Photo by Emilie Lutostanski

James Crabtree, LISD parent and Marine Corp Reserve member, speaks to the school board Feb. 6.

Several Leander ISD parents and veterans spoke at the Feb. 6 board of trustees meeting, asking the district reconsider holding school on Memorial Day.

The federal holiday, which originated after the Civil War to honor fallen soldiers, is on the LISD 2013–14 school calendar as a bad weather makeup day. Classes were canceled Jan. 24 and 28 and Feb. 7 because of icy driving conditions.

Superintendent Bret Champion said the district is exploring alternatives to Memorial Day, but it must work within the guidelines of the Texas Education Agency.

"One possibility is making Memorial Day a staff development day where students don't have to go. But because we just pulled the plug on a third bad weather day, there's a question of getting a waiver from the state and we would have to look into that," Champion said. "We cannot, by the commissioner [of education]'s rule, add a day to a teacher's work year because of their contract. Some folks said go on Saturday or take a day off of spring break, and those sound like possibilities, but we just need to explore everything."

LISD parent James Crabtree, a major in the U.S. Marine Corp Reserve, helped lead the call to ask the district to use any other day available.

"I served in Iraq with a battalion, which lost 10 good Marines. Memorial Day is the one day our nation has set aside to honor them and all who have given their lives in our armed forces," he said. "Surely the board can find another day, any day, in which to make up for the ice day. Already this year the board chose to recognize Columbus Day but have children in school on Veterans Day. To have classes now on Memorial Day as well is not only wrong, it is unpatriotic."

About a dozen people addressed the school board about the Memorial Day issue, including LISD resident Lisa Morris. She said one of her children, a former LISD student, died while serving in the military in 2008. Another awaits deployment in March.

"I am passionate about Memorial Day. ... It is a day of nationalism and one we cannot give up and maintain the same sort of freedoms that we have today," she said. "As a patriotic American, I'm insulted that you would even think it's an option, because it's not."