Syag: That is the best way to look at it, from both sides.
I feel that schools should have more days (at least for some), especially in the beginning of the year, and perhaps more off days in the middle (for others). But that depends on the parent body as well. Its silly to open Isru Chag when 30% of the students are in Israel or Florida, or were up until 3:00 the previous night arriving home from the Yom Tov hotel.