This year, there was a noticeable change in the outlook of students on the first day of school. The pure anomaly of starting school on August 30 was a reminder to everyone that they were in school when they should have been sleeping in, laying out on the beach, or getting some last minute back-to-school shopping in. At least unhappy students and faculty members were comforted by the thought that this early start would mean having a winter break. But, at the December Board of Education meeting, this possibility was taken away when it was announced that February vacation had been canceled because of Hurricane Sandy. Many might object to this decision, but it is a logical and necessary solution to a problem that cannot be ignored.
180 instructional days are required by New York State in order for the district to receive maximum state aid. Clearly, the school would not be able to reach this number with five days of school lost due to the storm. Therefore, school will now be in session from Tuesday, February 19 to Friday February 22, and on Friday, May 24 to make up for the days lost. Spring break, however, will not be affected. This change of schedule will provide sufficient time for teachers to prepare their students for the cumulative exams at the end of the year.
Though many will be disappointed by this decision, the school board canceled the February break because they simply did not have any other choice. Massapequa is already facing problems as a result of state budget cuts, and if the district didn’t meet the requirement of 180 days of instruction, even worse economic problems would arise. According to Mr. Charles Sulc, Superintendent of Schools, if the district does not exhaust all possible vacation days as make-up days and the 180 day minimum is not met, the district will lose 145,000 dollars in state aid for each day school is not open. That money ensures that the district has sufficient resources for various educational programs. Students would suffer more from budget cuts than they will from the loss of a winter break.
One misconception that some residents have regards “waiver” legislation, which allows districts to use up to ten days of relief from the school calendar. In other words, the state would forgive the district of the days lost because of Sandy, and those days wouldn’t have to be made up. This would only be applicable, however, if all vacation days were used up prior to using these relief days. Vacation days from March 26 through April 2 in addition to the February break would have to be used in order for the district to receive any sort of legislative aid.
“We have no choice under these circumstances and the government is giving no forgiveness,” Mr. Sulc said.
Against the above background, one must be aware of the fact that scheduling of the Advanced Placement (AP) exams will not change come hurricane or earthquake. Certainly, students want to be confident when it comes time to take that test in May, knowing that they have received maximum preparation for their exams. It is safe to assume that no one wants to walk into that testing room feeling insecure about certain topics because there wasn’t enough time to learn them.
Regardless of whether the district had any choice in its decision or not, students have a right to express their opinions about it. “I understand where [the Board of Education] [is] coming from since we did miss a lot of days from Hurricane Sandy… It is necessary for us to make up the lost time since it is unlikely that the College Board would change the date of the various APs. But am I happy about it? No,” Junior Gina Sanchez said.
February break is a popular time for families to go on vacation; it gives people the opportunity to escape winter at its harshest moments. Many people make reservations for trips during February as far back as the previous summer. Given such short notice, families would have to pay an exorbitant amount of money to cancel flights and hotel reservations. Some students have no choice but to miss four consecutive days of school. Then again, teachers will be understanding of this fact and will be willing to accommodate those students so they do not become overwhelmed with work.
The five days off from school in autumn were certainly no vacation. A majority of Massapequa residents did not have power for as long as two weeks. Most families had no heat or hot showers, and others had to live in shelters, hotels, or stay with friends and relatives. No one, including Mother Nature, could have predicted the extent of Hurricane Sandy’s damage. In the aftermath of this disaster, we are forced to pick up the pieces. We may not like the sacrifices we have to make, but upon reflection, they are necessary if we ever want to return to normalcy.