Saturday mornings may no longer be for cartoons and cereal, but for an extra session at Portsmouth High School. 

School Board member Tim Steele proposed a policy that would require students who have disciplinary problems to return to school for a special Saturday morning session.

The session would run from eight a.m. until noon several weekends during the year and according to Steele, would cost an additional $3,000 per year.

Peggy Bacon, a parent was against the idea and was concerned about the extra effort required to send her son to school on Saturday.

“Parents can whine all they want about this, but maybe it’s time parents in America were made to take a little responsibility for their kids,” said resident Bob Farley.

According to Steele this is an effort to reduce in-house suspensions which are now given to students caught smoking inside or outside of Portsmouth High School. 

In-house suspensions do not allow students to make up the class work they missed during that day.

Steele said the new program would mean that that the student would miss no class time. 

Steele also said smoking was the worst problem at Portsmouth High School.

“I just want to keep students from smoking in the high school bathrooms.  There are other problems, but smoking is by far the biggest one,” Steele said.

Bacon offered another point of view. 

“Parents are going to pay for it – in higher taxes as well as in ruined Saturdays,” said Bacon.

Lisa Gallagher, Portsmouth High School senior stood among four of her peers and spoke against the rule. 

“I don’t like this idea.  I think it’s just being done to make like easier for the faculty, so they don’t have to deal with the detentions during the week,” said Gallagher.