At a staff meeting on Jan. 11, Kennedy teachers discussed an issue they noticed among the student body: skipping class by asking to use the restroom. They were fed up with students who decided to wander the hallways and hide in toilet stalls instead of participating in class. 

“Girls, they’ll go in [the restroom] and there will be four or five girls in the handicap stall. They go there and hang out,” Kennedy teacher Carl Barton stated.

To combat this situation, Kennedy implemented a new policy at the beginning of the second semester. Classrooms are now equipped with a sign-out sheet to record your name, the time you leave and the time you return. Each class also has one restroom and one hall pass, which students have to take to their destination and back.

The goal of this new system is to hold students accountable for their break time.

“This way, we know you have permission to leave the room rather than skipping class, so it’s a quick, easy identifier,” Barton explained.

Teachers’ unanimous decision to create passes has differing opinions across Kennedy.

“It’s pretty extra. We were doing fine without the passes,” sophomore Lucas Rottman stated.

“I don’t think passes are the solution.” He said. “If you’re going to roam the halls you’re going to find a way to do it.” 

Whereas Barton only expressed positives of the policy, “I think it’s awesome.”

Despite the debate, the new policy is most likely the new standard and will take time to adjust to.