Megaphone
C ATHEDRAL H IGH S CHOOL - A H OLY C ROSS S CHOOL - SEPT. 2, 2016 - V OLUME 96, I SSUE 1 - 5225 E. 56 TH S TREET I NDIANAPOLIS , IN 46226
New schedule creates mixed reactions; students optimistic for the future BY SYDNEY HUTCHINSON
He said to expect more of this time for seniors, juniors and probably sophomores, because the freshmen have a new course, called a gateway course, “which will be a commitment they have and that older students won’t have.” Along with these changes come a wide array of opinions. As a freshman new to the school, Jacob Overstreet remarked that at least during the first week of school, he found the schedule somewhat confusing. “I mean, I missed Algebra (I on Aug. 16), and that was pretty great. The only problem with (the new schedule) is later on in the school year, I might think (I don’t have algebra, but I just forget to do my homework),” Overstreet said. More insight to what the sophomores think about the different schedule comes from Class of 2019 members Emma Faulkner and Jack Haas. Faulkner said she likes the schedule and also agrees with Overstreet when she said, “It’s just really confusing to go through each of the changing days.”
With two seven-day cycles down and many more to go, both students and teachers continue to adjust to the new schedule. The classes that every student attends are determined by an alphabetical rotation. The cycle starts, after the alpha period, with an A class. Classes end with a G period, because there are seven letter periods. These letters are based off of the seven-day schedule. This differs from the nine-period schedule that was in place last year. Lunches are now during class blocks and flex periods are a new idea on their own. The concept of a block schedule is one never seen here. Chief Academic Officer Mr. Matt McCutcheon is the primary force behind this year’s schedule. He, along with a group of teachers and administrators, spent last year examining data and reviewing options for this school. McCutcheon said, “At this stage, where I sit, I see a lot of good things happening.” McCutcheon is also aware he isn’t exposed to everything, “I don’t hear everything, but from what I’ve heard, it has all been good feedback.” Students continue to adjust to the new schedule, but for the freshmen who never knew any high school schedule other than the current one, they experienced no transitional adjustment. McCutcheon said, “I do think it will take faculty a little longer to adjust to the rotating aspect to (the new schedule).” Shortened lunch periods Due in large part to lunch periods being reduced from 45 to 30 minutes this year, lunch has been a concern during the first few weeks. “Many (administrators) have been out and about during lunch quite a bit to see just how lunch has been playing out. The time frames, faculty responsibility, how it is working out with resource, all those things, to me, are still in question.” McCutcheon says lunch might be one of the few aspects of the new schedule that will require an adjustment as the school year progresses. The newest in the schedule to students and staff alike are flex periods. McCutcheon said, “We intentionally started this year, for lack of better phrasing, programing a lot of those flex spots with a variety of things.” While not all flex periods will be used throughout the course of the year, he said that “some of these things we needed to do, like the welcome assembly (and) welcome Masses, and we do plan
In the first floor of Kelly Hall on Day 4 on Aug. 14, students move from Period B to Period C and do so without the benefit of bells ringing. Mr. Matt McCutcheon, chief academic officer, said students have adjusted well to the new schedule and said administrators will continue to look for ways to improve the new schedule for students. Photo by Evan Schoettle
on having those throughout the year.” “One of the things that is important to me and others is that we do make sure we do have enough consistent available time for students,” McCutcheon said.
Less than impressed However, Haas said he feels he is on the other end of the spectrum. “I think it’s a big change for Cathedral, and personally, I’m not a fan of it.” Juniors this year will get the chance to have two years of the old schedule and two years of the new schedule. Junior Caige Harris agrees with Haas. He said, “I don’t like the schedule because it’s confusing and I never know where I’m going.” Junior Wayne Radford said, “I disagree with Caige. I think the new schedule is rather nice so far. It’s kind of cool to have different lunches. I enjoy it, and I think it will actually turn out to be OK.” For the seniors, they will experience only one year of the new schedule. Senior Joseph James explained why he is not a fan. “On the first day of school, I got an unexcused tardy because I went to the wrong class by accident. My teacher wasn’t very lenient on giving me an excuse,” he said. Senior Katy Borland expressed a different point of view, as she said she likes the schedule for the most part, but “the lunches aren’t very fun.” Math teacher Mrs. Christine Koers said that the new schedule has been interesting. “It’s been fun, so we’ll just have to see how it plays out. There have been some bumps in the road, but so far, so good.” An editorial about this topic appears on Page 15.
“I think the new schedule is rather nice so far. It’s kind of cool to have different lunches. I enjoy it, and I think it will actually turn out to be OK.”
Junior Wayne Radford