Today, three weeks into the school year, is the first day students can make level changes down (from Advanced Placement (AP) to honors, honors to regular, etc) in their schedule. Students who intend to undertake a schedule change must notify and receive permission from their teachers and parents. Only then can students sign a form and be granted a schedule change.  
Director of Counseling Betsy Jones said the policy, which was adopted last year, is to help “students develop some grit and resiliency to stick with their original choices.”
Jones said if students were obligated to stick with a class, in this case three weeks, they begin to know their teachers, class and expectations better. Thus, leading them to be less inclined to make a switch.
“We are simply asking students to stick with their original choice and have confidence that they chose correctly initially based on feedback from teachers and guardians not friends,” Jones said.
Junior Ceron James Moffatt is enrolled in AP US History and AP English Language and Composition. He plans to drop down a level but admits the late date swayed his decision.
“Personally, I don’t remember signing up for AP. And whenever I saw it on my schedule, I was like oh crap, that’s not what I want to do,” Moffatt said. “I do feel like a better student after being in an AP class for a little bit. It almost made me decide to stay in it, but I was just too strongly wanting to drop.”
Junior Leela Cullity considered dropping down from Chemistry Honors but changed her mind when she realized she’d have to wait for three weeks. Cullity, however, doesn’t believe it was because she had developed more grit or resiliency.
“I mean, maybe I’ll like it by Sept. 4, but I doubt I’ll change my mind that much,” Cullity said. “The only reason I won’t change is I don’t want to have to like talk to new people in a new class.”
While Jones anticipates students who want to level change, she said that not all changes are possible.
“We are committed to not overloading courses/teachers so sometimes changes cannot be made,” Jones said. “The online program will allow students to make a level change to an online course after Sept. 4 as well.”