Changing the start of the school day

[Angela]

Okay, I am totally against changing the time of school. If you have a child that works or is in any after school activity this is really going to mess this up. Our kids do not get into bed till very late as it is. I do not see how in the world this will save money. My preference would be to go to a 4 day week. That is truly the only way to save money!

[Lori Wilson]

I looked at the budget numbers on the school site. I noticed that a 10% cut in the budget for the Board of Education yields close to the same amount of savings. On the current budget, they are getting only a .26% cut.

I vote we disrupt THEM and not all of these families.

[Maria Ryan]

I take six kids to school each day in my van. If they change the start time of the schools, these six children will have to take the bus to school. Seems like a lot more children that normally would not ride the bus in the morning will have to ride the bus if the time changes to 9:30. Commen sense says they will have to have more buses to take all these extra kids to school. How much more will that cost? I'm not being sarcastic when I say is that in Dr. M's calculations?

[Debi]

I would agree with that. I have always driven my kids because we have never qualified for bus service. However, I can't really see my utilizing buses if the day should come, unless they didn't go to school until after I will have to be at work.

The downside to me is more teenage alone times. I personally wouldn't want my teen having to get ready by herself every morning. I don't know how many disabled teens we have, but as a mom with one upcoming, I don't know that I could leave her on that by herself. This could be a big problem for the disabled population and parents trying to work. More parents may allow more students to drive to school, equating more wrecks involving students.

[Darlene Hunter]

YT. I can tell you for a fact that there is way more than 3 busses that drop off at FPS/FIS. In the afternoon there are two loads. The first round of busses pick up beginning at 2:45 then pull out and head to FIS. At FIS , they start at 2:45 also. They then pull out and head to FPS to pick up second load. I am sure you can see the logic of this, one bus, in the same neighborhood, picking up children from both age groups.

As for the special needs busses, there is also more than one of those that drops off at FPS. I would say there is about 3 or 4 this year.

I would also like to add that after those busses run the elementary route in the AM then some start the FMS or FMS/FHS route.

[Darlene Hunter]

I had not even thought about the special needs children, sorry, until yesterday. Obviously they have parents that work too. There is no way some of them could stay home alone and get ready and get to their bus on their own. This is another arguement for starting earlier, but I dont' know how that would effect them getting out of school earlier.

[Debbie Monroe]

I was at Fulton High School last night. I have to give Dr. McIntyre some credit, he was there for 3 hours in the face of some pretty harsh criticism. There were 3 school board members present - Indya Kincannon, Bill Phillips, and I'm sorry I don't know who the other one was. Where were the rest? As for the audience, there was not one person (of about 35 to 40 speakers) in favor of changing the start times. Most of the group seemed to feel that the change is being railroaded through. We have had budget discussions in January and February, yet the first time anyone hears of the time change we only have three weeks before it is voted on! The reason, we were told, is that they didn't have all the details worked out. I believe they have lots more work to do.

Here are some of the reasons people voiced last night in opposition:

- Safety. This includes 14 and 15 year old girls at home alone and then walking to a bus stop. Several of the schools release into rush hour traffic, including Fulton, which goes an extra half hour and would then release at 5:00. Students home alone in the mornings 'visiting' each other. Students in the responsibililty zone walking home in the dark.

- Attendance. How many kids will fall back asleep after their parents go to work and be tardy or even absent? Most families these days have 2 working adults. There will no one home in the mornings.

-Family Engagement. This is one of the 3 main focus areas of the school system. It is amazing they are throwing this one under the bus. Parents will lose an hour of time with their children. Less time to help with homework - they'll be fixing dinner instead of being able to help, since everybody gets home at 5:00 or after. How many parents can volunteer for an hour or two at school in the mornings a couple of times a month? That won't happen with a 9:30 start. I myself will probably lose my job in order to keep my 14 year old daughter from being home alone, then walking down the hill, around the corner, and up another hill to catch the bus. Once parents start losing employment, then what happens to the family? Do I really have to choose between my daughter's safety or my job?

- After school activities. We all want our children to go to college, right? What do the colleges look for in an application? A well rounded student, one who is involved in extracurricular activities and still keeps his/her grades up. If an employer can only have a 15 or 16 year old work til 10, who are they more likely to hire, they one who can start at 4 or the one who can start at 5? And, what about after school classes or tutoring? Most studios and tutoring groups have already set their schedules for next year. If a studio has students from schools at different start times, they will stand to lose students. Students will also have to stop taking classes they have been in for years.

-Teachers! We can't forget about the teachers. They have families and life after school too. A large portion of them have second jobs. What position will they be in after the time change? They will also lose time with their kids. Everybody else will be at school or work in the mornings. Wil they have to resort to daycare in the afternoons since they won't be home til 5 or after? Have you known a teacher to be out of the building within 30 minutes of the last bell? Most high school teachers are very involved with the extracurricular activities at their school. They won't have the time anymore without neglecting their own families.

- Athletics. What will happen to schools that are on different times playing against each other? How many 4th period classes will some of the students miss while traveling to a game? How will homework get done when the kids don't get home til after 10:00? Some of these games and meets run long. What about practices? Maybe some can practice in the mornings, but there is serious doubt that these 7 schools have enough showers for an entire team to get clean and dressed for school in a timely manner. Some of you are saying -it's only athletics, but keep in mind that a lot of these kids wouldn't go to college if it weren't for getting a scholarship in sports.

What do we do next? E-mail, e-mail, e-mail. Phone, Phone, Phone. We have to make sure our school board commissioners, Dr. McIntyre, our school principals and the county commission know that this is not an acceptable change for our families and our community. If you are of an accounting frame of mind, suggestions to the school system personnel as to what could be cut instead would be great. The county commission needs to hear that we need more money. Our state legislators could also stand to hear that again.

If there is a meeting with Dr. McIntyre or an elected official in the next 2 weeks - GO! Tell them how you feel. Be at the school board workshop on April 14 and at the school board meeting on the 15th. We only have 2 weeks to get this turned around. It will take all of us to make it happen.

[Debi]

I think most people do care, but they feel helpless.

[Debbie Monroe]

Amen Sister! Personally, I think it will be soon. We just have to make things work the best we can til then. So don't get too downhearted. We still have to fight the best we can - fight the good fight, run the race and finish it!

[Debi]

Debbie, you did a great job in listing the reasons why this is a bad idea. I appreciate you laying it out so succinctly.

[Cathy McCaughan]

Quizzes by Quibblo.com

[Cathy McCaughan]

Page 5 of the Halls Shopper News has Betty Bean's summary of the Superintendent's budget meeting last week. Notice that a student took the time and courage to stand up and share her opinions.

h/t Brian Hornback