It was disappointing to see Sandi Amorello use her recent column to malign Cape Elizabeth schools. The situation she described is an all too common one: she made choices that resulted in negative consequences, and rather than recognize her own accountability, she made excuses and blamed others.

Good parenting requires that we make our children our first priority. Amorello could have skipped that “exciting” trip. Or she could have made less precarious child-care arrangements than leaving everything in the hands of her teenager, with no access to transportation. It’s not surprising that things went awry at home in Amorello’s absence. What was surprising was her reaction, which was to blame the school.

School policies are designed to apply equally to everyone, and to suggest otherwise to our children is to do them a great disservice. I too have traversed the rocky trails of parental responsibility, and it hasn’t been without its mishaps. But it’s important for parents to act responsibly and accept accountability. When we make a poor choice, we should admit it, accept the consequences, and resolve to do better -because our own moral compass is the foundation of our children’s character.

I too have a message for my daughter’s school: Thank you for holding her to such a high standard, and for teaching her to thrive in a harsh and unforgiving world that will be uninterested in her excuses, only in her actions and her character.

Cheri Fagan
Falmouth


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