Students and Staff Discuss New Advisory Schedule

One of the biggest changes at GHS this year is the new daily schedule. Instead of having one schedule everyone follows, the school administration decided to have two different schedules. On Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, classes are shortened to fit an extra 30-minute Advisory period in, and on Tuesday and Thursday, classes are slightly longer, because there is no Advisory.

This change was made early last summer, and the school district sent out a learning plan update to all parents detailing the new schedules the high school would be following. The update included detailed information about how the district came to the decision of adding the extra Advisory class and how it would positively impact the students and staff.

“These proposed updates to the Greendale High School learning plan are being made so staff can maximize the impact of daily instructional time and to plan for the ongoing support for students’ academic success and social and emotional well-being,” the report stated. “Over 86 percent of high school staff support the creation of an Advisory period, which would allow the high school the time and space to create and implement a systematic approach to support student academics and to enrich student experience through activities and experiences that will foster resiliency, engagement, and social emotional wellness.”

Part of the reason the district decided to add the extra Advisory classes was because of the discontinuation of the Resource period, which ran from 7:15am to 7:45am. The administration and school board analyzed the data and realized that Resource was not academically beneficial to the students and had virtually no impact on their grade. 

Adminators and teachers are hoping this extra Advisory class will change that. “I think all of the skills of resource and ACP are embedded into Advisory.  Most students have study skills classes so they can use that time to catch up on school work,” Advisory and special education teacher Jennifer Henze said. “Advisory is a way to build positive staff/student/peer interactions and grow as a student and young adult while setting goals and working together.”

So far it’s unknown if Advisory is beneficial to students but there are multiple skills students can develop in Advisory that can greatly help them in the future, “Any chance to build community will increase empathy, school climate, communication, and engagement in our school,” Principal Steve Lodes said.

Although, administration and staff think Advisory can be a great help, some students have mixed opinions. Some students feel that Advisory is a nice time to relax and allow some downtime, while creating bonds with other students.

“I met a lot of friends that I’m super close with now and it’s also a nice break from classes,” senior Carly Fritsch said.

Other students feel that certain things can be done to improve the class and communication between students. 

”Overall I like Advisory. I like circle questions but branching out to team activities like challenges, trivia, and games would be more beneficial,” junior Elle Pierzchalski said. “This way the bonding would be more genuine and less forced. I appreciate Advisory but I can see many ways how it could be better.”

Other students dislike the class entirely and feel that the class shouldn’t be offered at the school.

“I honestly think it’s a waste of time. I feel like what they teach in Advisory we all know and they don’t have to go over it in high school,” freshman Brynn Hegedus said.

Each Advisory class is meant to focus on one particular thing, depending on what day it is. On Monday it is goal setting, on Wednesday it is academic and career planning, and on Friday it is Community-building activities-or circles.

Students have expressed different opinions on how these set days affect them and how they feel it can help their future, “Although I don’t think it’s career planning and goal setting is impactful, I do still enjoy community building,” Pierzchalski said. “I just wish it was less formal. I want to get to know people without being confined to circle questions.”

Another reason Greendale has decided to add the extra Advisory class was because of some troubling data about students in the district they received from surveys given to parents.

“Greendale Schools has seen an increased rate of anxiety and depression on the statewide Youth Risk Behavior Survey (YRBS),” the report said. “On the 2018 survey, 20 percent of high school students and 30 percent of middle school students in Greendale reported feeling so sad or hopeless almost everyday for two weeks or more in a row causing them to stop doing some usual activities. In addition, 40 percent of high school students and 56 percent of middle school students in Greendale reported having significant problems with feeling very anxious, nervous, tense, scared, or like something bad was going to happen.”

Greendale administration and teachers hope this new Advisory schedule will create a positive environment for students, and hopefully give them a trusted adult to speak to.

“It’s still very early, but we intend to use student and staff surveys to learn more along the way. So far, we have been able to use Advisory for a variety of important things: student communication, community building, testing, class meetings, and goal setting,” Lodes said.