Columbus, OH

I honestly don’t understand why we send children to school so early in the fall. No let me rephrase that, I don’t understand why we send our kids back to school right in the middle of summer.

I don’t know about anyone else, but I’ve noticed that the true nip of fall never comes to central Ohio anymore until October. We may have some significantly cooler nights, but the 90+ degree days last well into September.

What was the last class you attended in 90+ degree heat? Mine was a swimming class.

For the last two weeks, some central Ohio schools have wound up needing to cancel classes because of the heat. These are days that are there to ensure schools can be cancelled when the roads are impassible in the winter.

The school year has been extended so far into the summer that I wonder if federal mandates that force us to just pony up for central air in all schools wouldn’t be better. Let’s just air condition our schools like we air condition our factories and other businesses. Let’s send the kids to school year round, which will address the retention problem the schools keep whining about, then graduate our kids at fifteen or so. It’s not really the solution I like, but it sounds a heck of a lot better to me than sending kids to school in the middle of August with no AC and then having to find random baby-sitters for a dozen “in service” days throughout the year (yes, I’m not a fan of “in service” days either).

I’ve heard all the arguments about the football (and other “fall” sports) seasons and needing to align classes with them. Wrong, there is no law that says football season can’t start before classes. (Heck, look at OSU–season opener this week, fall classes September 19.)

My true preference is to send kids to school from the Tuesday after Labor day to the Friday before memorial day. Unfortunately, considering all the holidays and three day weekends, that would not quite give us the 180 required school days.

Still, I’d rather see kids stay in school a little longer into June, when the heat isn’t quite so opressive yet, than to return to school in 97 degree heat like we had last week. Today the forecast is for 93 degrees. You know what I would learn in 93 degree heat? That August is too soon to go back to school.

Columbus schools, teacher in service days, COTA days, school closings