School Will Brook No Excuses
Mr. Sotelo was asked if there were any way for protest-related absences to be acceptable. Succinctly, no. “My understanding of instructions from the state Superintendent of Instruction, from the County, from our Superintendent and from the Principal is that absences yesterday were unexcused,” he said. Commenting on Ms. Magee’s letter to the school community, he condensed its message to eight sharply pointed words: “Students were expected to be in school Monday.” He added in that Culver High’s Social Studies classes, discussions were tailored “to address the students’ issues during class. Our thought was, it was appropriate for students to come to school. They get out at 2:30, which left plenty of time for them to get to four o’clock rallies.” The Culver High absentee picture may be complicated, Mr. Sotelo said, by the fact that Advanced Placement exams are held during the first two weeks of May. Some students may have remained home on Monday to study for what he called “high stakes testing. How many students of this type may be involved, I don’t know,” Mr. Sotelo said. “I don’t recall last year.” As for the number of absences tied to the events of Protest Day, the assistant principal said he would not want to guess “without first seeing the notes. School Board policy allows students to bring in notes within five days of an absence.”
