School: Crenshaw High’s Classroom Tardiness Policy

Can anyone tell me what is wrong with Crenshaw High School demanding that its students be in class on time? (“Angry over Absences,” Westside, June 5) This is invaluable training for the outside world, where punctuality is a basic requirement to obtain and hold a job. Does Jacinto Rhines think he is doing his daughter a service by attempting to undermine the school that is trying to teach her this virtue? Will Mr. Rhines also file a lawsuit against an employer who fires his daughter for being repeatedly late to work?

Tardy students interrupt the educational process for everyone else in the class. Why aren’t parents like Mr. Rhines putting their energy into teaching their children the value of promptness? Why don’t they spend a week at Crenshaw High School with their children, showing them how it is possible to travel from Class A to Class B in a timely fashion? Better yet, show them how to be in their seats with their pencils sharpened and ready to learn when the tardy bell rings.

I feel it is Mr. Rhines, not Crenshaw High School, that is practicing “miseducation.” Why is he dragging race into this? If “black kids are disproportionately suffering,” it probably means that black kids are disproportionately late to class. How wonderful that the principal, Yvonne Noble, and the assistant principal, Yolanda Anderson (both of whom are black) care enough to do something about an unfortunate situation. Mr. Rhines should thank his lucky stars that his daughter is in a school that’s doing its best to impact her in a positive way.

There’s a simple message here: If you care that much about your child’s education, make sure that she (or he) is on time to class! Then, everyone wins.

CHERYL CROSS, Santa Monica