Eastbayri.com

BARRINGTON — To the editor:

Unfortunately, work commitments did not allow my attendance at the forum to discuss changing start times in the Barrington School System. I did want to add my voice to this critical issue.

By all means, the citizens of Barrington and their elected leaders on the Town Council and School Committee should shift the starting time of the school day at Barrington High School. It is one of the pressing issues of our time!

With runaway cost growth in labor and benefit costs, significant unfunded pension liabilities, decaying town infrastructure and spotty performance by some (students, faculty, administrators and school committee members) in our school system, I think the proponents of this change have found the silver bullet for what is holding our children’s performance back; let them sleep in!

While our children are sleeping in and enjoying the warmth of their coddling progressive parents and politically correct administrators and school committee members, our international competitors and fellow Americans from other states will continue “to clean our clocks.”

Life doesn’t start at 9 a.m. despite whatever pseudoscience study proponents of this change will superciliously present.

Life isn’t fair. Sometimes you have to get up early, maybe even before sunrise. Sometimes you might have to work a 15 hour day to earn that promotion you want.

High school is about preparing our children for the real world, whether that is immediately entering the workforce or continuing education in college. When our kids hopefully enter the workforce, in a few short years, I’m sure that construction superintendent, law partner, bank manager, Wal Mart supervisor, restaurant owner and train conductor, will be equally understanding when Johnny or Mary tells them, “I’m not a morning person!”

Low expectations guarantee low performance. Families with high expectations and high standards will continue to drive and nurture their children’s success. Why should we allow our community standard to be so mediocre? Set the bar higher. Our kids will meet high expectations. We should be increasing the length of time our students are learning, not shifting the starting time to later in the morning.

Bob Shea

Barrington