EMILY SCOTT
Dear Mr. Jaurigue, Ms. Colgan, Ms. Bernstein, Ms. Specter, Ms. Wyman, Mr. Payne, and Ms. Guy,
My name is Emily and I am a burnt-out high school junior at LAHS. I’m reaching out today to share my concerns for the upcoming vote on which calendar LAPS should adopt after the bill HB130 was passed. Although Calendar B would provide lots of breaks throughout the school year to prevent burnout, LAPS needs to adopt Calendar C to create equity among over-committed students, academically struggling students, and all students involved in extracurriculars.
Calendar C can still help prevent burnout especially for over-committed students, while keeping everyone focused. I, for one, am very familiar with feeling burnt out. My entire high school career, I’ve been very committed to a lot of extracurriculars, AP/honors classes, and jobs. So, until as of late, my mental health was declining severely. Having a week off in October, November, and April, along with a two week winter break, would have helped me in the past a lot because of the equity it would’ve created. If we received longer breaks throughout the school year, I would be able to perform just as well in academics as my less busy counterparts because we would all get the rest we needed. On the other hand, citizens voting for Calendar B might argue that students need even longer breaks to prevent burnout because not all the students are able to spend their break relaxing. However, to create true equity, we cannot only focus on one student demographic. We need to focus on the entire district. For a lot of kids--especially those who struggle with school, long breaks will create additional stress from having to remember information over periods without schooling. Calendar C will address both of these students’ problems because it includes breaks for over-committed students, but they aren’t too long to forget information from school.
Additionally, adopting Calendar C will also provide LAPS the most amount of additional money. Bill HB130 promises schools that “provide more than 180 days of instruction” will receive SEG funding for students attending the school. Furthermore, Senate Bill 04 is close to passing and requires all schools to provide free breakfast and lunches. LAPS will not receive additional funding federally, so the money given from Bill HB130 could help fund the meals. If we do not add the additional days, then getting the money for these meals will come from cutting budgets from nonessential departments. Students who are involved in these nonessential clubs/sports would feel undervalued and it would prevent students from enjoying all school funded activities. I’ll admit that more school doesn’t sound fun, but if it means we can keep all the departments, then I think it’s worth it.
Ultimately, I encourage all of you to have equity in mind when voting for the next calendar. Vote for Calendar C if you want equity in helping our over-committed students with burnout, our students who struggle academically, and all our students who participate in extracurriculars. If we do not vote for Calendar C, then our students will continue to struggle.
Thank you for taking the time and consideration to read my thoughts.
Sincerely,
Emily B. Scott
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