Flex Hour is a period of the day where students can eat, attend tutoring, get homework done and participate in clubs. Students also use this time to catch up with friends, as there are no mandatory activities during the hour.
Students also have the freedom of walking to almost anywhere in the school, allowing them to visit classrooms or the counseling offices, something they normally couldn’t do on a four-lunch schedule.
For most students, Flex Hour gives them time to handle school work during the day without having the stress of doing it after school.
“I can finish work that I can’t do at home because I don’t have a lot of free time after practice,” sophomore A’Drese Parker said.
The only change this year has been the addition of a four-lunch schedule and no Flex Hour on Tuesdays. Administration also used the four-lunch schedule before and after the fall break in October, and the Friday before Thanksgiving break.
Although Flex Hour has its pros, there are challenges that cause problems for the staff. Some students abuse the privilege by horseplaying or leaving a mess in the halls. Students also waste time with friends instead of getting work done.
Assistant principal Mack Malone monitors the cafeteria during Flex Hour. This allows him to view different students, and see how students are using Flex Hour.
“It’s lunch time, we don’t utilize Flex Hour how we should,” Malone said.
One of the main problems with Flex Hour is the trash and food that are left in the halls. Students are not allowed to eat food on carpeted areas, which still leaves almost half the school available for eating lunch.
The mess frustrates staff and students alike.
“Having basic human decency is important to keeping the school clean,” junior Samuel Aparicio said.
It wasn’t too long ago when freshmen weren’t even allowed to participate in most of Flex Hour. PIT, short for Panthers in Training, was a program where freshmen were kept in a homeroom to do schoolwork and tutoring during the first 30 minutes of Flex. Current seniors spent their entire first semester of their freshman year in PIT, while juniors had PIT for only the first nine weeks.
PIT was eliminated last year. As much as students disliked PIT when they were required to attend it, some upperclassmen said PIT should be brought back for 9th graders.
“I still think PIT should be a thing,” Aparicio said.
There are still many question marks that surround Flex Hour and its future. Some students worry it’s going away, while others say it’s here to stay. Whether it is a positive or negative addition, it has had a major impact for a lot of kids.
“I believe as long as you’re doing your work during Flex, your time is well used,” Parker said.
