SOS-NC Memo

(This was presented to members of the NC House prior to final votes on HB593 on May 13 )

To All Members of the NC House of Representatives:

First of all, I want to thank you for serving the citizens of North Carolina. My family appreciates your dedication and commitment to the betterment of this great state.

Secondly, I would ask that you please take just a moment to carefully consider the following points with regard to any changes to the 2004 school calendar law. Some have said that there is nothing left to consider, but I believe if you read what I have to say with an open mind, you will find that statement to be short-sighted and unfair to your constituents. I am sorry this couldn't have gotten in your hands before now, but I had less than a day's notice that HB593 would be on your agenda today. Yesterday's vote on HB636 caught me totally by surprise. Please, please concentrate for a moment solely on the family side of this issue - they instigated the very introduction of this law, starting in 2003, and have fought relentlessly to keep it intact every year since.

1) Even if you despise the current school calendar law, to change it now would devastate families, and add to their existing economic hardships. Low-income families especially, depend heavily on summer job revenue from their older students - literally to put food on their tables and clothes on their backs. They also count on scholarships to summer camps, tutoring sessions, etc. to ease childcare expenses. Teachers have been hit with loss of positions and/or shaky salary expectations. Many can barely make ends meet now, and a loss of summer employment would leave them wondering how to pay the next bill. I know, because as a former teacher, I've been there!

2) If HB593 passes, local school boards, depending upon the calendar in any given year, would have the authority to require students to attend school from August 8th until June 10th - or even June 13th if HB 636 makes it through the Senate. That means a summer vacation of just over 7 weeks - an unprecedented move! It would also mean dangerously hot sports practices and bus rides - in fact, life-threatening sports issues, as documented here at home several times in the past year or two. That one consideration alone should be enough to stop this bill dead in its tracks, because nothing is worth putting our children's lives on the line!

3) If you are still thinking that the school calendar law usurped local power that needs to be returned, please remember this: the ONLY reason this bill was introduced by Save Our Summers-NC supporters in 2004 was because parents, teachers, and other concerned citizens had been ignored or put down by their own school boards for many years, as they presented legitimate concerns about starting school in late July or early August. Concerns including hardships on military families; loss of "down time" and outside-the-classroom learning experiences for children; job-loss; invaluable summer camp experiences cut short; decrease in opportunities for professional development for educators; inability to coordinate visits, reunions, etc. with out-of-state family members; nightmares for parents (living in different states) with court-assigned custody dates - and the list goes on and on…

Anyone who knows me can tell you that I am all about local control. But when it goes askew, to the detriment of children and families, I will not hesitate to take matters to the next level. Local school boards broke a trust, and the most local group of all (parents, teachers, grandparents, etc.) were left with only one choice - to put their trust in all of you.

I sincerely thank you for reading this. I know for a fact that hundreds of emails and phone calls have come your way just in the past 2 weeks, from constituents who are watching every vote, and who are hoping and praying that you will uphold that trust.

Sincerely,

Louise Lee
Wife and parent, former teacher, president and co-founder of Save Our Summers-North Carolina (in that order!) I reside in Raleigh, NC.