After last year’s several schedule changes, it seems like this new schedule is here to stay. The school day starts with first period at 7:30 a.m., with five minutes at the end of first period dedicated to morning announcements, then the day ends at 2:30, ten minutes before it did in prior years. 

Schedule changes not only affected students, but were designed to help teachers too. 

Administrator Mr. John Zuk, playing a crucial part of the schedule changes, said, “The changes will allow for teachers to have additional time after students leave to collaborate on curriculums including assessments and lesson planning, as well as time to work on building and district initiatives.”

German teacher Mrs. Lynn Zerfass commented on the planning. She said, “I wish the planning time was more than 25 minutes, from 2:30 to 1:55. It feels very rushed. I like what we did last year, with the half hour at the end of day for HATS for kids to get help when we needed and we had more time.”

For the most part, Mrs. Zerfass likes the changes. 

“I like how we don’t have homeroom. The five minute period of time didn’t really add anything to the day. It gives kids the opportunity to just get to class and more freedom. However, it can be harder because kids and teachers are arriving at the same time, which makes it difficult to get into the parking lot.”

Even so, teachers had some benefits of homeroom that are now gone. 

Mrs. Zerfass said, “I miss having my homeroom and HATS being the same kids. It was fun to see them grow over the years.”

When considering a schedule change, it is important to observe factors that rely on the schedule. 

“Bell schedule changes require looking at many factors, such as busing across the district, extracurriculars, and start and end times,” Mr. Zuk said.

While there are some benefits to the schedule, some students see some flaws, mainly feeling pressed on time. 

“I dislike how we have to allocate time at the end of first period for announcements. You start the day, and there is already a delay when the teacher has to take attendance. We should have announcements then so we don’t have to stop class early. For APs, we don’t really have that time,” junior Lance Hartman said. 

Senior Nathan Kephart said, “Getting out at 1:40 last year was really nice during the winter. I feel like I had a lot more time to do homework before work.”

Overall, students seem relatively happy with the changes.

Lance said, “It could definitely be worse but there’s not much to be fixed with the schedule. The only thing I would change is moving announcements to the beginning of first period.”

With all the alterations to the schedule last year, many are hoping for something to stick. For that to happen, the schedule would have to be a success. 

Mr. Zuk said, “I expect that there will be a review of the current schedule made during this school year and again at the end for the purposes of discussion on impact.”

Either way, this schedule is not to last forever. 

“There are several high schools that have changed or are researching a change to their start time. I know that our district was exploring this but do not know where it presently stands,” Mr. Zuk said.