During the grade-by-grade assemblies in early September, new J-DHS Principal Gregory Lawson revealed a couple changes that have been made to some long-standing school policies. Last year, hats and hoodies were only permitted on Fridays, and before that, never. This year, hats and hoodies are now accepted in hallways and classes, regardless of the day. AirPods have been banned from being worn in the hallways, and QR code sign-outs are now required when leaving any classroom.
There have been mixed opinions on these new policies. Here’s what some J-DHS students have to say about these changes.
Jamesville-DeWitt Junior Tara Thorne comments, “They’re [the QR codes] not like.. bad. It’s kinda stupid to me how they were like you can have hats and hoodies, but no AirPods, because then they’re just gonna make you take [hats and hoodies] off they can see if you’re wearing AirPods. It doesn’t even.. It doesn’t make sense. You know?”
Junior Rami Al-Mudamgha states, “As for the QR codes, I don’t use the QR codes because I find them annoying and kind of hard to use. Hats and hoodies [are] fine, I mean I’m wearing a hat right now… so I mean.. AirPods, ehh. I mean I don’t wear my AirPods in school because I’m afraid of losing them, but the point about not wearing them in the hallways is kind of.. kind of dumb in my opinion. Like, if there’s a lockdown or something, I’m sure most people aren’t that oblivious that they wouldn’t be able to tell that “Oh my god there’s a lockdown coming. I better get in the nearest room.”
Junior Brooke McBennett says, “I think the hats and hoodies are fine, because it didn’t really have an effect on our learning, but I don’t think anyone’s like greatly impacted by it. I understand the AirPod rules, but I don’t think anyone is really gonna follow them because it’s kind of hard to put in place. But I do understand if there’s like an emergency you wouldn’t be able to hear. So, I think it’s an understandable rule, but it’s very hard to enforce.”
Sophomore Nina Autry adds, “Um, I think the hats and hoodies rule, I mean it doesn’t really affect anything because not many people wore them anyways when we didn’t have the rule. I mean people wear [them] more, if that makes sense. I think the AirPod rule is a little dumb, but I understand where they’re coming from. Like if it’s something really [urgent] like a lockdown or something and if you don’t hear it, then I understand it that way.”
Junior Charles Moynihan III reports, “I think that the hat and hoodie policy is good because it allows students to be more comfortable. I think that the QR code for a bathroom pass is an ineffective form of tracking students due to the form’s inconsistency to work and that it takes more time to access rather than simply writing the time down, a system that has seemed to work for the past couple years. I think that the restriction on AirPods in the hallway is a little more harsh than necessary. I think that having one AirPod in while walking in the hall is not enough to reduce one’s hearing to the point where they would be unable to react to an emergency around them. Additionally, I have a few teachers who still allow one or even two AirPods to be in during their class and I think that if they believe that it is safe and does not reduce the value of their lesson, then the policy about other parts of the school building should be the same.”
Junior Gabbi Kleiner expresses, “My opinion on the hats and hoodies is that it’s good to build trust between students and administration and that it should be a personal choice [whether students wear hats or hoodies]. I think no AirPods in the hallway is a good rule for safety, but they need to talk about how some AirPods, especially if the music isn’t that loud, you can hear through. Sometimes for kids with anxiety or other stuff going on it’s better to just allow them [AirPods] all the time. The QR codes are ridiculous.”
With all of these new policy changes, opinions have been mostly neutral. Many students have stated that these new policies do not bother them. While others, have some pretty strong opinions.
