Loudon County Schools Opt Against Showing Obama Speech

The Loudon County Public school district in Virginia is opting not to show President Obama's televised speech to the nation's schoolchildren on Tuesday and that decision is getting more attention than administrators would like.

Loudon County Public school officials say they don't necessarily disagree with President Obama, or his message, but they do take issue with his timing.

Board member John Stevens says that's the only factor in the decision not to show the speech, and to suggest political motives is just wrong.

Obama's speech falls on the first day of school for the county, and Stevens says principals and teachers didn't get enough advanced warning to adjust schedules for the speech on an already challenging day.

But plenty of people in the county are disappointed by the decision, including many students.

Haile Cano, a rising senior, doesn't buy that the first day of school will be too busy.

"They may say it's gonna take us away from learning, but we don't really do much on the first day of school anyway," Cano said.

Thirteen-year-old Hanna Klipstein agrees.

"I think we should hear it, just so we know what he has to say," she said.

There are parents who think its wrong for the President to be addressing schoolchildren directly in the first place, but none of them would grant an interview.

School officials say teachers will have the opportunity to watch the speech online with their classes later in the week.

Jonathan Wilson reports...