BY ANA PIROSCA & FALYN KELLEY
The school is under debate over a new policy that would affect the structure of MHS. “Should the school implement an ‘open campus’ policy?”
This question was given to many homerooms among grades 9-12, in a recent survey done by seniors Julia Parker and Adela Dzaferagic, supervised by Berenice Diaz, to find the opinions of students and teachers throughout the school.
An open campus means that students are not required to stay in school if they don’t have any classes. For example, if a student’s first class is a study, then they don’t have to come to school until their second class; if a student has long block study, they can go home until their next class. This policy is aimed towards seniors as an extension of senior privileges, though freshmen are hoping to get some freedom too.
Parker sums up the results saying, “Most students said yes, most teachers said no.”
Many adults worry about the consequences of letting the children have more freedom. “It’s a lot of risk for a school to take on, because [the school is] in charge of making sure [the students] are safe. If there was an open campus policy [the school] wouldn’t be able to promise that...” says guidance counselor, Heather Northrop. “[She doesn’t] know how that would look like if [the school] had that -- how would [the] staff who work here make sure that all students are safe at all times?” English teacher, Pasquale DiBenedetto, voices concerns about all students, considering that “this is a huge school and that’s a lot of students being out of campus,” so overall it might be hard to keep track of everyone. For now he believes it would be better to restrict the policy to only seniors, however “if [the school] gradually [releases] it, maybe it would work.” Richard Du follows pursuit in ideas. “There are a lot of irresponsible people so I don’t think, towards the underclassmen, it might really apply so well. It would be better for upperclassmen to have that opportunity… that role is more appropriate for them.”
Alongside this, some people worry that students might not be responsible and just leave for the rest of school day, missing class or even spending too much money during lunch. Despite this, people believe that there might also be some benefits in this.
Being able to go outside might benefit some students’ education. “Everybody learns differently, and not everybody can reach their maximum amount of potential in school environments. People might work better in the library or work better at home,” says senior Richard Du. Some people simply need to be able to go outside or take breaks in order to be able to complete their tasks productively.
“It would relieve stress,” says senior Griffin Hughes, “and probably create some more motivational work since [students] don’t feel as pinned to stay inside school.” Especially considering those who want to do well, that would use the freedom to their benefit, and stay on top of their game. “[There are] two groups of people: the ones who care and the ones who don’t, and that’s not changing. If someone wants to achieve in school, they will achieve in school regardless of [the policy].”
Thus far, every student and teacher said there needs to be some rules in order to be able to have open campus, and not everyone should be eligible. If students have been responsible in the classroom and maintain good grades, and maintain good attendance then there shouldn’t be a problem. Another unanimous agreement held the belief that freshmen are not yet to be trusted with an open campus structured school day, though most people don’t mind having an open campus for upperclassmen.
“Getting some fresh air is beneficial to everybody,” says DiBenedetto, “[He likes] the idea of rewarding students that have done a good job in the classroom with an open campus. There’s a lot to consider when implementing a new privilege as this. Would you want an open campus? How would you spend your time? It’s up to you to decide.
