What’s that old adage?
You’re only a kid once.
I see our younger children’s years of growing up and going off to elementary school as part of their “Wonder Years.” If everyone listens to his gut, to his parental instincts, not one person would agree that even a single furlough day is in the best interests of his child's education. Parents should realize that once a furlough day is taken, it is lost, never to be regained.
Furlough Days Not Inevitable
As much as the state legislators would like for parents to believe otherwise, the use of furlough days to balance budgets is not inevitable. Other nearby districts have found ways to save money and balance their budgets. Lawndale didn’t use furlough days last year and neither did Leuzinger. They balanced their budgets by other means. So could we.
Parents cannot let the School Board forget that its primary responsibility is “to act in the best interests of every student in the District.” Parents need to make sure our Board lives up to those expectations by keeping students in the classroom, not out on furlough days.
Tougher on Young Families
Furlough days cost single-parent families and families where both parents work even more of their hard-earned money through lost wages by having to stay home with young children or in increased child care costs. I don’t see how furlough days could be helping our students learn or even helping their families make it during these tough economic times.
40,000 Days Lost
Six days doesn’t sound like much. But across our small district, six furlough days is the equivalent to our children losing almost 40,000 days of schooling.
Forty thousand days.
Parents should not let the School Board forget that once furlough days are taken, they are lost and gone forever.
Your School Board needs to hear from parents that the children need to be kept engaged in learning situations, not forced out of their classrooms.
Your Board needs to hear that it should not waste one day of your children’s “Wonder Years” in balancing its budget on the backs of our children.
Mr. Laase may be contacted at GMLaase@aol.com
