Kids and adults may not always have the same view about when school should start, given one group’s desire to keep summer fun going and the other’s to let someone else handle the daily activity planning. Usually what the adults say goes, but the younger set may have found their ideal grown-up in Maryland Comptroller Peter Franchot.
With schools back in session in many Baltimore suburbs this week and the City starting next week, Franchot is renewing his call to push the start of school back until after Labor Day. He’s calling his campaign “Let Summer Be Summer.”
In a lengthy statement released this week, Franchot said the August start of school is unfair to a few groups. He mentioned teachers, who in places have to teach in buildings without air conditioning. Then there were the kids who do 4-H, and “have to choose between attending the start of school or exhibiting at the state fair.” Also, he said, small businesses lose the help of kids who get summer jobs earlier.
“Simply put, a post-Labor Day start to school would give more families the time to build lasting memories,” Franchot said.
Outisde of the official statement over on Facebook, Franchot was especially outraged that Cecil County decided to start school on August 20 as a “statement for local control in its calendar.” He said it was an example of education bureaucrats making bad public policy.
While this year’s Labor Day will merely be the kids’ first holiday of the school year, Franchot indicated he’s planning to bring the issue before the legislature in 2016.
He’s not the only one thinking about tweaking the calendar. Baltimore City Schools CEO Gregory Thornton recently floated the idea of “year-round education” to WBAL-TV.
