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School Adopts 'E-Days' To Combat Low Attendance On Late Start, Snow Days

By Dillon Thomas

EL PASO COUNTY, Colo. (CBS4) — In an effort to keep students up-to-date with school work while working around severe weather, the staff at Falcon High School near Colorado Springs is adopting "E-days."

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An E-day will replace late starts and snow days when a storm hits.

Principal Cheryl Degerogue told CBS4 E-days will allow students to complete previously planned classwork from the comfort of their homes during storms.

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"A lot of parents just kept their kids home (during late start days)," Degerogue said. "Our attendance was much, much lower on a later start day."

With the new E-day system, students would log in to a website called Schoology. The website is laid out like Facebook, but focuses on school work. Students can communicate with classmates, and teachers, while going through a class day virtually.

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Falcon High staff said the system would allow students to stay on pace with schoolwork, while also not missing important lessons.

"Teachers said as soon as they taught a lesson, everybody came back the following day and they had to reteach it," Degerogue said. 

Though some students may not want to do the class work while at home, some parents believed the new education platform was a solid blend of relaxation and education during snow storms. 

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"My son is in a lot of sports. He gets overtaxed every once in a while," one parent said. "It is just nice, on an an E-day, he gets to sleep late. But, he still gets up, (and) he gets to stay home and relax, and still get his work done."

CBS4 contacted Denver Metro area districts to see if their schools used a simile platform. All who responded said they were sticking to regular snow days. 

One district said they didn't know if a program would work in their district, citing lack of access to internet and electronic devices at home. 

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Others said they try to avoid issuing snow days overall to avoid students missing out on the many activities and services the schools provide on a daily basis. 

Dillon Thomas is a reporter at CBS4 and a Colorado native. He believes everyone has a story, and would love to share yours! You can find more of his stories by following him on Twitter, @DillonMThomas.

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