Parents end weeklong school furlough sit-in

HONOLULU — Parents who have been protesting Hawaii's shortest-in-the-nation school year have ended a sit-in that lasted several days at Gov. Linda Lingle's office.

Their decision came Wednesday night after state sheriff's deputies arrested two more protesters, raising the total to four. The protesters and their supporters are angry over school furloughs that have cut 17 days off the current school year, giving the state the shortest instructional calendar in the country.

Another 17 furlough days are planned for next school year.

The parents and other adults camped in the office lobby for five of the last eight days, hoping to prod the governor into taking action to end the furloughs. Earlier Wednesday, Lingle and the parents fired verbal barbs at each other.

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