In just two years, the drop schedule could be replaced by an entirely new one.

These schedule changes are being considered by Sherri Kulpa, assistant principal, and groups of teachers called the Time Study Group. They are currently gathering information from local and national high-achieving schools as well as teacher (and soon, teacher and student) input. Kulpa said in surveys given after each staff development half day, most teachers said they wished they had more time to work with other teachers to develop their teaching skills and plan lessons. According to Kulpa, the goal of these schedule changes is to provide that time for teachers, which would then, hopefully, lead to better student learning.

But as of now, there are a few main schedules being considered by Kulpa and the group of teachers. These decisions are in their early stages, so Kulpa said details could always change.

The first is called ‘Early Release.’ With this schedule, each class would be a couple minutes longer, ending the school day around 2:50 p.m. instead of 2:40 p.m. These extra minutes would add up, allowing students to have an early release day, possibly every week. This means on that one day, school could end around 1:40 p.m. Homeroom would also be split into two 30-minute periods, twice a week.

Emily Reider, sophomore, could be a senior when these schedules take effect. She favors the ‘Early Release’ schedule because of the extra time it could give her.

“In my opinion, the day goes faster with shorter classes, and [Early Release] keeps that,” Reider said. “And I would get that extra time to do homework.”

The second most popular choice among the Time Study Group is the ‘Modified Block’ schedule, Kulpa said, in which three days a week classes are the length of classes in our current schedule and two days a week classes block into 60-70 minute periods. But Kulpa said many teachers in the Time Study Group favor Early Release because of the extra time provided for everyone. Jack Knoll, freshman, agrees.

“It would be more interesting to have things different, like an early release one day a week and homeroom two days instead of the same things every day,” Knoll said. “It would be a little less everyday routine. It would shake things up a bit.”

Kulpa and the Time Study Group are also considering different ways to structure homeroom, including once a week, twice a week or even every day.

Kulpa created surveys to administer to students and parents to get input. The parent survey was released March 7 and the student survey March 8. Both can be found on the Kirkwood High School website under the ‘Links’ tab. Acceptance of these surveys closes April 5, and after that, the Time Study Group will begin taking the results into account. Still, according to Kulpa, it could be awhile before final decisions are made.

To take the student survey, click here:

To take the parent survey, click here: