ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. — Several area schools will return to full-time in-person instruction this week as a result of litigation from parent groups.
Some high school students in the Orchard Park School District, which was one of the school systems that received a court order to resume full-time learning, believed that the legal action was not truly in their best interest.
The petition, called "Protest Against Full Time School," has over 1,000 signatures on Change.org.
According to the petition's description, it's meant to raise awareness about negative effects that a sudden schedule change could have on Orchard Park students.
Robby Dinero, the outspoken gym owner and parent who filed the petition against Orchard Park, issued the following statement:
"About two weeks ago, the Taliban killed nearly 100 students who are literally dying to go to school, meanwhile in Orchard Park our spoiled kids and parents are protesting the opportunity to go to a safe school. If you read the arguments in the case, you’ll see that the state has zero evidence that it is unsafe for our kids to be in school. That’s my statement.”
Spectrum News would like to note that while a May 8 bombing near a school in Afghanistan did kill at least 85 people, the Taliban continues to deny responsibility.
As for the students at Orchard Park, they say that they have been cleared by Principal Jonathon Wolf to hold a demonstration on Monday in the school’s parking lot, just off of Baker Road.
The protest is meant to address the court decision, organizers say, not to express hostility toward the district itself.