Hillside High School Senior Rodney Jones, 17, poses for a portrait with his mother, Valerie Bennett, outside of McDonald's on Friday, Sept. 16th, 2016, before beginning work. Jones works part time at a local McDonald’s after school to help pay the bills at his mother’s home. Bennett said she felt the school board shifted the bell schedule to increase the graduation rate, but that should be the parents' responsibility. “It’s up to each individual parent to make sure their kids do what they do,” Bennett said. “They were saying that older kids were tired in school. My thing is if their parents are monitoring them -- making sure they do what they supposed to do . . . you wouldn’t have a problem with the graduation rate.” Bennett said the school board did not notify her about new bell schedule before making the decision. (Staff photo by Rob Gourley)
High schools in the Durham Public School System now start and end about an hour and a half later, leaving some students with little time for after-school jobs and activities.
In August 2015, after a decade of deliberation and research, DPS voted to switch the elementary school and high school bell schedules, in order to enable high school students to get more sleep and pay more attention in class, according to the DPS website.
Now, high school students begin their day at 9 a.m. and end at 4 p.m., instead of going from 7:30 a.m. to 2 :30 p.m.
But students with part-time jobs like senior Rodney Jones say they have had to stay up later and give up their free time to make up for the change.
Jones poses for a portrait in his last class of the day on Friday, Sept. 16th, 2016. Jones said the new schedule makes it hard to have time for friends. “I could talk and socialize with friends before going to work, but that’s impossible now when I’m trying to beat traffic,” Jones said. (Staff photo by Rob Gourley)
After the bell rings at 4 p.m. at Hillside High School, Jones has 30 minutes to change into his work clothes and get to McDonald’s, where he works until 11 p.m. to help his mother pay rent.
With the old bell schedule, he could socialize with friends before going to work.
“That’s impossible now when I’m trying to beat traffic,” Jones said.
Hillside junior Tavia Hawley says she also juggles a part-time job, along with practice for the school dance team, which now takes place in the morning instead of the afternoon. She wakes up at 5 a.m. for a quick breakfast and drives herself to the school to make it to practice by 6 a.m. each Tuesday and Thursday. They practice until 8:45, then have 15 minutes to rush to class.
After school, Hawley works at a smoothie shop until 10 p.m.
“I need this job to pay for the gas and buy food for myself,” she said.
Hawley says she usually gets home after 10:30 p.m. and buys fast food along the way. Then she finishes her homework around 1 or 2 a.m., leaving her with less than five hours of sleep.
Hillside senior Channing Kithcart doesn’t have a job, but doesn’t feel like the new schedule gives her more time to sleep. She said she still has to wake up early to avoid traffic.
“Around 8 a.m. in the morning, it is the peak period, and the traffic makes you late for school,” Kithcart said. “So I have to leave earlier to avoid the peak.”
Scott Denton, assistant superintendent for auxiliary services, said DPS has been collecting feedback from different parties, and a report will be posted online in November.
“We haven’t heard much negative feedback so far,” Denton said. “We are aware that there are challenges for parents and students. But we hope in the end it will improve students’ achievement.”
Hillside journalism teacher Jackie Novotny says she also has had to shift her routine because of the new schedule. Every Sunday night, she writes meal plans for her family for the next week.
“I cannot spend an hour wandering around the supermarket, and come up with what is for dinner anymore,” Novotny said. “I have to make a list of what is needed, and finish everything very quickly after work.”
Novotny said she can’t tell how whether the new schedule is effective, since it’s only in its third week. Still, she did notice students were more active during first period.
“Let’s see how those kids did in their first test,” Novotny said.
Students leave their classrooms at the end of the schoolday late in the afternoon at Hillside High School on Sept. 16, 2016. (Staff photo by Rob Gourley)