Unexcused absence

Dear Teacher,
Please excuse Sekai from school on April 16, 2010. We understand that his absence may be marked as unexcused by the registrar, and, as he is very concerned that you will not approve of his absence, he has asked me to write a separate letter asking that you please excuse his absence. (That is, he wants me to ask you not to be upset with him when he returns to school on Monday. As you know, he is very sensitive about how others view him and his actions.)
Thank you,
Ms. Williams
Sekai's Mom

Dear Teacher,
Please excuse me from school on Friday. My mom is taking her Ph.D. I will call her Dr. Mom. I mean, Dr. Ph.D. Mom. So I am going to campus with her and will not come to school. I hope you are not mad at me. It isn't every day that my mom takes her Ph.D.
Signed,
Sekai Williams

Those are the letters that we were supposed to send to school today. We had discussed it for months. I wrote Teacher above because I do not know who Sekai's homeroom teacher would have been this school year. We didn't send the letters anyway. Sekai decided to be absent altogether...and his absence is not excused.

Contemptible, indeed!

Oh, Sekai would be so very happy to know about this! I am thrilled. Ok, holding them in contempt is step one...

From the organization Children's Rights: "Federal Court Holds DC Mayor Fenty in Contempt for Child Welfare Failings; District Must Fully Implement Reforms"

From the Washington Post D.C. Wire blog: "Judge rips Fenty on Child and Family Services leadership"