Last March, the Salesianum community left for spring break. Little did they know this was the last time they would experience the six period schedule they had become accustomed to. Major adjustments at Salesianum went beyond just social distancing and health checks. A complete overhaul to the calendar and school day welcome students back for this very different year. 

There were some glaring flaws and issues with the distance learning schedule that had been put in place when the school moved online in the spring of 2020. Faculty knew the school had to be open in some sense for the students to complete the school year. Following this shift, it was soon realized that eight classes were simply too much for students to keep up with a virtual setting.

The year would be broken down to 4 classes per semester with ten minute passing periods between classes. In addition, the school would start in hybrid mode where students would alternate between going to campus and attending school online.

Students across the board have expressed their mixed feelings about the new schedule. “It has overall been a lot easier to learn online with only having 4 classes”, said Aiden Pendergast, a junior at Sallies. Aiden also expressed new challenges with the schedule.“Having the same 4 classes everyday means back to back homework which is new for most students.”

The new schedule would also see 25% of students come in on Wednesdays to socially interact with one another either through House or Class activities. Two new periods before and after school would be added called Alpha and Omega. This would be a time where students could make up tests and book appointments to see teachers. 

“I am really enjoying the structure of this new schedule”, says Mr. Bryne, an Educational Support Teacher at Salesianum. “I believe it’s allowing the students to focus their efforts on academics while dealing with the challenges surrounding the pandemic.”

With the threat of the virus, changes were created to make it easy for new students to adapt to the schedule, while also giving students time and space for social distance while changing classes. Through the efforts of the faculty and students this new schedule is setting up this school year as one to be remembered forever.