Guest Column, by Tom Jones

The two top headlines of the Albert Lea Tribune on March 18, 1997, concerned the meeting the night before of the Albert Lea school board. “Girls’ hockey becomes reality” welcomed a new athletic program to Albert Lea with their first game being played in November 1997.

The second and top headline read, “Parents reject Lakeview modified calendar.” The lead of the article, written by a former co-worker of mine at the Tribune, Mike Benedict, said, “Parents have spoken and they said ‘no’ to Lakeview School’s proposed modified calendar.”

The student advisory board to the school board had surveyed parents a week before the vote with school board members saying they would accept the proposal if 70 percent of the parents surveyed would keep their kids at Lakeview if the modified calendar was put into place. Only 43 percent of the parents said that they would keep their kids there with a modified schedule in place with 88 percent of the parents taking part in the survey.

Former Superintendent David Prescott was quoted in the article as saying that having the parents decide the outcome of the proposal was the best option in determining the calendar change.

Now, some 17 years later we keep hearing that we as parents will not be doing the voting on whether this comes into reality next year. Instead the results of a survey in which 58.8 percent survey were over the age of 55 may help make the decision for us.

One look at the Tribune’s online survey earlier this summer and the current online petition on Change.org would tell me that many parents in the Albert Lea school district do not want this change. I’ve read concerns on the petition site from business leaders, students, grandparents, day care providers, alumni and most importantly parents of our precious children that address many areas that have not been discussed. It should be the parents of District 241 that get the final say in this, as was the case of the proposed change at Lakeview Elementary School in 1997.

I have read online and talked to more than one parent that is exploring the option to have their children join the others in our district who get bussed to Alden-Conger, Glenville-Emmons and New Richland-Hartland-Ellendale-Geneva each day. It would be sad to have to cut an educational position or two if this was the case.

The current proposed schedule has an 11-week break during the summer versus a current 12-week break. How much of a difference is five days going to make? Is it worth disrupting many things in our wonderful community for a change of five days?

My wife and children and I welcomed an exchange student for the school year from Sweden this past week. I have to ask myself if she would have been coming next year, what would we do for her in the breaks throughout the school year when she is not allowed to drive and we both work and we would have to put our kids back in day care. Would exchange programs come to an end in Albert Lea?

I urge the parents concerned about not having a final vote like me to contact the school board members in our district and to attend the first of three public forums scheduled for 5:30 p.m. this Tuesday at the commons of Albert Lea High School.

 

Tom Jones is a parent of two children who attend Albert Lea Area Schools.