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NEWS // NOV. 18, 2011
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Saturday school given for unexcused tardies and absences Students will soon be faced with a notification to attend a four hour Saturday detention by Kayla Maanum
Seven o’clock on a Saturday morning is typically a time when students ignore their alarm clocks and sleep in, spend time with friends and family, or maybe start their day in the Bingo room for two to four hours of Saturday school. Students with five or more tardies or unexcused absences in one quarter will receive a notification to attend Saturday school. Principal Nicole Wesley believes this notification should not be regarded as a punishment, but a chance for students to reflect on their habits. “We don’t want [Saturday school] to be a negative, punitive consequence. It’s really
a time for reflection. That’s the culture [the staff wants] to create,” Wesley said. Interim Assistant Principal Rich Grimes also thinks the new rule will benefit students as an alternative for punishment. “We’re trying to establish a positive culture where instruction and good behavior is at the top of the list rather than punishment,” Grimes said. “However, we do want to hold students accountable for being negligent to coming to school or cutting [class] during the day.” According to Grimes, coming to school on time or making sure an absence is cleared is not only the student’s responsibility, but the parent’s as well. “Parents have been relatively negligent to calling [the office to clear an absence] this year. I wouldn’t say a large percentage, but a small minority aren’t calling in,” he said. Though Wesley knows being late once or
twice is understandable, she doesn’t believe in making it a habit. “When somebody comes in late, no matter how hard a teacher tries to stay on task, it’s disruptive. It breaks the [students’] concentrations,” Wesley said. Saturday school is now enforced and is scheduled for one to three Saturdays per month. Those who are required to attend will spend two or four hours, starting at 7:00 a.m., in the Bingo room. Students can bring homework, a reading book, and a snack. Students are able to access assignments on the computers in the Bingo room to complete their work. Because of this, Grimes and Wesley agree Saturday school is a better alternative to suspension. “We think it is important to have some program in place as an alternative to suspension as a way to encourage students to come
to school on time,” Wesley said. If a student does not serve the Saturday school required or an alternative after school two-hour Friday school, he or she may face an in-house suspension, meaning a student spends an entire day in the office’s conference room doing work without being able to socialize with peers. Overall, Wesley believes since the start of the enforcement of Saturday school this year, there has been an “improvement”, as there has been increase of phone calls to clear absences to the attendance office and less tardies. She stresses the importance of these improvements. “A student will be more successful when they’re here and on time. Our ultimate goal is for [students] to receive an excellent education here and have the ability to be competitive and successful in the global world,” Wesley said.