Throughout this school year, La Salle students have adjusted to many changes involving class schedules, student life, and extracurriculars. 

Among these changes are 9 a.m. start times, Wednesday flex days where students complete asynchronous work, and Falcon Friday dress code being allowed throughout the entire week.

To gather students’ thoughts and opinions on which changes should remain for next school year and which should be altered, posters were hung in the library with post-it notes and pens nearby for students to write their ideas on. 

Many people had written notes advocating to keep the Wednesday flex day for next year’s schedule, including junior Tobias Schenk. “We just want the Wednesdays off,” he said. “It helps for extracurriculars and keeping up in school.”

Freshman Amanda Folsom had similar thoughts, saying that Wednesday flex days provide opportunities to manage both extracurriculars and school work, and help to avoid feeling “rushed” during the rest of the week, she said.

Flex Wednesdays can serve not only as catch-up days, but also rest days for students like sophomore Maddie Burns. “Coming back to school four days a week after being gone for a year, it’s been really overwhelming,” she said. “I think the flex Wednesdays are nice, just to have a day to collect yourself and you know, relax a little bit, but still get homework done.” 

Aside from the addition of the flex Wednesdays, one significant shift in the schedule has been 9 a.m. start times, compared to the 8 a.m. regular start time of previous years. Freshman Charlie Gattman said they like the later start time, as it has allowed them to “sleep in a little bit,” they said.

“I feel like… I’m less tired during the day because [school is] starting later, and that’s helping me focus a bit more, and I’m able to pay attention,” Gattman said. 

With the adjusted bell schedule this year, one thing that was taken away was the designated 15-minute break around mid-morning on 8 a.m. start days. Schenk said he hopes these breaks will be reimplemented next year. “Even if [school] starts at normal time, like back at eight o’clock, it’d be nice to incorporate the [breaks] again,” he said. 

The adjusted schedule, where there are no official late start days, also shifted Falcon flex times to after classes on Tuesdays and Fridays, which means that students can leave campus or meet with teachers earlier on these days than in previous years. For freshman Jasmine McIntosh, removing late starts and having classes end earlier some days is something she hopes stays in the schedule, because “I think time after school is really helpful,” she said. 

Another topic of discussion for next year has been dress code. Falcon Friday dress code (which includes sweatpants, leggings, and athletic shorts) has been allowed every day this year, and some students, such as Burns, feel that this change should be carried over into next year. 

“We’re just kids, you know, we should be able to express ourselves the way we want to express ourselves,” she said. “And if that’s just wearing more casual clothing to school, I think that’s fair.”

In addition to the Falcon Friday dress code, Burns said she would like a “more lenient” dress code, “especially in warmer weather,” she said. “I feel like it’s very strict, and once it gets hot outside, not being able to wear shorts [and tank tops] that are what we feel comfortable in isn’t really fair, and I feel like it can be kind of targeted towards girls.”

Burns said she doesn’t think everyone agrees with the current dress code, and that student opinions are important for potential change. “If we can get kids from the school to put their input in, I think that’s a good thing,” she said.