
| Feb 24 | Wed | Early dismissal | Early dismissal, 1:00 pm |
| Feb 26 | Fri | Grade split | Alternate teacher workday: PK-6 no school, grades 7-12 in session |
| Date | Day | What | Detail |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mar 3 | Wed | Early dismissal | Early dismissal, 1:00 pm |
| Mar 4 | Thu | Conferences | DCG High School parent/teacher conferences |
| Mar 8 | Mon | Conferences | Grades PK-8 parent/teacher conferences, 4 to 8 pm |
| Mar 10 | Wed | Early dismissal | Early dismissal, 1:00 pm |
| Mar 11 | Thu | Conferences | Grades PK-8 parent/teacher conferences, 4 to 8 pm |
| Mar 12 | Fri | No school | Teacher comp day |
| Mar 15 | Mon | Break | Spring break, no school |
| Mar 16 | Tue | Break | Spring break, no school |
| Mar 17 | Wed | Break | Spring break, no school |
| Mar 18 | Thu | Break | Spring break, no school |
| Mar 19 | Fri | Break | Spring break, no school |
| Mar 24 | Wed | Early dismissal | Early dismissal, 1:00 pm |
| Mar 26 | Fri | Term | End of 3rd quarter |
| Mar 29 | Mon | Grade split | Alternate teacher workday: PK-6 in session, grades 7-12 no school |
| Mar 30 | Tue | Term | Start of 4th quarter |
| Mar 31 | Wed | Early dismissal | Early dismissal, 1:00 pm |
| Date | Day | What | Detail |
|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 7 | Wed | Early dismissal | Early dismissal, 1:00 pm |
| Apr 14 | Wed | Early dismissal | Early dismissal, 1:00 pm |
| Apr 21 | Wed | Early dismissal | Early dismissal, 1:00 pm |
| Apr 28 | Wed | Early dismissal | Early dismissal, 1:00 pm |
| Apr 29 | Thu | Conferences | DCG High School parent/teacher conferences |
| Date | Day | What | Detail |
|---|---|---|---|
| May 5 | Wed | Early dismissal | Early dismissal, 1:00 pm |
| May 12 | Wed | Early dismissal | Early dismissal, 1:00 pm |
| May 19 | Wed | Early dismissal | Early dismissal, 1:00 pm |
| May 21 | Fri | Graduation | Graduation Day |
| May 26 | Wed | Early dismissal | Early dismissal, 1:00 pm |
| May 28 | Fri | Last day | Last day of school (if no snow days); end of 4th quarter and 2nd semester |
| May 31 | Mon | No school | Memorial Day holiday |
| Date | Day | What | Detail |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jun 1 | Tue | Teacher workday | Teacher workday, no school (after the last student day) |
| Jun 2 | Wed | Teacher workday | Teacher workday, no school (after the last student day) |
No school Early dismissal Conferences Grade split Staff only
Get the change alerts: when DCG moves a date, subscribers hear first.
The Grimes Brief carries the school calendar, the seasonal calendar, and what's worth your time, free every Monday.
That count is weekdays between the first and last day when no DCG student has class: holidays, breaks, comp days, and teacher workdays. It does not count the two grade-split days (February 26, when PK-6 is off, and March 29, when grades 7-12 are off) or the Wednesday early outs. Snow-day policy, straight from the calendar: snow days may be added to the end of the school year to meet Iowa's 1,080-hour requirement, which is why May 28 carries the "if no snow days" asterisk.
We rendered this page as a clean one-sheet PDF, no nav, no signup box, just the dates. Tape it up next to the lunch menu.
Download the PDF Print this page
Districts do move dates, usually after a snow week. When DCG changes one, the weekly Brief flags it and this page gets updated the same week.
Northeast Grimes, toward Johnston, is in the Johnston Community School District, not DCG, and Johnston runs its own calendar with its own break weeks. We have not transcribed it here, so if your kids ride a Johnston bus, use the official Johnston CSD academic calendars page. Not sure which district your address falls in? Our schools guide explains the split.
The first day of school for transitional kindergarten through grade 12 is Monday, August 24, 2026. Preschool starts Monday, August 31, 2026.
Winter break runs Monday, December 21, 2026 through Friday, January 1, 2027, with no school on any of those days.
Spring break is Monday, March 15 through Friday, March 19, 2027. The Friday before, March 12, is also a no-school teacher comp day.
The last day of school is Friday, May 28, 2027, if no snow days are added. The district notes snow days may be added to the end of the year to meet Iowa's 1,080-hour requirement. Graduation is Friday, May 21, 2027.
Nearly every Wednesday is an early dismissal at 1:00 pm (12:30 pm at Oak View). The exceptions are Wednesdays that fall on breaks, plus the first week of school, when the early out is Wednesday, August 26. Preschool does not meet on Wednesdays.
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