Activity Fees, Transportation, Altered School Day Draw Public Opposition

Parents, students and other concerned Harford County residents voiced opposition to several recently passed school board policies for nearly three hours Monday.

Three issues rose drew the most heat during the comment period at Monday's board of education meeting: fourth-tier school day, depot bus stops for magnet program students and activity fees.

In order cut transportation costs the school system this year implemented a fourth-tier elementary schedule, moving Bakersfield, Red Pump, Bel Air and Forest Lakes elementary schools to later start and end times.

School days at these schools will begin at 9:30 a.m. with school dismissed at 4 p.m. This allows the school buses to serve more schools, reducing the number of buses the system needs to operate, according to officials. This change was announced July 18.

Jill Emerson, a parent of a Bel Air Elementary School student, explained she accepted a job with specific hours so she could put her child on the bus each morning.

The changes to her child's school day, however, alter her ability to do that, however.

“This change was abruptly made one month before the start of the school year," Emerson said.

The short notice has left Emerson scrambling, she said.

Other parents said this change gives them little time to find adequate child care to fill the gaps this new start to the school day creates.

Emerson added many children are already enrolled in recreational sports or religious activities that have set times. A later end to the school day pushes back time for homework and creates conflict with these activities.

“We ask that you re-evaluate this extreme and sudden change," Emerson said.

Kelly Jester, president of the Red Pump Elementary School Parent Teacher Association, said she felt the decision on the school day change was made without consulting parents or constituents.

She said the vote was made a week before many parents received a letter issued by the school system addressing the issue.

"This decision hit most of us like a slap in the face," Jester said, later adding, “Most of these parents did not anticipate or budget for this change."

“It places a severe hardship on my family and many other families who are here today," Mary Archer said.

Archer said when her children were accepted into magnet programs— one at Aberdeen and the other at North Harford—her family was promised consolidated bus stops within a mile of home.

“Had we known about this my freshman could have gone somewhere else, or at least the same magnet program as my older daughter," Archer said.

Madeline Miller, a 14-year-old Fallston resident in the magnet program at Edgewood High School said she knew she would have to get up earlier and get home later to attend the magnet program.

"I was OK with that," Miller said.

She was not, however, prepared to for the transportation changes. She explained both her parents have full time jobs and will not be able to pick her up at 2:30 p.m. each day.

Another parent said she doesn't know if she can look her child in the eye and tell him he can no longer attend the magnet program he worked so hard to get into because she has no way to get him there and back.

Other parents expressed safety concerns for students who would be forced to stay outside in all elements for more than two hours as they wait for parents to get out of work and pick them up.

Activity fees were also a major concern to those offering public comment Monday.

Under the new fee policy, students will pay $50 per season to play an interscholastic sport, while other activities—such as clubs, school plays and academic honor societies—will cost $25 for the year.

“The 'pay to play' policy will put Harford County students at a disadvantage when applying for college scholarships," Debbie Sheeler, president of the C. Milton Wright booster club, said.

She explained colleges look for well-rounded students who have shown leadership ability and proved they are team players through participation in sports and other activities.

“We believe this is going to have dramatic, long-term effects on the kind of student Harford County produces," Donna Bethke with Havre de Grace High School's booster club said.

Each of these changes were made to fill gaps in the school system's budget.

Harford County Council members Dick Slutzky and Dion Guthrie, however, spoke up during public comment contending that the school system's statement that the $20.2 million shortfall was created by the county budget was misleading.

“Under certain circumstances the state education law gives the council the ability to give additional funding to the board of education,” Slutzky said. Those funds are not required and would need to be cut from other departments, Slutzky said.

Slutzky and Guthrie contend the county has consistently given more than required to the school system's budget.

Guthrie echoed Slutzky's comments by saying a number of people have reached out to him and other members of the county council blaming them for school board funding issues.

“You need to do something to right that shift [in responsibility], thank you," Guthrie said.