The removal of everyday PowerHour has been a disappointment to us all. Our usual lunch places and groups of friends have been taken away from us for the foreseeable Tuesdays and Thursdays ahead of us. 

The cause of this redaction of PowerHour is unsure with all of the different rumors surrounding it. 

Some of us have been using our PowerHour wisely, and others have not. 

“I think [it was taken away]  in order to get the point across that it was something that wasn’t being taken seriously,” business teacher Tiffany Spratt commented. 

Students are obviously upset by this punishment, but Spratt thinks it was necessary to teach students how to behave and how to effectively use PowerHour. 

“It was definitely needed, I think that sometimes you have to learn the hard way in order to see what you’re allowed to do. Up here in the 200s, it’s pretty calm, but downstairs it’s almost a free-for-all. It’s the same groups usually that can be told what their expectation is and they have no regard for it,” Spratt commented. 

Down in the 100s, English teacher Lindsey Corley hasn’t had to deal with too many issues, but she still has an interesting perspective on PowerHour as a whole. 

“From like an administrative or teacher position, there were lots of other things that were happening that weren’t just behavior, so I hope that a redesign. I hope that when we continue to look at things and try to fix things, we can change the things on our end that weren’t working very well,” Corley said. 

Lindsey Corley also believes that behavior probably won’t change because PowerHour was taken away. 

“This isn’t my decision, so I couldn’t begin to say, but it seems like everyone is willing to come to the table to make changes or do what needs to be done to fix it, and I think that that’s administrators, teachers, and I think that’s students too. I think if we’re all willing to come together and fix something that we all want, then hopefully we can get it done and do it right,” Corley added. 

From a more administrative standpoint, assistant principal Dan Corley said that this action is about more than just behavior. 

“It wasn’t being used for academics as much as it should have, there were students that were using it academically and other students were benefiting from it, but not enough of the population was. There’s a lot of roaming, a lot of destruction, and not cleaning up after yourselves in the lunch room or the area. This way we can better monitor the situation,” Dan Corley shared. 

The logic behind only having PowerHour on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays is solely for academic purposes. 

“Well, we’re adding some instructional time back by allowing some intervention time, just not as much. So, you still have the opportunity for those students who were using it correctly, that way they still have that opportunity to go and get that extra help, clubs still have the opportunity to meet, but we’re also adding back to that instructional time. So it’s a balance that we hope to see continued,” Dan Corley said. 

So, will we ever get Power Hour back full-time?

“I guess it’s gonna be on how effective the three days a week is, if it’s being used the way it’s supposed to, and if the intervention time is being used the way it’s supposed to, and if we see minimal behavior events and minimal issues throughout the school, then I think that probably might happen, but that’s going to  be based upon the students,” Dan Corley added. 

However, there are actions that our students can partake in to try to make our way back to a normal Power Hour schedule. 

“Genuinely, students who are failing should be in their classes trying to get their grades up,” senior class president Timothy Woods shared. 

Woods also says that you shouldn’t leave trash around the school and that we should all obey the faculty. 

“They [administrators] are also just trying to keep everybody safe and keep the place orderly. We can also just know where we’re going before we start instead of just walking around the halls just causing a fuss, and anyone who slams a locker should be thrown in prison.”

For now, we all have to work together in showing our staff that we are deserving of PowerHour, even if that’s only three days a week. Keeping up with your grades, your responsibilities, and club meetings is important during this time of uncertainty. Be sure to keep up with your school life for the opportunity to maybe someday get PowerHour back full-time.