2014 saw the block schedule. 2015 saw homeroom move and specialty classes created. What’s next?

Next year’s schedule for the upper school will have a fourth period community time and more A schedules.

Major features of the new schedule are that all classes will last an hour except for the lunch period, and there will never be three classes in a row.

“This is first period, break, second period. Even if you have third period, you only go to two periods in a row,” Dean of Students Mr. Tim Dougherty said. “Then lunch, then fourth period, then you have break and fifth period.”

Dougherty and Math Department Leader Ms. Lauren Lesch led the team of teachers and staff that engineered the changes. The team collected input from students and faculty, according to Lesch.

According to Dougherty, the changes are for better usage of open time and overall consistency throughout all schedules.

“This way, having gone through four periods, anything that has struck [students], confused them, might resonate with them later in the day and they have the opportunity to catch up with that teacher later in the afternoon,” Dougherty said.

The Blackfriar Chronicle reported in April that a team of teachers were working on revisions to the schedule for 2016-17, but Lesch and Dougherty were not yet ready to announce the new schedule in the previous issue.