Each week, the Lasso Editorial Board will comment on an issue that is relevant to the students at George Mason High School. We strive to present a student-oriented opinion about topics big and small that matter to all of Mustang Nation.
As everyone knows, the changes for the 2016-2017 school year have come with its fair share of groans and complaints. The GM staff has significantly shifted; the lunch and bus schedules are at different times; absence policies have been reinforced and after four weeks of school, the time has come to assess yet another change: short Wednesdays.
Last year, short Wednesdays were bi-monthly days in which classes were shortened and school was released at 1:45 p.m, thus giving teachers and staff the opportunity to meet for faculty meetings. This year, short Wednesdays only occur only once a month with school letting out at 12:20 p.m.
Not bad, right?
Wednesday morning started off the same as always: waking up, brushing your teeth, and dressing for school. The awkward part came when preparing a container of leftovers and realizing oh wait, it’s a short Wednesday, meaning that those leftovers would be eaten at 10:30 a.m instead of 12:30 p.m.
This is the least of our concerns though. In fact, we don’t have any concerns.
That’s right, The Lasso is not complaining.
Classes are shorter and school lets out just in time to catch lunch with friends or nap all day.
That doesn’t mean the day didn’t feel unusual though; every class was 50 minutes long, half of what they regularly are, and there was no Mustang Block. While this may seem like the end of the world to those who use this thirty minute free block to crunch their homework for the next block, we find that it is unnecessary considering how fast the school day is designed to be.
Classes were a little hectic with less time than normal, however the actual speed and content of most classes were not an issue. In fact, The Lasso Editorial Board salute staff and administration for handling the schedule change so well and acknowledge them for adjusting classes to fit the new given times.
Change is never an easy thing to deal with… especially at Mason. It usually comes with a backhand of noise and discontent, so for a change this loud to have such a quiet reaction among students is a great change in itself and serves as a lesson to embrace change.
