Parents Are Outraged After School Fines Students For Being Late To Class

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Parents Are Outraged After School Fines Students For Being Late To Class

It seems like lots of schools have been experimenting with new policies and rules lately, and most of them have left parents feeling angry.

We told you about a school that posted an angry message warning parents not to bring forgotten books, homework or lunches to school. Their plan backfired when lots of parents online reminded the school that kids aren't perfect, and that children shouldn't be punished for the kind of normal mistakes we all make.

There was also the Florida school that landed in hot water when it was revealed they were selling premium lunch passes that let children cut to the front of the lunch line for $100. Money and their child's education are two topics that parents take very seriously, so mixing them is probably a bad idea.

But that hasn't stopped Utah's Stansbury High School from introducing a new policy that has many parents up in arms. It seems that lots of students were loitering in the hallways when they should have been in class, and school administrators came up with an unusual solution.

Starting last week, the school can actually fine students if they arrive to class late. While the school's principal is playing down the fines, parents are raising questions about where the money is going.

But the school says after a week with the new policy, the results speak for themselves.

The new fine doesn't apply to first period, because the school says arriving on time at the start of the day is a parent's responsibility.

But between classes, students who hang around in the hallways when they should get to class will receive a warning. Repeated lateness will earn them a $3 fine, and a $5 fine if they continue to act up.

Assistant principal Cody Reutzel told AOL News "What we're really trying to target is those periods between classes where really it's a choice. It's a personal decision of whether you're going to walk from class A to class B and be on time."

And school administrators say the policy is already a success. Students are walking to class quickly to avoid being fined, and so far the school has only handed out warnings. "Our goal is not to get money," Principal Gailynn Warr said. "It would be great if I didn't get any money. We just want kids in class."

But while Warr says any money they collect will be used for "school incentives," some parents are convinced the new plan is a cash grab. "I think the school board implemented this as part of a way to generate income," said Stansbury parent Beth Dennison.

Students who can't pay the fines can take detention instead, or "work off" the charge by arriving on time for the next few weeks.

What do you think of these fines? Share this story and tell us!

[H/T: Fox 13]

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