Fredonia Central Schools earlier this month declared it will be a day off for students on Election Day, Nov. 5. While the decision was not fully about voter awareness, it does involve polling decisions.

Years ago, Chautauqua County designated Wheelock School as a site for a portion of village voters. District leaders were hoping to change that this year.

It did not happen.

With all the safety issues that surround schools, including the procedures that allow residents to enter while classes are in session, Fredonia had no choice. “We did our best to try to get that adjusted through a formal process. That request was denied,” Superintendent Brad Zilliox said.

The district met with representatives from the Fredonia Teachers’ Association and administrators to find a solution. The District believed the best course of action would be to swap a professional development day with a regular day of instruction so that students would not be in class at Wheelock while polling was held at the school.

The decision to swap the Friday before Election Day, Nov. 1 with Election Day, Nov. 5, was then presented to the Board of Education. The members of the Board in attendance at the recent meeting were overwhelmingly in favor of the decision.

In February, Zilliox called the polling-site matter an “unnecessary risk.” Board of Education member Sheila Hahn later added, “It doesn’t even seem like a matter of debate. We’re securing entrances so that people can’t come into the school, yet we’re publicizing a day when it’s a free-for-all and everyone can come with whatever. That, to me, does not make any sense. It should never have been used as a polling place and definitely should not continue to be used.”

Unfortunately, in today’s society, Hahn’s comments are absolutely correct.