by Birk Buchen
Welcome to the 2018-19 school year at IHS! For some of us, this marks a big step in our final year at Irvington. For others, it may mark the end of the class schedule as they know it.
As many of you already know, these past two years, the administration and other members of faculty have begun the process of planning and developing a new master schedule model. The scheduling committee is made up of David Cohen, Matt Samuelson and a team of faculty members.
The administration recently confirmed a parent meeting to be held on December 11th with an RSVP link to discuss the proposed new master schedule for the 2019-20 school year.
In a small town, word spreads quick, both fact and rumor, and rumors abound still about the negative impact of the schedule.
Some of the concerns caused Katy McLaughlin, a Irvington sophomore, to create an online petition on Change.org, entitled, “Save our Electives, Lunch, and Individuality,” that has since gone viral, within the bounds of Irvington at least. The petition has reached their 500 signature goal and is now seeking 1,000 signatures.
“I decided to take a stand because I truly care about my electives,” said McLaughlin. “I personally love the Latin and Greek programs, and after learning about the schedule, I was concerned. And, after talking to my peers and adults as well, I found that others were concerned too, so I figured why not say something about it. It’s my education.”
The petition states: “We hope to open a dialogue with the administration, to let the students have input on the schedule. We would like to try to solve our major issues with the current plan while still accomplishing the goals of the schedule (reducing stress and improving education).”
Back in September of 2017, parents joined in on the process in a meeting led by Principal Cohen that provided a PowerPoint presentation on the potential new schedule. Now a year later, some in the community are raising concerns over the planned implementation of a new master schedule.
During the Q&A portion of a school board meeting on Oct. 23rd, 2018, three parents voiced their concerns over the lack of communication regarding the schedule roll out.
One unidentified parent spoke out, “Principal Cohen needs to provide more information on the master schedule.” The same parent then quoted middle school principal David Sottile saying that the “[scheduling committee] are in the final stages” and that “the committee feels they have received valuable information.” The parent believed that a decision had already been made about the implementation of the schedule without a proper discussion with parents.
Initially the administration scheduled a meeting for May 10th, 2018, “to share information,” but it had to be cancelled due to “calendar conflicts.” One unidentified parent asked, if there was a meeting in the works for this October to “get on it” and to also fix the information displayed on the new website.
Another unidentified parent voiced their confusion with the roll out. “We paid money for people [Dr. Michael Rettig] to consult and plan. This is the single most important issue within my tenure and with my children being high schoolers.”
Dr. Rettig, a consultant on school scheduling issues in 43 states with over 1,000 schools nationally and internationally, founded School Scheduling Associates. He was hired by the Irvington School District to review the current model, as well as give sound advice on the idea of a new master schedule.
Also at the October 23rd meeting, Dr. Kristopher Harrison, the district superintendent, said, “We acknowledge the gap in communication and tomorrow [Oct 24] parents should receive an email regarding a follow up with information.”
He continued, “There has been a lot of important work behind the scenes. We are going to get it back on track and there will be opportunity for public presentation, questions, and student engagement.”
Dr. Harrison believes there is ample opportunity for dialogue and professional development.
“When [Principal] Cohen and staff present, it will be much more reassuring and the community will be able to learn more.” Nevertheless, he did not want to “steal Cohen’s words” as he trusts the opportunity will come and it will be informative.
Ms. Dela Lenz, an Irvington parent who identified herself on the video of the meeting, said, “It has been more of a sales pitch to the community.” She added that, “New York state regulations require shared decision making.” She also had not seen any form of community engagement, but more of “this should be done this way” attitude.
Ms. Lenz also had concerns for the designated lunch period in the new schedule.
“Kids eating on the floor is not a solution,” she said. “My kids will not eat on floor. It is disgusting and not appropriate coming from administration.”
Ms. Donna Devaney, a physical education teacher and a member of the scheduling committee, addressed some issues recently in an interview with The Paw Print.
“The committee has met seven times last year with four full-day and three half-day scheduling meetings.”
Devaney said that the committee reviewed important considerations for the new schedule early in the process. They ranked and compared areas of concerns that were important to the culture and teachers and best for an “educational setting.” Devaney believes that students and teachers have been pulled in different directions with the current schedule.
When asked about the push back from the student body and parents, Devaney noted that the rumors are “factually incorrect,” adding that “courses will not be pulled, course offerings will not change.”
Additionally, Devaney commented that the one period lunch, “will discourage students from leaving campus.” However, when I mentioned that some students and parents were worried about having to eat on the floor, she was unaware of these rumors and hesitant on its legitimacy.
Devaney, one of two members in her department that participates in schedule planning, believes that the date of the official roll out of the schedule is yet to be determined. However, she does believe in the possibility of 2019-2020 implementation.
In a short interview due to the various time limitations of the school day and his position, Principal Cohen spoke briefly about the developing tension and misunderstandings.
“We have not yet shared a proposed plan. We are on our way to finalizing the date on a parent meeting in early December which will provide a forum to field questions.”
Cohen additionally noted that he believes the number of class periods in a day at the high school is a problem that needs to be addressed.
“The 10-period system is extreme for any school,” he said.
When asked about the potential of losing electives in the new schedule, Cohen said that he “loves offerings” but it seems that they have “crossed a tipping point and this could present as a challenge for students.”
In an email sent out on October 26th, Cohen said, “In early December, we will be hosting a parent information meeting to share our process in greater detail and the resulting proposed master schedule.”
He added, “Our goal is to be transparent, inclusive and comprehensive to best ensure that the new master schedule supports success for the collective school community, as well as each and every student.”
