A security vehicle blocks the driveway entrance to Standley Lake High School in Westminster on Sept. 19, 2014. School was canceled that day because of a high number of teacher absences. (Kathryn Scott Osler, Denver Post file)
Re: “Shining a light on teacher sick-outs,” Jan. 16 editorial.
Indeed, parents have a right to know the names of teachers who participated in the Jefferson County “sick-out.” Still, I am concerned with what your editorial board expects parents to do with that information.
First, parents should not assume that all teachers on the list were healthy. Yet, parents cannot request access to medical records to ascertain which teachers were genuinely ill — those rights to privacy are protected.
Moreover, if you expect the parents to confront the teachers in question, demand that teachers be penalized, or cease cooperation with these teachers, you are purposefully fostering an adversarial relationship. In that case, since a cooperative relationship between parents and teachers is critical to learning, as your editorial states, you are not acting in the best interest of the children. Rather, you are putting your political passions ahead of the well-being of the children.
Chris D. White, Loveland
This letter was published in the Jan. 20 edition.
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