Kelly Clarkson criticizes midday event at her children's school, teachers say 'then they better pay more'

NEW YORK CITY, NEW YORK: Kelly Clarkson, the singer-turned-talk show host and mother of two, recently opened up about her struggles with school events for her children. 

Despite her desire to attend every event, Clarkson revealed the challenge of balancing her busy work schedule with the demands of school activities, especially when she's not given advance notice. 

Her candid comments sparked a debate, with many parents and former teachers weighing in—some teachers expressing frustration over Clarkson's perspective on how school events are planned.

Kelly Clarkson expresses frustration about her children’s school events on weekdays

Kelly Clarkson recently shared her frustration with school events during an appearance on the 'Not Gonna Lie' podcast with Kylie Kelce. 

In the March 27 episode, Clarkson opened up about her issues with her children's schools scheduling parent events in the middle of the workday. She bluntly asked Kelce, "Why do schools have things in the middle of the f***ing day?" 

The talk show host went on to rant about the challenge of attending her children’s school events that are held during business hours.

"I don’t know when the school systems thought it would be a good plan for families and their emotional stability to start having performances at 10 a.m. during the week,” she said.

Clarkson explained that the lack of advance notice makes it even harder to juggle work responsibilities with her parenting duties, as per BuzzFeed.

"This just in: A lot of us work!  And surprising you with it! Not giving you an advance, so you can at least tell your work, ‘Hey, I’m gonna need this morning off,’" she said, adding that many jobs wouldn’t even allow that request.

She also touched on the emotional toll it takes when parents can’t attend these events, joking, “Our kids don’t understand, and we just look like assholes when we’re not there."

Laughing, she quipped, "Then they go, ‘Why was this mom there?’ And then you have to say, ‘Because that kid got a better mom,’”

It's worth noting that Kelce, the podcast host, is also a mother of three and will soon to be a mother of four.

Clarkson kept her look casual for the podcast, sporting a makeup-free face, a baseball cap, and a Dr Quinn, Medicine Woman sweatshirt. 

Kelly Clarkson’s stance on school day events divides the internet

Kelly Clarkson's comments on Kylie Kelce's podcast have sparked a major divide on social media, with many teachers and parents sharing their differing perspectives.

A user on Instagram shared, "Former teacher and now a mom, I 100% understand this and where parents come from. However, as a former teacher, no teacher wants to have to stay after school when they’re not getting paid for it to host a kids performance. If schools would pay teachers better then this wouldn’t be a problem." 

Another commented, "So…the teachers are paid contract hours. And while they love your children, they don’t want to work for free. That’s what asking them to do evening work is."

One individual, who is a music teacher, remarked, "Music teacher here. I don’t get paid to be at school at night. Our performances are at 1:30 pm. If they want them at night then they better pay me more." 

Another social media user said, "As a teacher and a mom... Just take the time off, girl! Teachers shouldn't have to stay after work unpaid any more than you have to take off." 

One teacher explained, "I completely agree from a parent perspective, but from a teacher— schools started having day performances so that every kid could participate and no one would be left out because they can’t get a ride to the performance. A day performance ensures that all kids can participate and takes a little bit of the load off of a teacher." 

A mother commented from her perspective, "Everything about the school schedule doesn’t really accommodate working parents. And then when they can’t attend things or align with traditional pick-up times, they are seen as a ‘bad parent.’ And then if you choose to stay at home to avoid those obstacles, you’re seen as lazy and not career-motivated. So fun being a mom!" 

Someone else said, "As a working mom, Yes!"

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