2009.01.25
Discuss Trejbal's column on MLK Day and schools
Take MLK Day off in Floyd and Giles schools
By Christian Trejbal
Few commentators last week missed the opportunity to point out that America's first black president was taking the oath of office the day after Martin Luther King Jr. Day. The national holiday to commemorate the great civil rights leader coincided perfectly with President Obama's inauguration.
In Obama's case, at least, King's dream of a nation that judges a man not by the color of his skin but by the content of his character became real.
Most schools closed on King's holiday, as they do every year, but not schools in Floyd and Giles counties.
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I am not a citizen of Floyd or Giles County, so I will not make a comment on their reason for not closing schools on MLK Day.
Do you have any stats on other states closing on that day. Did the entire US take a holiday?
I do wish to comment on the tone of your article. You are accusing these good people of racism.
Comment by Mary — January 25, 2009 @ 9:27 am
Do you mean stats on schools in other states and state offices closing? I am unaware of any comprehensive listing. I'd be interested in seeing one. As I noted in the column, Virginia doesn't track that for our schools.
I have no reason to believe that the Arbogasts or the the people of Floyd and Giles counties are racists. My only contention is that in a state where racism was once so deeply ingrained, it is especially important that we commemorate Dr. King's work for civil rights.
Comment by c. trejbal — January 25, 2009 @ 9:45 am
Christian,
Why exactly are you chastising Floyd and Giles for not taking MLK day as a holiday? Do you think that shows a lack of diversity? I noticed that the Roanoke Times published a paper on MLK day. Why weren't you and everyone else at the Times given the day off? By your logic, that puts you and the Times in the same boat as Floyd and Giles County.
It appears that you are trying create a problem out of thin air. If you have an agenda here, what is it?
Comment by Nick — January 25, 2009 @ 9:55 am
Actually, MLK Day is a paid holiday at The Roanoke Times.
Comment by c. trejbal — January 25, 2009 @ 10:05 am
Hey C.T,
How come we arnt in a uproar about the local schools having presidents day off.
Sounds kinda like reverse racism to me.
Before long we will be having Mohammud day off the way this country
continues to go.
Comment by herb Krebs — January 25, 2009 @ 10:18 am
Well, I get 6 paid holidays and MLK isn't one of them. So I guess that those hourly folks who did the Monday edition got to double dip? The busiest times of year where I work are the 3 warm wx holidays, Memorial/4th/Labor Day. We get holiday pay but usually nobody gets the day off so we're in the same boat.
I do believe that Dr. King's works can be celebrated and remembered without having a day off. In the case of the schools, wouldn't you agree that the students have more opportunity to learn and talk about the civil rights movement while in class and not doing whatever kids do on a day off?
Comment by Nick — January 25, 2009 @ 10:34 am
The unspoken inference in the article is that the Arbogasts and their school systems are racist. Is there some proof of that other than failure to make MLK day sacrosanct in the school schedule. I suspect that both Giles and Floyd, given the rural nature of the counties, get more snow days than the other counties in the NRV so the days have to be made up somewhere. I can't speak for Floyd but Giles has a calendar committee that meets extensively to set the school calendar. This year, MLK day was set as a holiday in Giles subject to loss as a makeup day, just as other holidays are subject to loss as makeup days. As it happened, Giles was closed because of inclement weather so the day was a holiday anyway. Mr. Trejbal says just add a day at the beginning or end of school. No one wants to start earlier or end sooner than they already do. The SOL testing window imposed by the state does not take into account days lost for snow so a day of instruction added to the end of the school year is worthless. Many teachers will tell you that once SOL testing is over, the kids are done. The focus all year is on SOL's so once the tests are taken, the focus is gone. When holidays are given in the middle of the school year, parents who do not get the day off have to scramble to find day care for their children. My office does not observe MLK day (or President's day, Columbus Day or Veteran's Day) because we close 2 weeks at Christmas to allow the employees time at home with their children who are then out of school. The employees prefer it that way. Do you really think that having the day off from school teaches the kids anything about the significance of the day? Most Giles teachers spend the better part of MLK day teaching the kids about the significance and contributions of Dr. King. What better day to learn about this than the day designated by the Government to honor Dr. King?
Comment by Richard Chidester — January 25, 2009 @ 10:52 am
Nick,
This is the first newspaper I've worked at that has MLK day as a holiday. I like it, but wish Mr. King had been born in February or March, instead of right after the Christmas and New Year's holidays. We handle the King holiday like any other (the newspaper publishes 365 days a year, you know). Some people work and get overtime or another day off. Others - like the editorial page staff - simply work ahead.
Comment by Dan Radmacher — January 25, 2009 @ 11:15 am
Christian has turned a holiday celebrating one of the great martyrs in the cause of freedom into "Prove You Aren't A Racist Day". Maybe Christian can write an editorial declaring Easter as "Prove You Don't Hate Jesus Day".
Comment by Henry — January 25, 2009 @ 3:10 pm
Most of us that actually have lived in this area all of our lives know that Carroll, Floyd, Giles and others get many fewer teacher work days, holidays, and time off in general from school BECAUSE they almost always miss more days due to bad weather. I have a daughter that went to Carroll and now other children that go to Christiansburg. The one that went to Carroll always went back earlier after Christmas and always got out later before Christmas too. Do a little research on the topic before going to print.
Comment by Marked Man — January 25, 2009 @ 3:40 pm
Undoubtedly there are people who refuse to honor the holiday because they are racist and that does not take long to decipher and never needs an unspoken inference. Perhaps a school system's children are better served by learning about Dr. King on his birthday than they are having a day off. We celebrate holidays I do not particularly honor, support or participate in so I think it is like some other social issues in this Country, "To each his own". We have had a lot of great leaders throughout history and certainly I feel a well rounded education would include honoring Dr. King, but the truth is that there are more pressing issues and more pressing needs than this one. Symbolism means a great deal in this country, indeed in the whole world; therefore I totally get where the article is coming from, but forcing an issue only gets you so far and this is still "Dixie" to some.
Comment by Sandi Saunders — January 25, 2009 @ 3:46 pm
Marked Man, I did more than a little research before going to print. As I noted in the piece, both school divisions are eligible to start before Labor Day. If they are worried about too many snow days, they can start a little earlier.
Alternatively, they could stay in class for the Friday (in both) before or Monday (in Giles only) after Easter to get back a day or two. Or they could not take two full weeks off at the end of December. And no, those aren't listed as make-up days like MLK, just holidays.
Comment by c. trejbal — January 25, 2009 @ 4:01 pm
I think the day would be better spent in school than out. Use the day to educate students on the work of Dr. King, how civil rights in this country have progressed through history, and then the day will be well utilized. Having the day off, kids just look at it as an extra day to play their Wii's and X-boxes. I doubt many kids really know who Dr. King was, other than that they get a day off from school in January because of him.
Comment by Other John — January 25, 2009 @ 4:13 pm
Pretense or not, using holidays as a make-up day strikes me as a reasonable policy. But c. strengthens his case by pointing out that other holidays are not treated this way.
Is it true that Easter is a legal holiday in VA? Is that constitutional?
And devoting school time to learning the reason for the holiday strikes me as a very good idea. Especially on MLK Day in a county where only 2% of the students are black, and in a region where racism probably still lingers. It could give the black kids a much-needed morale boost and an opportunity to raise the consciousness of their non-black classmates.
Comment by Ed H — January 25, 2009 @ 5:03 pm
The concept of canceling classes or work for a holiday is that this will give people an opportunity to commemorate the holiday with appropriate activities. Given that very, very few people treat holidays as anything more than another day off, I would think that incorporating appropriate activities in the school (or even workplace) appropriate for that holiday would do much more to honor the holiday's namesake.
Comment by Joe (ntp) Merola — January 25, 2009 @ 5:15 pm
It's wonderful to assume that children would spend the day, in school, learning about MLK. But speaking as one who has children in the Floyd system, that isn't what happens now. It's left up to the teachers and some mention the day and its namesake and some don't. All in all, it's pretty cursory. And, as one who lives in Floyd, there's plenty of racism, subtle and otherwise, to go around. My family has personally experienced it and, in fact, Dr. Arbogast has used the same tactic he used with Mr. Trejbal - he puts his head in the sand and waits for the storm to blow over. He just isn't very proactive when it comes to "uncomfortable" situations, at least that has been my direct experience. Important issues need to be dealt with. Nothing comes of nothing.
Comment by Why Guy — January 25, 2009 @ 6:31 pm
Good Post, Why Guy! I will defer to your experience. LOVE the closing line too!
Comment by Sandi Saunders — January 25, 2009 @ 6:59 pm
If this is the heart of the confederacy, how come those schools are not taking off for Lee-Jackson day then??
Does that mean they are discriminating against poor southerners?
Also, you said there were two school that didnt take off....no mention of Carroll County not taking off for MLK day?? Are you going to try to say that Floyd is part of the NRV and Carroll is not?
Comment by Marked Man — January 26, 2009 @ 2:05 am
Choosing the boundaries of the New River Valley is somewhat arbitrary. I choose our core distribution area for the NRV Current and the U.S. Census Bureau designation of the Blacksburg-Christiansburg-Radford Metropolitan Statistical Area, which includes Pulaski and Giles but does not include Carroll. I also include Floyd because the Current includes it in its core area.
Comment by c. trejbal — January 26, 2009 @ 9:52 am
Okay, but just to let you know, Wythe County also wasnt scheduled to be closed on Jan 19th either. It doesnt seem that the Arbogast clan is involved with either Carroll or Wythe??
Any idea why Floyd and Giles schools are not closed for Lee-Jackson day?
Comment by Marked Man — January 26, 2009 @ 10:55 am
It's interesting how our views of history change not only what but also how we celebrate holidays. The current trend is to detract from the non-secular religious holidays like Easter and Christmas, but to promote MLK. It's not that different from many protesting Columbus Day as that represents detriment to the native peoples. As our education system seeks to revise history to conform with more progressive political views, we end up with stories like this.
Holidays mean different things to different people, so let each region celebrate it the way they want. I read somewhere that Arkansas celebrated MLK and Robert E. Lee on the same day.
Comment by Jim — January 26, 2009 @ 2:50 pm
Jim - Working for the state, we use to celebrate both as one day off....now they are separate (Friday and Monday off). I'd like to see stats (know they would be hard to come by) about schools in other states and regions of the country.
I have a feeling this is more about snow days than it is about anything else, except for those fanning the flames.
Don't we have more pressing issues to deal with here? This all seems silly to me...
Comment by Danny — January 26, 2009 @ 3:08 pm
Oh...before anyone calls me racist...I did talk to my children on MLK day explaining why it's an important holiday and more importantly why MLK was a great man. It sparked quite the discussion from my 5 and 8 year olds. They got more from that conversation than they ever would from an extra day off from school...
Comment by Danny — January 26, 2009 @ 3:09 pm
*sarcastically*
Oh no Jim, that would just never do. Someone has to be upset about something sometime. They would feel that putting it on the same day as Lee-Jackson day would be inappropriate since the *only* thing that the South fought for was slavery.
It doesnt matter that, truth be told, Southerners have been derided, mocked, and made fun of nearly as much as Blacks ever since the Civil War. After the war started, Southerners were called hillbillies, backwoods-no-nothings, etc. all the way up to this very day as well.
We dont even take off from work for St. Patrick's Day?? Come on people, the Irish came to America and were treated much more poorly by Northerners than black people were in the South...
From http://www.historyplace.com/worldhistory/famine/america.htm:
"Proper Bostonians pointed and laughed at the first Irish immigrants stepping off ships wearing clothes twenty years out of fashion. Irishmen took any unskilled jobs they could find such as cleaning yards and stables, unloading ships, and pushing carts...And once again, they fell victim to unscrupulous landlords. This time it was Boston landlords who sub-divided former Yankee dwellings into cheap housing, charging Irish families up to $1.50 a week to live in a single nine-by-eleven foot room with no water, sanitation, ventilation or daylight...The unsanitary conditions were breeding grounds for disease, particularly cholera. Sixty percent of the Irish children born in Boston during this period didn't live to see their sixth birthday. Adult Irish lived on average just six years after stepping off the boat onto American soil."
Comment by Marked Man — January 26, 2009 @ 3:23 pm
Floyd blogger The Blue Ridge Muse had some thoughts on all of this.
Comment by c. trejbal — January 27, 2009 @ 10:41 am
Floyd County Schools typically begin their academic year around the third Thursday in August. My senior year, we began school on August 18. That year, ice storms knocked out power and made some county roads impassable for the greater part of December and January. Spring break, holidays, and Saturdays were used as make-up days. If I’m not mistaken, graduation that year took place on June 12, which was actually before the official end of the school year. I believe everyone else was stuck in class until June 18 and all of the days missed due to inclement weather were still not made up. How much earlier or later do you think Floyd should start/finish? Before you answer that question, take two things into consideration: (1) SOL testing takes place in the early –mid part of May regardless of when the school system starts or is scheduled to finish; and (2) Despite the massive renovations that all of the county schools have recently undergone, the schools are old and the majority of the classrooms are not air conditioned. Having sat in one of those sweltering classrooms with 20+ others and nothing but a loud and inadequate floor fan and a couple of windows cracked for ventilation, I can assure you that it is not an environment that is conducive to great learning.
This year Floyd set aside Labor Day, two days for Thanksgiving, 12/22 – 1/2 for Winter Break, 1 day for Spring Break, and Memorial Day. I’m going to go out on a limb here and suggest that weight is probably given to holidays that are family oriented. Thanksgiving is a time when families get together and travel to and from the homes of relatives who may or may not live in the same county or even state. The same goes for the Winter Break (no longer called the Christmas Break) and the Spring Break (no longer called the Easter Break). Montgomery County Public Schools set aside Labor Day, three days for Thanksgiving, the same amount of time as Floyd for Winter Break, MLK Day, President’s Day, April 6 -13 for Spring Break, and Memorial Day. Montgomery started one day earlier than Floyd and will finish on June 12. Floyd is scheduled to finish on June 5. However, in all likelihood, Floyd and Montgomery will probably finish at the same time. If Floyd and Giles closed on Lee/Jackson Day or President’s Day and not on MLK Day or if they took an entire week for Spring Break, you would have a gripe. As it is, I think you owe the Arbogasts an apology.
Comment by Michelle — January 27, 2009 @ 11:45 am
Wow Michelle... awesome post and dead-on
Comment by Marked Man — January 27, 2009 @ 3:01 pm