School approach is flexible, smart

Let’s start with a simple fact of life: There is absolutely no way Jay School Board could make everyone happy in the face of this winter’s school days lost to snow.
Winter has been in charge for the past two months. All of the rest of us have been doing our best to cope with what’s been thrown at us. But winter has been in charge.
For Jay Schools, with a countywide district that encompasses something like 700 miles of roads and maybe three or four distinct micro-climates, this winter’s challenges have translated into a disruptive number of school cancellations.
The Indiana Department of Education has granted a waiver on two days, but until last week it looked as if Jay County students would be in the classroom until June 9.
And, given the vagaries of Midwestern winters, there’s no guarantee more snow days might not lie ahead.
Within that context — a context that provides no easy answers or simple solutions — the administration and school board made what appears to be the best choice available.
The school day will be lengthened by an hour, but only for about a month. Before that month is over, teachers and administrators will be able to get their heads together and decide whether the longer school day works.
If it does, it could be continued another month. If it doesn’t, the idea could be abandoned. And, then again, if it does work but no further days have been lost due to weather, it might make sense to split the difference, tacking a few days onto the school calendar but going back to the regular hours.
Is it a perfect solution? Of course not.
But it’s flexible, and it amounts to a pretty smart approach to the cards the school corporation has been dealt. — J.R.[[In-content Ad]]