In the past month, IHS has seen many changes following the district’s budget cuts. Latin, Mandarin, and AVID have been cut, and over thirty long-term building substitute positions have been eliminated. Some after-school elementary and fine and performing arts programs were also cut. Class sizes have also jumped up compared to last year, with some classes nearly doubling in size. Counselors and students alike have struggled with scheduling problems this year.
Classes have seen increases in size, making them harder to manage. Honors Economics teacher Sofia Gluck said that individual attention suffers, both inside and outside of the classroom. With thirty or more students in a classroom, some students may be left behind. “It’s a different way of teaching when you have thirty or thirty-six kids in a class,” Associate Principal Hilary Ewing said in an interview.
Although master schedulers, including Ewing, managed to get students most of the classes they wanted, there have still been some issues with scheduling, due to both classes and sections being cut. “It’s kind of frustrating, as a senior, to not be able to take the classes I’ve been waiting, like, three years to take,” an anonymous IHS senior said.
Recent budget cuts have sent the scheduling issues the district already faced with its seven-period schedule to its extreme. The budget crunch and scheduling issues also coincide with the construction in the Arts Quad and E-wing, further restricting the scheduling of tech classes and making the lives of teachers and students harder. All in all, the budget crunch calls for teachers, students, and administrators alike to adjust to new conditions and make things work.
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