Herman Kleine: Year-round benefits

Your June 29 news article “Wake weighs value of year-round schools” demonstrated that both the school board and its administration have missed the most important value of year-round schools – the educational benefit to the students.

It seems to be well-documented that they have better retention with the year-round calendar.

Instead they highlight higher operating costs, have lower percentages of subsidized lunches, have lower than projected enrollments and a better environment for staff.

My granddaughter, after experiencing the switch from year-round to traditional, lamented the change as do many parents who are being forced through it.

The best answer is to make year-round universal. Not every elementary and middle school has to have four tracks, and the high school issues of elective courses and athletics are readily solvable.

This story was originally published July 4, 2015 at 2:00 PM with the headline "Herman Kleine: Year-round benefits."