Detroit Schools Must Make Up 3-10 Days Of Classes
DETROIT (WWJ/AP) - Public school students in Detroit will need to make up between three and 10 days of classes due to the harsh winter and repeated problems with the city's municipal power system.
Detroit Public Schools made the announcement Wednesday, saying there was no other choice but to extend the school year in order to meet state requirements.
Superintendent of Academics Karen Ridgeway said the district "exhausted all avenues" to minimize the number of days needed beyond the originally scheduled end of the school year.
"Our primary goal is always to have students in class and learning each and every day of the scheduled school year," Ridgeway said in a statement. "Unfortunately, circumstances beyond our control severely compromised the District's ability to make this happen, and we must now add days onto the end of the school year."
Letters have been mailed to parents with details on individual schools. The extensions also affect the summer school schedule.
"While this situation is not ideal, nothing can replace direct classroom instruction when it comes to educating our students," Ridgeway said. "I implore our parents to ensure that their children are in school for these mandatory make-up days."
Snow and cold weather shut schools a number of times. Storms also caused some power outages, but officials say the unstable power system was a major factor.
Click here for a list of schools and number of makeup days (.pdf format)
Click here for a revised summer school schedule (.pdf format)
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