By Rebecca Beilinson

All of PHS is talking about this year’s new schedules. The Phoenix talked to Mrs. Rodrigue to hear her take on how the new system is going. She said she was “pleasantly surprised” by the way it has been working out. She said the school experienced less confusion and fewer problems than she had anticipated, and that overall PHS had transitioned smoothly into the new schedule.

One of the biggest changes in the schedule was shortened thirty-minute lunches. Although many students dislike the shorter time and some have complained that lunch blocks are overcrowded, Mrs. Rodrigue said she stopped in at many lunch periods in the first week and saw no significant problems. “There weren’t any lunch lines that lasted over about twelve minutes; I think the longest was maybe fifteen minutes,” she said. “Everyone has had plenty of time to eat.”

Another big change was the staggered passing times. Students and teachers alike agree that the halls are less crowded and it is easier to reach classes during the new four minute breaks. Mrs. Rodrigue said she had some initial doubts about how the bells would work with such a schedule, but that she was happy to find that the bell system was designed to ring in different rooms at different times. She said that the new system has been working well.

As for the actual schedule, Mrs. Rodrigue said there have been no more problems getting people the classes they needed than there were in any other year. While some students are taking classes online because they can’t fit everything they want into their schedule, Mrs. Rodrigue pointed out that these students are the ones who go above and beyond average class requests to take many AP courses and high-level classes; she said these students would have scheduling troubles even without the new system. Mrs. Rodrigue estimated that only around five to ten students in the school have been unable to fit in every class they need, and that all of the problems were resolved by the end of the first week at school.

Along with the new schedule came new homerooms. There are now two teachers per homeroom (each of which has a little less than twice as many students as last year’s homerooms), which Mrs. Rodrigue said allows for teachers to work more closely with students. This year, there will periodically be long advisories with various events and activities, which will allow students to form better relationships with each other and their teachers.

Although Mrs. Rodrigue said she was very happy with the new schedule, she pointed out a few other changes she’d like to see at PHS. High on her list is adding more elective options. But for now, she is confident that the new schedule and new year will be successful.