School’s out but not all summer

By MARGIE TRAX PAGE - Staff Writer - mtrax@starbeacon.com
Star Beacon

June 14, 2009 11:17 pm

— GENEVA-ON-THE-LAKE — Wearing white paper hats while they serve up hot dogs and root beer, teenage workers are important fibers in the fabric of the village’s businesses, Councilman Don Woodward says.
“A number of years ago, the schools wanted to go back before Labor Day,” Woodward said. “Now I see by the 2009-2010 school calendar that school starts two full weeks before Labor Day.”
With no industry, limited residential space and a four-month window of summer employment, revenue and tourism, the village needs all the help — and all the summer weekends — it can get, Woodward said.
“That is going to nail the hell out of our season,” he said.
Geneva schools Superintendent Mary Zappitelli said there isn’t much flexibility when it comes to the school year calendar.
“We take the summer season, student summer employment and other factors into consideration every year,” Zappitelli said. “It is not possible at this time to begin the school year later and the governor wants to add days to the calendar.”
Woodward said he isn’t asking the schools to sacrifice days of education.
“I mean, it should be the same number of days — 186 days— but the way those days fall on this calendar is killing us,” he said.
Woodward, who owns several GOTL businesses, said the students he employs keep the businesses staffed. Families continue to visit the lake for long weekends while school is out. The high school students miss out on two weekends of pay, he said.
“I have not met one parent who agrees the students should go back before Labor Day,” he said. “Basically the schools have thumbed their noses at GOTL and the tourism industry that is our bread and butter.”
Woodward said he hopes council will draft a resolution expressing the village’s needs regarding the school calendar.
Zappitelli said the beginning of the school year is a concern every year.
“There are many, many factors to consider when making the school calendar,” Zappitelli said. “The students are still in school a full week after Memorial Day. There are things that the state controls — I’m not talking about the school year in particular — but other things we are involved in that dictates the beginning of the year.”