In Michigan, today is the first day of school for most of those in public schools. (By way of contrast, the Indiana school my daughter teaches at is starting their fifth week of classes.)
By State law, Michigan public schools cannot start classes until after Labor Day. (Private schools need not follow this, but many do).
The reason for this peculiar timing is so to not cut short the summer tourist season. When schools started earlier, Michiganders would cease their traveling mid-August. Equally important, high school and college students would quit their summer jobs around the same time to go back to school. Since many of them worked in industries relating to tourism, this made it harder to serve those tourists who showed up in late August.
Ironically, sports teams are not faced with such restrictions, so prior to classes commencing, most football teams had already played two games.
This seems to suggest that politicians are willing to place limits on education, but not on sports.
I think they have it backwards.
(In a somewhat related issue, some Michigan schools will only have a half day of classes, meaning that some of the kiddies will miss the President’s “stay in school” message, that has so many people in a tizzy. Some might call that ironic twist, a silver lining)
Peter Lyle DeHaan, PhD, is an author, blogger, and publisher with over 30 years of writing and publishing experience. Check out his book The Successful Author for insider tips and insights.