Detroit Public Schools (DPS) gave free vouchers to the Monster Jam Truck Rally at Ford Field?and Feld Motor Sports refused to honor them, leaving DPS students feeling like they?had been?driven over by the very Monster Trucks they sought to watch.
February 11, 2015 was the official?’Count Day’ in Michigan. It is the day used to calculate the amount of per pupil funding received by each school district within the state. Attendance is tantamount to having a good count, so school districts often?offer incentives to encourage students to attend. Absences on count days must be verified individually in order to include an absent student in the final tally.
This year, the incentive offered by DPS was two free vouchers for the Monster Jam Truck Rally scheduled at Ford Field for February 28. Each voucher was supposed to be able to be traded for one ticket to the event worth $20-$25. Unfortunately, hours?prior to?the event, the marquee in front of Ford Field had the following message posted,
?DPS voucher exchange is no longer available.?
Parent Barbara Thomas was very disappointed, explaining that children don’t understand the ‘voucher’ concept,
?These are children that you’re giving free passes to. They look at those as tickets. That’s like the biggest letdown, ever?
Thomas?is very correct. As a parent myself, I can honestly state that if my child were handed free vouchers, she would come home and tell me that we had free tickets. She wouldn’t expect to be turned away at the door of the event. She would be heartbroken and probably cry and feel betrayed. She would feel betrayed by ME, not the school district.
In a statement to Detroit’s 7 Action News, Feld Motor Sports spokesperson, Don Tanner, said,
?From the program’s inception, it has been communicated that tickets were available on a first-come, first-served basis, in addition to other standard restrictions.?
There is no record available on how many, if any, of the vouchers were able to actually be?redeemed for tickets, or if the whole program was just a scam from the outset. When a parent takes a child out expecting a fun evening of?watching Monster Trucks smash things and drive over obstacles, only to find out they can’t get in, it is disappointing to the child, the parent, and certainly a not so happy-friendly experience for anyone. If this photo is any indication, there were plenty of seats available for the students of DPS.
DPS has vowed to evaluate incentive programs more thoroughly in the future, but that doesn’t help the students who had their hearts broken last night. From Feld Motor Sports? They have apologized for the ‘inconvenience’ which is no consolation at all.
