Parents naturally are upset about schools being closed for 17 Fridays this school year and again next year, depriving their children of what they thought would be full school years. A sweeping class-action lawsuit threatened against the state is not warranted because the state had little choice in achieving a balanced budget, but a more confined lawsuit must be avoided.

The threat was made in a letter to state Attorney General Mark Bennett by lawyer Eric A. Seitz, who sued the state Department of Education 16 years ago on behalf of Jennifer Felix and other special-needs students. State costs in compliance with a consent decree stemming from that lawsuit totaled more than $1 billion.

In his letter, Seitz said he had received “;an overwhelming number of requests”; to file “;a Felix-like lawsuit”; to keep the schools from initiating the Friday furloughs, with teachers agreeing in a new contract to go without pay for those days.

That contract and other proposals call for the furloughs so the state can meet state constitutional requirements of a balanced budget during the economic slump.

Seitz says reducing the number of days of the school year has a “;disparate”; effect on low-income families, “;local ethnic communities”; and single parents because they cannot afford to enroll their children in private schools. The notion that such families would have standing in a class-action lawsuit against the school system coping with recession-caused budget constraints is a stretch.

However, his suggestion that children with special needs should not be deprived of services required by federal law deserves careful examination. Seitz is well-versed on those federal requirements.

Lawyer David Rosen, a public school parent who is upset about the reduction of school days, points out that “;there's no federal law protecting the regular students in the state Hawaii,”; but he says the DOE has an obligation under the state Constitution.

Schools Superintendent Pat Hamamoto told the Star-Bulletin's Susan Essoyan that stopping the Furlough Fridays at this point is “;highly unlikely;”; the first one comes this week. The labor contract ratified by the Hawaii State Teachers Association calls for the furlough days, which total nearly 10 percent of the 180-day school years.

Seitz suggests that the administration and state legislators “;seek creative solutions”; to avoid “;a virtual attack on public education.”; Indeed, school officials should seek ways to assure compliance with federal requirements for providing education to children with special needs to avert another expensive lawsuit.