Ethan Brown, a junior at Jericho High School on Long Island in New York, has become very popular with students and teachers at his school after persuading his school district to declare today (May 26th - the Friday before Memorial Day Weekend) as a special "snow day," now named in his honor. The 16-year-old made his case during a highly attended school board meeting in March, arguing that because the school has 186 days in their school year - six more than the state requires, they should consider giving students time off.
Brown was initially nervous and admitted to almost backing down, but was glad he didn't, as he got a lot of support from the audience at the meeting. The idea for Brown to approach the school board was sparked by his school's decision not to close for an especially wintry day in late February. He looked into it after hearing a teacher complain that they had scheduled extra days already so we wouldn't even have to make this one up.
At the April board meeting, the teen learned of his proposal's success, to widespread applause. Superintendent Hank Grishman, who praised Brown’s persuasion, jokingly announced the "Ethan Brown snow day" as a reward for students and faculty alike. He also suggested the day might become an annual tradition. Brown became an instant hero in the eyes of his classmates as well as many of the teachers. As for how he plans to spend his day off, he’ll will be cheering on a teammate's match at a varsity tennis game.