The new year started off with a new schedule including four minutes between classes and a 29-minute advisory period.

Some students have found it difficult to get to their classes with the 1-minute shortened passing time.

“It doesn’t make much of a difference,” senior Alan Snyder said. “[Although,] it does make it a little harder to make it to classes that are farther away.”

Some teachers feel that the lack of time between classes is a plus.

“There are a lot of people wasting time in the halls,” AP Macroeconomics and United States History teacher Joe Pearson said. “Generally, students can make it to class, but I understand it might be hard if you have to come from art, speech, drama or the technology wing and get to a classroom on the other side of the school. Having four minutes between classes cuts down on the students that seem to have too much time between classes. With a breakneck race to class there is no time for ‘extraneous’ activities.”

Many students have been scheduled for advisory period at 7:45 that lasts until 8:14 so they have time for tutorials during the school day. Qualified juniors and seniors are exempt from advisory period.

Those select students who do not have to attend advisory period, as well as the teachers who are present for advisory period, are finding the extra time beneficial and efficient.

“What we wanted to do was to give students additional time to make up tests and quizzes,” AP Human Geography teacher Charlotte Dockery said. “As with any first time deal, we will have to work out the kinks, but for the first round of this schedule, it is doing pretty good.”

This new schedule has been put into place to help the students as well as the teachers.

“The schedule was built into the day because many students have to ride the bus or have practice after school,” Dockery said. “It was hard for the teachers from one department to come together since they have different planning periods. In my department many of the teachers are coaches, so it is easier to have the new schedule so we can talk about how our classes are going and discuss if we have anything we need to work on.”

Many teachers feel that the new schedule is a good thing.

“It threatens juniors and seniors. After three tardies they have to come in at 7:45,” Pearson said. “There’s not a whole lot [of cons]. As a teacher who travels, it is a bit more difficult for me to help students in the morning during advisory period. Many students just come to me in the afternoon for help. This schedule isn’t perfect, but no schedule is.”

Pearson said he knows that there are things that must be sacrificed for this schedule to be in effect.

“In economics you learn that for everything you get, you have to pay something,” Pearson said. “For this I’ve had to give up my teaching speed. I’ve gone at a slightly slower pace than usual to accommodate the time. Like with anything in life, this schedule has trade-offs and costs, but I’m confident that Mrs. McDonald has evaluated this schedule and found that it is worth the resources, and feels that it will achieve good results.”