Local control

In a story about Roanoke city schools in last week’s Leader, Superintendent Chuck Marcum let it be known what the local board’s position is on a move by the state legislature to mandate uniform start and end dates for the school year.

The reasons Marcum cited for wanting to maintain local control of the schedule are as varied as being able to schedule for those students who attend Southern Union and Handley under a dual enrollment program, the ability to conduct remediation programs during the school day under the triimester system the schools currently are able to operate under, and the ability to start early enough to end the school year prior to Memorial Day.

The reason this is an issue is a bill sponsored by state Rep. Randy Davis, R-Daphne, which would set fixed start and stop dates for the school year. It already has passed the House Education Policy Committee.

Why, with all of the problems facing Alabama, would the legislature concern itself with something like this? According to The Birmingham News, the tourism and summer camp industries have an interest in extending the summer vacation season for economic reasons, and they enlisted the legislature’s help to delay school start dates.

This is not a reason to override local school boards that know better how to schedule to meet state requirements under local conditions that vary greatly among Alabama’s 133 different public school districts. Student learning should not be sacrificed for the economic benefit of specific businesses.