STUDENTS TAKE DAY TO REMEMBER
By Anthony Kim
Glendale News Press, CA
April 25 2007
Attendance at local schools takes a big dip as Armenian genocide
recalled.
GLENDALE – Schools were nearly half empty Tuesday as students
remembering the Armenian genocide chose to commemorate the event
off campus.
Many Armenian students supported showing up at commemoration events
while school administrators expressed mixed reactions.
Only preliminary student attendance reports were available from
Glendale Unified School District high schools by the end of the day,
but most numbers showed drastic dips in attendance Tuesday.
With a reported 560 to 600 students missing, Clark Magnet High reported
52% to 56% of the students absent.
Glendale High saw 41% of the school not attending class. Hoover High
reported 30% to 35% absent. Daily High reported about 33% absent.
Crescenta Valley High reported just 220 absences, which is about 8%
of the student population, said its dean of attendance Mark Rubio.
Principal Linda Evans said Crescenta Valley High’s Armenian student
population is not as high as it is in other schools in the city.
The attendance rates from Tuesday were far short of normal. Usual
attendance rates for Daily High School, the district’s continuation
school for at-risk youth, is 90%.
The rest of the high schools usually have more than 96% in attendance
daily.
A pair of Glendale High School freshmen, Lisa Baroutgian and Alena
Bilemjian, missed the first half of the school day to march in Little
Armenia in Los Angeles.
They were waiting behind the fence minutes before the bell dismissed
the school on Tuesday, reflecting on missing most of class instruction.
"Why not?" said 14-year-old Lisa. "It’s an important day."
Alena, 15, said it wasn’t like taking a personal day off.
"We actually did something," Alena said. "It’s not like we stayed at
home and were on the computer all day. We went out and we marched. We
did something important. So I wouldn’t call it a day off."
Supt. Michael Escalante said the large number of absences was expected.
"It doesn’t surprise me," Escalante said.
"I think you have two things here. You have kids going for all the
right reasons and some kids who are just taking advantage."
The two students, Lisa and Alena, said their parents approved their
leaving school for the march.
They also mentioned that most students earnestly participate in some
commemorative event, though many people think some students use the
day as an excuse to take the day off.
"Even the lazy kids that you would think do that, they participate,"
Lisa said.
David Arakelyan, Hoover High School alumni and student trustee at
Glendale Community College, said there are many events around Los
Angeles and Glendale that students attend when they opt out of school.
"I think that the families that feel strongly about this issue, they
agree that this is the minimum they can do for those who perished,"
Arakelyan said. "I’m guessing that most families want to have that
same spirit instilled in their children."
A march in North Hollywood, an event in Montebello and a protest at
the Turkish consulate were just some of the events that Armenian people
took part in Tuesday to commemorate their ancestors’ tragedy, he said.
Principals from the high schools voiced mixed reactions to the plunge
in attendance that happens every April 24 in Glendale, reaffirming the
importance of attending class every day while expressing understanding
for the students’ culture.
"Of course I want students to be in school," Hoover High Principal
Kevin Welsh said. "I think that’s where students should be. Glendale
as a community is absolutely unique in the world because we have such
an Armenian population. And given that uniqueness, I understand the
fact that…. they will take time off to commemorate with family. I
understand, accept and respect it."
His sentiments were echoed by many of his fellow principals.
Escalante said there was also a financial aspect to the absences.
"Our first concern is that students are losing time in classrooms
– that’s our first concern," Escalante said. "Secondly, there’s a
concern about the dollars that are lost that day because we’re still
paying for the overhead."
The school district receives $44 every day for each student that
attends school, said Linda Junge, public information officer. Total
number of absences in the district were not available by the end of
the day.
After mid-April, the state uses an average of student attendance
over a certain number of days to determine funding, and if one day
sticks out from the rest, it could potentially throw off an otherwise
pristine attendance rate, said Scott Price, district administrator
of business services.
Many parents provide letters to excuse the absences, but excused or
not, the absences are counted as absences, Price said.
Clark Magnet Principal Douglas Dall said he was not in a position to
make value judgments on culture and human experience.
"But I do think that when students don’t come to school, they miss
out on learning," Dall said.
Many of the high schools held events on Tuesday to draw students
to school.
Glendale and Hoover high schools both held human rights-related
assemblies in the morning. Students discussed the issue in class at
Daily High School.
"For me, it’s about respect and it’s about doing what’s right for the
family, Stockhamer said. "I respect all different cultures. I don’t
even give it a second thought. These students and their families
should do what’s best for them."
The school district has designated Jan. 6 as a day of non-instruction
to accommodate Armenian Christmas for years.
The district considered making April 24 a day of non-instruction in
2004, but it has never been a day off, Escalante said.
ANTHONY KIM covers education. He may be reached at (818) 637-3238 or
by e-mail at anthony.h.kimlatimes.com.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress