By Keighla Schmidt, Staff Writer

Citing the desire to demand a more rigorous course load during the final year of high school, Burnsville High School Principal Dave Helke is making some scheduling changes.

He told members of the Burnsville-Eagan-Savage School Board June 18 that some juniors create senior-year schedules that are more relaxed and are “coasting” through. The solution: create a schedule that would eliminate a senior tradition – a lunch break bookended by off-campus study hall periods which gave some students a 90-minute break in their school day.

“We need to maximize the most of their time,” he said. “We want them to look at their senior year as a way to maximize their educational experience.”

Gene Roczniak, the principal at the Senior Campus, said that when he was creating student schedules he felt justice wasn’t being done in terms of academic potential.

“We were giving them the atmosphere of a community college, but not the rigor of a community college,” he said after the School Board meeting. “With this they’ll have more opportunities because their schedule is open. Because we’re giving them one extra hour it allows us to give them opportunities for classes they wanted.”

Although the changes are still in the planning stages will be effective this fall, Roczniak said.

Way it was

Prior to this change, seniors were required to have three classes at the main campus and three at the senior campus, with the option to take another class at either campus in place of a study hall. Some students had parental permission to spend their study hall off campus and often scheduled their days so the study hall fell before or after the lunch period.

Helke said he would like to see a shift where seniors have three classes at one location and four at the other with a shorter 40-minute lunch break in between.

Roczniak said the shift would require four classes in the morning at one location and three in the afternoon at the other location. One of those courses could still be a study hall, but it will be taken on campus.

Additionally, Roczniak said he is looking to eliminate the off-campus study hall option. On a case-by-case basis, study halls may be approved to be taken off campus if it’s scheduled at the start or end of the school day.

“It will give them an extra hour (each day) to get acclimated to post-secondary life,” he said. “Some may think something is getting taken from them, but in actuality, they’re getting more opportunities.”

Student reaction

2010 Senior Class Officer Shannon Clifford said many of her classmates view the change as something being swiped out from under them.

“I think (the extra-long lunch) was something everyone looked forward to,” she said. “Many see it as something being taken away.”

To counter that feeling of loss, Clifford said the officers plan to work with Roczniak at the Senior Campus to replace the study-hall freedom. What the replacements will be, she said, has not been determined.

After the school board meeting, Helke elaborated: “It’s a very noticeable change, but really the vision moving forward is to maximize instruction time … It’s a small institutional change we’re doing but part of an overall effort over the next couple of years for all learners to have post-secondary success.”

For students needing to make up credits one of the hours can be spent in a computer lab to catch up on work.

Clifford said when she was first alerted to the changes, she was “disappointed,” but it won’t impact her schedule as the fourth-hour period is dedicated to duties as a senior class officer. Other students in the same boat include members of some large musical ensembles, like band or choir, or Student Council.

Seniors will have three options for lunch; the cafeteria at BHS, getting the mid-day meal in transit off-campus, or new an option that is being developed at the Senior Campus for a “grab-and-go” food service, which would serve items typically found at a coffee shop.

The change will not apply to juniors and sophomores, as they do not have the same open lunch privileges as seniors and eat at the main campus.

Board members reacted positively to Helke’s plans.

“Kudos,” Board Member Ron Hill said. “Seniors lost so much time.”

In addition to more instruction time, Board Member Nancy Banyard said she sees other potential benefits. “From a safety standpoint alone, this is huge,” she said.

An additional factor in a desire to change the schedule was the need prepare for the second year (2010-11) at Envision Academy Performing Arts Magnet School, when seniors are able to enroll.

Helke said the seniors of Envision should be afforded the opportunity to take classes at the senior campus and to be viable, the three schedules need to coincide.

Keighla Schmidt can be reached at kschmidt@swpub.com