Cape Elizabeth High School students, who missed a day of class on Monday, March 24 because of vandalism to the school, will make up the lost day on Saturday, March 29.

In a letter to parents, principal Jeff Shedd said classes would be held from 7:30-11:30 a.m. to meet state requirements. "Saturday is a regular, though shortened, school day for our students, and the same attendance rules apply," Shedd said.

Buses, however, will run only for students with special needs. The cafeteria will have been set up for this weekend's Jazz Cabaret and will not be open or serving food.

"Clearly, we regret the need for this (Saturday) session," Shedd said in his letter. "I have received a number of well-meant suggestions that we simply lengthen a few school days over the next couple of weeks to make up for the lost class time from Monday. Unfortunately, that is not an option under state law."

Shedd said the Saturday attendance is not meant to be punitive, but to have students in school the number of days required by state law. "We made the judgment that we should just get this done and behind us as soon as possible. I think that's the right judgment," he said in his letter.

Ten Cape Elizabeth High School seniors have been suspended for their part in vandalizing the school Sunday night, March 23. The damage was severe enough to close school Monday. Officials are working out details for the suspended students to be "productively engaged" during the Saturday when other students are in session, Shedd said.

To help officials decide what further consequences and restitution the students will face, Shedd said he is compiling a detailed list of the actual damages, costs, disruptions and upset the vandalism has caused.

Officials are going through a "measured process" to define consequences, he said, taking into account the cost of damage and disruption, including the cost of the Saturday session, any comparable past events, the students' intent, the degree of punishment necessary to deter future incidents, the district's written rules and policies, and the students' past records.

"This is the process we follow whenever we handle disciplinary situations. It is, I believe, the process that you as community members would wish us to follow if your students were victims (all of our students except the 10 were) or perpetrators," Shedd said in his letter.

The cost of physical damage to the school ranges from $5,000-$10,000, in Shedd's estimation, he said.

"The consequences will be very serious, and there will not be any doubt in any students' minds in the future that the tradition of senior pranks has run its course and that simply calling something a 'senior prank' does not excuse vandalism," he said.

Other topics

His letter, sent by email March 26 to parents of High School students, addressed matters other than the recent vandalism. The email went on to explain details of upcoming testing for 11th-graders, and congratulated several groups of students for achievements in drama, science, and national scholarship competitions.