Text The Times.

Text The Times.

Will the vote on increasing the school millage for the Marion school district take place in May? The article in the paper on Feb. 27 mentioned only one polling site for this election is needed. Since we are talking about increasing taxes, I feel that several polling places are called for. Even though school elections have a low turnout, we should not deprive many senior citizens who have limited transportation from the opportunity to cast their votes in this important election, since the tax increase will hit them the hardest since most of them are on a fixed income. There so should be a polling place in West Memphis, Marion, Crawfordsville, Jericho/ Clarkedale area and Turrell.

[Editor’s Note: It’s mostly a financial move to consolidate such a vote into one polling place for lower-profile elections such as this. I’m sure that absentee and early voting will also be in place for individuals who can’t make it to the polls on Election Day]

*** The picture of basketball players on page 8 of Wednesday’s edition (2/27/19) proves white boys CAN jump. [Editor’s Note: Not all of them. Let me show you my 2-inch vertical some time]

*** I don’t know when I have been so upset. How does a school ask for a tax increase to improve our schools and then close them so people can go to a basketball game? I understand school spirit, but will this also happen for a Quiz Bowl tournament? The volleyball teams and golf teams have won before, but my kids continued to be in class learning. I cannot believe a school district with C, D, and F rating put basketball over education. Do we make this day up? See I have family vacation planned that is a truly educational trip. I hope you don’t expect my kids at school on any of those days to make up for a sporting event we will not be attending; because my boss could care less about this and expects me at work. He won’t close so I can go see a game. Now I have less than 2 days to figure out where my children will go for this day off. When your children don’t score well on state tests, you show the state department that trophy you might get and see if that saves our schools! Don’t spout off your concern for education and our school and ask for more taxes from me! You’ve got to be kidding!!!! [Editor’s Note: I won’t debate the merits of closing the school for the state tournament game, but I will break out some facts here just to clarify the decision. One, the school did not close so that people could go to the game. It was actually the reverse. So many teachers took personal days (which is their right under their contracts with the district) in order to attend the game that the district would not have been able to staff their classrooms with certified substitutes, so classes were cancelled. While different from say, a school closing because of a flu outbreak, it’s the same principle. To answer your question, yes, the day will be made up, either through adding a day to the end of the school year (which is currently scheduled for May 22, a Wednesday and before Memorial Day weekend), turning a scheduled Professional Development day into a regular day of classes (which puts the teachers, not the students, going an extra day), adding 30 minutes to an hour to already scheduled school days to make up missed class time, using an Alternative Method of Instruction (AMI) day, going to school on a Saturday, or some other method I’m not thinking of at the moment. Assuming your children have not already missed the maximum number of days this semester, I have no reason to believe missing a day for your truly educational family trip would have a negative impact on their overal education. On a less fact-based note, while you might not have had any interest in the Marion Patriots playing in the state championship game, there were hundreds of folks who did, and I don’t think the idea that missing one day of school (that will be made up) might have an effect on the annual school report cards you reference really holds up. You were inconvenienced. I get that. I hate to be inconvenienced too. But you, as you note, had two days to make accommodations. That’s two more days than you would have had in the event of a snow day, and folks always manage to work things out on those days. Ultimately, while you say, “How does a school ask for a tax increase to improve our schools and then close them so people can go to a basketball game?” one really has nothing to do with the other]

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