Supt. Schaefer Rebuffs Open-Re-Enrollees, Citing Sanctity of Contracts

What every blogger needs:
the GE 98757 Retractable Keypad, complete with B.S. key.

An alert reader sends me on a brief trip in the Wayback Machine to not-so-wayback: December 14, 2009, Madison Central School Board meeting. In Action #082, the board said students who have open-enrolled out of the district can't come back until the beginning of the next school year. Evidently some students who open-enrolled elsewhere would like to come back to Madison's hallowed halls now, in the middle of the school year.

If you watch the meeting webcast, around timestamp 1:28:00, Superintendent Vince Schaefer offered the following rationale for rejecting such requests:

Once this request to transfer is granted or is approved, the student is obligated to attend school in that non-resident or the admitting district, unless the boards of both districts agree in writing to allow that student to return to the resident district.

And that is exactly where that parent or guardian signs, and they sign that. To me that's... that's like the... uh, you know, contract, and you agree to do that.

About twenty minutes later, Superintendent Schaefer resigned, asking to be released from the obligations of his contract in the middle of the school year.

Board member Michelle Tucek offered the following argument for rejecting the open-re-enrollment request (approx. timestamp 1:34:30):

Because I just don't think it's a very good example on our end nor on the other school district end to simply let the kids bow out when the going gets tough. I mean to help them get through struggles, because at this age if they're thinking they can just bow out and go to the next best thing, they're not learning anything when life hands them their struggles outside of school.

A couple hours later, Tucek set an example by making the motion to accept Schaefer's resignation.

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p.s.: Also setting an example for the youth: board member Steve Nelson wears his cap throughout the meeting. My fifth-grade teacher, Arlis Hanson, would throw a fit. Hats off in the building, kids!

pp.s.: Someone at MHS is listening: after I noted that Mr. Schaefer was still listed as superintendent on the district website on Wednesday, I find this morning his name is gone. Not so at Chester. Hmm....