SCHOOL MAKEUP DAYS REMAIN UNCHANGED

The Cape Girardeau Board of Education decided Monday not to reverse its decision to use planned school holidays in January and February to make up days missed because of inclement weather.

The board originally set aside Jan. 18 and Feb. 15 to commemorate Martin Luther King Jr.'s birthday and Presidents Day. However, after canceling classes four days in December and January, school officials opted to use both holidays as makeup days.

In recent years school officials had alternated use of the holidays as makeup days.

The Rev. David Allen Sr. and Debra Mitchell-Braxton led a delegation of six who wanted the board to reinstate observance of the holidays. They told board members the decision to require attendance on the holidays sent a negative message to students.

"We're affecting our future leaders to devalue the two national holidays as being less meaningful than others," said Braxton. "How do we explain to our kids that these two days are less meaningful than the day following Easter or the district teacher's meeting?"

Missouri schools are required to attend a minimum 174 school days each year. Most school districts schedule more than the minimum each year. Cape Girardeau schools have 179 scheduled days of attendance this year.

The surplus scheduled days are counted as replacements when school is canceled or dismissed early. Additional days are added to the school calendar when all surplus days have been counted towards reaching the state requirements.

The group suggested the makeup days be added to end of the district's calendar year, or that other nonfederal holidays be designated as makeup days.

"These are days that are set aside for all Americans," said Allen. "We're asking you not to use these as makeup days when there are other options."

Board members said the holidays have always been used as makeup days when inclement weather forces school cancellations early during the school year. It is unfortunate that the holidays are celebrated in months when bad weather occurs, but there are few alternatives for other makeup days, they said.

"Half the calendar falls when we're unlikely to miss days due to inclement weather," said board member Dr. Bob Fox. "I don't think we have much choice in the matter because unfortunately most of our bad weather occurs in December, January and February."

The board briefly considered a motion to protect both holidays in the 1999-2000 school calendar, but the motion was withdrawn after board members stated the calendar is usually developed by district staff.