The early release form needed to be filled out by seniors wishing to not have a fourth. Students must give a reason for requesting the release. (Photo courtesy of Rachel Fearn).
Senior year is the time for taking “easy” classes, graduating, and having a short schedule. Sometimes students either drop their first or fourth period in order to sleep in or work longer hours.
Many students drop their fourth period in order to work an earlier shift or participate in after school activities.
Amanda Ray is one senior whose schedule is not about naps and 40 minutes of extra homework. “I dropped my fourth period, so I could add more swim practice to my schedule as it leads up to Olympic tryouts. It’s inconvenient because A-lunch I get out of school too late and can’t make it to practice.”
Alyssa Bateman is a senior at LRHS who currently has A-lunch. She said, “It’s a problem because I have to babysit twice a week, starting at 12:30. I dropped my fourth, so I could be there in time but now I can’t because I get out 15 minutes later than the time I’m supposed to be there.”
Another major flaw of the A/B lunch schedule is for B lunch students with no fourth period are released from school at 12:03 rather than 12:45. Each group is in school for the same amount of time.
A-lunch students are required to have their lunch at 10:20 am, which is ridiculously early for lunch, and most lunch places are not open yet at that time. Julie Lawrence, a senior at LRHS, said, “It sucks because no student is really hungry at 10:30 in the morning. That with leaving then coming back is extremely inconvenient.”
Olivia Gagan, senior at LRHS, is another student with A-lunch. “I hate having to come back for third period. I dropped my fourth period because I work quite often in the afternoon until late at night, so I would love to be able to come home and do homework and have that extra 40 minutes that B-lunch kids have.”
Having A-lunch as a senior is inconvenient and often clashes with students’ schedules, as they dropped their fourth to get out at 12:00. Hopefully, the Leesville staff will arrange lunches for the next semester to make all senior-based classes to have B-lunch, so seniors don’t experience the same inconvenience that the 2020 class did.
