On January 14th 2022, the Culver City Unified School District (CCUSD) announced that it will be cancelling school from Wednesday, January 19th through Friday, January 21st due to the recent increase in COVID-19 positive cases and the ongoing rapid spread of the Omicron variant. In this announcement it was also informed that "The loss of these 3 instructional days will be made up at a date to be determined later."

However, on February 4th, the CCUSD, through an email sent out by its Superintendent, announced that "Due to the sudden and emergency circumstances that compelled CCUSD to close schools for three days, CCUSD is in contact with the Los Angeles County Office of Education (LACOE) and the California Department of Education (CDE) to seek a waiver from having to make up those days."

We deserve a more thorough explanation of the thought process behind this. 

There is no doubt that the decision to temporarily close a school is a hard one. When people's lives appear to be on the line it is understandable that closures will happen. Even if closures have shown to have long-term consequences on children, in the short-term we want them to be healthy and alive. A school closure can, ultimately, be defended as evidence-based and an ethical and moral decision. 

But the decision to not make up the 3 days that were lost is not a hard one. There is no scientific, moral, nor ethical argument for it. Unless the special interests of adults are being pitted against those of our children.

The Culver City Unified School District should not be treating our children as an insurance company or airline company treats people, citing a type of "force majeure clause" as the reason for not wanting to educate & engage with our children for 3 days. I argue, in fact, that the only moral, decent, and productive decision is to make up the 3 days of school that were understandably cancelled in January.

If these days are not made up, we at least deserve a more transparent explanation as why.