RSSSchools closed in the state of Georgia.
“It’s again trying to be transparent, forthcoming about information and asking people to relax and to understand that while we are taking this action to conserve fuel, it is best handled in the spirit of calmness and rationality,” Georgia Governor Sonny Perdue.
And with that statement the Governor closed schools in the state of Georgia for the coming Monday and Tuesday. This action, done in haste, will create thousands of parents to be driving their children around the town to malls and other entertainment establishments to keep the children who are out of school entertained.
And on that note, Georgia is far from the top rated state when it comes to education in the country, the closing of the schools for two days, does not help the cause. Four school systems — Floyd County, Haralson County, Rome city and Thomasville city — decided to remain open. These seem to be a places that have their head on right.
Many schoolchildren, predictably, were delighted to get “snow days” in September.
Jeroson Williams, 12, heard about his good fortune along with a bus load of other students heading home Friday from Sandtown Middle School in south Fulton County.
“Our bus driver must have been listening to the bus radio,” the eighth-grader said. “She slowed the bus down, started listening to it. ‘Everybody!’ she started screaming. ‘Four-day weekend!’ “
The students on the bus exploded in celebration. “It was like a parade,” Jeroson said. “Everybody was like, ‘Yeah!’ “
His mother, Karon, was less enthusiastic. Jeroson told her the news as soon as he came in the door. “I was lying there, thinking, how will that help?” she said.
The state’s public colleges and universities planned to operate on a normal schedule, said John Millsaps, a spokesman for the University System of Georgia. But the institutions were encouraged to limit travel in accordance with the governor’s request to conserve fuel.
So will the University of Georgia and Georgia Tech not have their football teams take their charter flights? I bet the fuel used by these two teams will rival the usage for the a good part of the states school buses.
It seems like the politicians seem to be always one step off reacting to these situations. By trying to make this a newsworthy event, and catch the Friday news cycle, the governor has now created a situation that will make reasonable action at a later date much harder to implement.
UPDATE: Other States school districts are feeling the impact of Hurricane Rita and making preparations for this coming week. Kentucky school districts are now making changes to deal with the aftermath of Hurricane Rita by cutting their school week to four days.
Across Kentucky, school districts are cutting field trips, redrawing bus routes or curtailing athletic events to cope with rising fuel costs. But no one’s making quite as dramatic a change as Jackson County.
Starting the week of Oct. 17, students will get every Friday off. Teachers will work half a day.
With the move, approved by the school board Sept. 5, Jackson becomes the fourth school district in the state to implement a four-day week, and the first to do so primarily for financial reasons.
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Comments
5 Responses to “Schools closed in the state of Georgia.”
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You made fun of the south again…but at least some state is standing up to the government – we are not the “unwashed masses” – see? you make fun of Georgia – and that is why we all think of Feds as not able to help…you laughed off Georgia – would you do that to Louisiana and Mississippi, too had they not been flooded? You make fun of southerners – that is why we don’t get your help – except for Texas…which is a Bush home of choice to get away from taxes. You made fun of the south again.
You made fun of southerners – have you been there before the flood? Do you know my education level?
You made fun of the south again…think again. My name is Dixiechik0@hotmail.com.
I notice you post the ridicule of Georgia’s Governor’s decision AFTER the hurricane hit land and the effects were known. Would your posting been the same had it been category 4 or 5 and more refineries had been damaged? Using hindsight in journalism is cheap, but easy.
I also notice that, although you slam schools in the south, scared monkeys’ postings contain many gramatical errors. So, tell us, at what superior institution were you educated? My guess is the great Midwest, which by the way is no longer great….not even in football.
Your losing your objectivity.
Actually I live in Georgia, just outside of Atlanta.
The post was written on Friday before the storm hit, and as a parent of two elementary students, I am very perturbed that the Governor has the lack of forsight and political acumen to make this decision on Friday.
So, nope on the Midwest, unless you are talking Midwest Georgia. I live in Georgia, love Georgia, and want Georgia to be the best it can be. This day was not the best it could be.
T
Cali,
I don’t get it. I love the South. I still get your comment.
He saving fuel at the cost of not educating children. Which is the greater evil? Conservation vs. Education.
They can’t figure out a better way of conserving fuel than closing schools down. I really don’t think Tom was bashing the southern schools seeing that his children attend them.
Affecting the education of children should never be a consideration as they are our greatest natural future resources.
I teach 6th grade in the metro Atlanta area. My students were not driven to the malls or other entertainment establishments on their unexpected snow days. The parents of my students have more sense than to allow their children to be in charge. Therefore, my students made wise use of their time to work on social studies fair projects and book reports. For those who think all Georgians are dumb, maybe they need to come spend some time in my school where the expectations and achievement levels are high. I would love to see a 4-day week statewide to conserve not only fuel, but also other forms of energy. The impact on each content area is less than 15 minutes per class per day to still meet the minimum state standards. Parents could simply move their childcare to one 8 hour day rather than pay for an average of 10 – 15 hours each week. Where did they learn math? It would be cheaper all the way around & actually give children some “family time” which is so critical.