As of the first day of school, a new rule has been implemented, removing Junior privilege, which permits juniors to leave during Learning Commons. In previous years, upperclassmen were allowed to leave the building freely during learning commons, a privilege the junior class earned as they became more responsible and ready to take on a leading role in the school. However, recent rules have taken away this privilege, forcing juniors to stay in the crowded learning commons.
As upperclassmen, we are learning new responsibilities that prepare us for college, one of which is the ability to leave the building during learning commons. Taking away this freedom will directly diminish Junior’s time management, and decision making skills. When the staff addressed this new rule to the juniors, the only reason backing the decision was to improve the school’s attendance, and they very vaguely ran through other reasons. One of the vague reasons stated was going back to how the school was before Covid, where junior privileges did not exist. Over the past five years, so many aspects of the school have changed. It makes no sense to revert the rules back to their old ways. Additionally, this change has created an extremely overwhelming environment to work in the cafeteria since the library is strictly for students with a study hall. Working in a loud, packed cafeteria is not ideal by any means for any student.
As a student of Ramsey High School, I continue to feel ill-informed on the constantly changing aspects of our school, and hope in the future that we are given the whole truth behind these changes. Reimplementing junior privilege will not only improve learning commons for underclassmen, but also grow junior’s responsibility.
