Schools can't please everyone with snow make-up days

Schools build in snow days to their schedule every year, but for the 2009-10 school year, there aren't enough. So superintendents and school boards have been forced to figure out how to make up the days lost when make-up days are gone.

Bloomfield Superintendent Dan Sichting hit the nail on the head Thursday night when he said, "When you are talking about make-up days, there is no right or wrong. People are going to be upset because you've added days on. People are going to be upset if you go to school on Saturday. Nobody likes to make up the days, but unfortunately, the state of Indiana says we have to go to school a certain number of days. We don't have a choice."

The state no longer offers waivers for schools if they miss a lot of school because of bad weather. They must go 180 days, and it's up to the school to figure out a way to get the job done.

There has been a lot of debate on this newspaper's Web site about the Linton-Stockton School Board giving its OK to go to school on Saturdays. Some argue that high school students have job commitments, while others have said children of divorced parents may not get to visit the parent who lives away from Linton because of going to school on Saturday.

Some have said they will not allow their children to go to school on Saturday ... period.

Parents have that right. But what message is that sending their child?

What happens when that child grows up and their boss tells them they have to work a day they were scheduled to be off? They will probably have two choices: 1) Work and keep their job or 2) Don't work and lose their job.

If a family had plans to be out of town on a Saturday, but a sporting event was rescheduled for that day, would they force their child to miss the event? You could probably bet the family farm that the parents would allow their child to play that day instead of leave town.

Some also have argued that students and parents should have been consulted before a final decision about the make-up days was finalized.

Before making such comments, you should check with each area school to find out how it came to the final decision.

It all boils down to priorities. It appears some don't believe school is all that important, at least when it comes to giving up a portion of their weekend.

Parents and schools must work together, and if that means sending your child to school on a couple of Saturdays, is that too much to ask?