OETA Story on Prue, Oklahoma Schools to a 4 day week aired 07/09/09

This is a story that aired on OETA Public Television's The Oklahoma News Report in Tulsa Oklahoma as reported by Angela Rosecrans and photojournalist Edwin Wilson. For more information or to contact us, please go to the new and improved www.oeta.tv

The verbatim script follows below...

PRUE PUBLIC SCHOOLS WILL ADOPT A FOUR-DAY SCHOOL WEEK WHEN CLASSES RESUME ON AUGUST TENTH. THE SMALL SCHOOL DISTRICT OF ABOUT 300 STUDENTS HAS SOME WORKING PARENTS WORRIED ABOUT WHAT THEY WILL DO WITH THEIR KIDS THAT EXTRA DAY.




"I want that 5-day school week they're trying to save money but in the end it's going to cost us parents a lot more than it would save them money." ERIN LOCKE WORKS FULL-TIME AT THE ONLY CONVENIENT STORE IN THIS TOWN. SHE SAYS WITH THE SCHOOL BOARD'S DECISION TO CUT THE SCHOOL WEEK-- SHE WILL BE FORCED TO SPEND MORE OF HER HARD EARNED MONEY ON DAYCARE.




"i've got four kids and a single mom and it's going to be costing me more in daycare than anything else I'm going to lose that one day a week and it's going to cost two maybe three hundred maybe a month for me and I can't afford that." BUT THAT'S NOT THE ONLY CONCERN. THE MAJORITY OF STUDENTS HERE ARE ON FREE OR REDUCED LUNCHES. MANY OF THEM DEPEND ON THE BREAKFAST AND LUNCH THAT THE SCHOOL PROVIDES.




"there's a whole lot of almost all of the kids in town are on free or reduced lunch a lot of them don't get to eat the way the need to in the summer because of it being a poor community."




it's a poor town you look around here most of the people are below poverty line (48) and I don't understand how the school is going to save money they're still gonna run the air conditioner they're still gonna run the utilities." SCHOOL SUPERINTENDENT TOM SCULLY SAYS THE SCHOOL BOARD WEIGHED ALL OF THE PRO'S AND CONS IN THE DECISION MAKING PROCESS. BUT LIKE MANY OTHER SCHOOL DISTRICTS THEY HAVE BEEN DEALING WITH TOUGH FINANCIAL TIMES.




"they looked at all the different aspects and weighed all the pros and cons..." HE SAYS THE SHORTER WEEK WILL SAVE ON a lot OF EXPENSES INCLUDING TRANSPORTATION AND UTILITY COSTS.




) "it is yet to be determined how much we can save I think in all honesty but there is a strong chance we can save some money." SCULLY SAYS THIS IS NOT A NEW CONCEPT, THERE ARE SEVERAL OTHER SCHOOL DISTRICTS IN OTHER PARTS OF THE COUNTRY THAT HAVE GONE TO 4-DAY SCHEDULES TO SAVE MONEY. AND STATE SCHOOL OFFICIALS EXPECT OTHER SCHOOL DISTRICTS IN OKLAHOMA TO FOLLOW THIS SMALL TOWN'S LEAD. IN PRUE, ANGELA ROSECRANS, THE OKLAHOMA NEWS REPORT.

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