In September, the Prefect Council tried to add an extra 25-minute break to the week, but FAC did not pass the proposal. The break was a good effort â it would have been a first step in breaking up the long week Upper School
students face with a dose of fun â but it shouldnât be the only effort.
There are many effective ways of achieving that end without changing the schedule. Itâs time to move forward, and here are some of the Chronicle staffâs suggestions:
1) Every few weeks when a grade has class meeting in Rugby, make the announcements â then let everyone out after 10 minutes. Itâs a perfect opportunity for a grade-wide activity, be it music in the quad and Coffee Bean or something a little further off the beaten track.
2) Speaking of music in the quadâ¦no one said it has to come from iTunes. Set up a student concert at break â the bands get free publicity, the students get free admission.
3) Remember the fall carnival at the end of seventh grade retreat? Cotton candy, snow cones, popcorn and contests â itâd be a great way to celebrate after school the day before Thanksgiving break begins, especially since there are no free periods in the days leading up to it.
4) Everyone likes free food and tons of students donât get the chance to eat breakfast â letâs take advantage of the 25 minutes or so before school with a pancake breakfast open to everyone.
5) Thereâs no need to ask for another break if we waste the one we have. The Activities Fair and Community Service Fair are popular â why should those be the only two days of the year Monday break gets interesting? The Prefect Council, the Community Council and various clubs should take turns planning activities during break every few weeks. No one will bear the brunt of planning event after event, and itâs a great opportunity to let students promote their groups.
6) If everyone has to study they might as well study together. Prefect Council could work with the Peer Tutoring program to make Finals Night: the
night before midterms or finals, they could open all
the computer labs, set up couches in the lounge and around the quad, and get Coffee Bean to provide the caffeine for students cramming for their tests in study groups until midnight.
7) Last yearâs seniors had picnics in the quad their
final few days at Harvard-Westlake. We donât have
to wait so long. The next time the weather is nice,
students can set up picnic blankets on the field and
the cafeteria can provide the sandwiches.
We realize that this list doesnât work out all of the logistical details, and weâre not asking the Prefect Council to take on all of this responsibility alone. There are plenty of student groups on campus â including, but not limited to, those mentioned above. If the Prefect Council coordinates the efforts, and each group contributes to an event once in a while, the quality of student life