A New Schedule at St. Agnes

As students everywhere begin to fill their schools’ hallowed halls, they encounter a year full of new teachers, classes and responsibilities. At St. Agnes, however, students are experiencing an additional change: a new schedule. At the end of last year, the decision was made to design and implement a new schedule that would alleviate stress and reduce students’ homework loads.

The new schedule is best summarized as a rotating block schedule, with five hour-long classes occurring each day and each student taking a total of eight classes per semester. Other changes include the introduction of a daily hour-long period of free time, during which clubs can host meetings or students can catch up on homework. Also added is an eighth class period that functions as part of the rotating schedule, allowing students to meet with their college counselors.

St. Agnes senior Megan Fisher says the main advantage of the new schedule is an increased amount of free time, allowing her to finish homework at school and even work on college apps. She says, “It’s weird having free time at St. Agnes because for the past three years it’s felt like I’ve been working nonstop and now I don’t know what to do with all of this extra time.” The main downside Fisher sees in the schedule is a shorter lunch, saying “I use lunch to catch up with all of my friends, and now we can barely have a conversation before it is time to go to the next class.”

This new schedule will hopefully help St. Agnes students stress less and learn to relax a little.