Last school year was difficult for many and showed our community here at BHS had much to improve on. In response, the school’s administration did what they could to try and make this year as easy and as best organized as they could for all. This primarily revealed itself in the form of a new lunch schedule, staggered release, a new parking system, and the return of Wednesday Flex days.
The new lunch schedule has overall improved on last year greatly. There are no longer extensive lunch line rushes or an overwhelming number of students in the halls at one time. The cafeteria staff has ample time to keep the food stocked, providing everyone with equal options, unlike last year, when it was more often first come, first serve. However, the new lunch system is not foolproof. Clubs and extracurriculars can no longer take place in this period, resulting in students having a more difficult time navigating their morning flex periods. The common dilemma is whether they should compromise their valuable study time and be involved in as much as possible, or reign in their club participation. The other problem is that some students have different lunches on different days, resulting in a complicated eating schedule that confuses the body. For this reason, many agree last year’s schedule - with one lunch - while chaotic at times, was better at taking all students’ needs into consideration.
Another major change was the implementation of the staggered release schedule at the end of the day. While excellent in concept, as it favors the upperclassmen and gives them advanced privileges, it often proves ineffective in practice. Seniors are released first, and yet a number of students from other grades find their way out of the double doors at the same time. It also can be an inconvenience for students who need to get to work or have familial responsibilities, as being at school for an extra ten minutes unnecessarily can prove a hardship. For this reason, it’s understandable some feel this type of release is something that may be better off left behind in this school year.
Potentially the most impactful change this year was in the school’s parking situation. The sale of passes allowed for a more organized parking lot with more accountability for those parking improperly. This system greatly benefits the seniors, as they got first choice at parking spots and now have the opportunity to park in better spots. This aspect is excellent, as even underclassmen can acknowledge that seniors have earned it, and they look forward to someday also having this opportunity. Overall, most agree the new system is excellent. However, the most glaring flaw is what occurs when someone parks in another student’s spot. In reality, the victim of the parking offense is supposed to park in dirt and report the violation to the office; however this seems unfair to them. The only amendment that seems warranted is to allow these students to park in the visitor lot until the problem is dealt with, so that they do not have extra responsibilities due to something so far out of their control.
Finally, Targeted Flex days have returned. These truly seem beneficial to the student body, providing opportunities to catch up on work and seek extra help when necessary. However, the junior class often loses out on extra learning opportunities when these days are compromised by requirements such as mandated standardized tests. These days could be improved upon by scheduling grade-wide events on other days, to allow all to take advantage of this time. Other than that, Flex provides amazing opportunities to those who use them well.
While not all of the changes this year have been perfect, it is awesome to see the administration going out of their way to make life here at BHS better for everyone in the community.