Students Speak Up to the Board of Education

The Civ Ed program, school clubs, interdisciplinary courses, stress and the competitive environment at Scarsdale High School were all discussed on Wednesday March 6, when a select group of students met with the Scarsdale Board of Education and administrators. Board members and school leaders, including Principal Kenneth Bonamao and teacher and school government leader Neil Ginsberg, were present at the meeting and encouraged honest opinions from the students.

Civ Ed, a program designed to help freshmen transition to high school through interaction with upperclass advisors, received high praise from the students. "Civ Ed makes school friendlier and warmer," said Freshman Harry Gale. "I know I have people looking out for me." Other Civ Ed students agreed that the program made a huge difference in their transition to the high school.

Another topic raised was interdisciplinary courses, which are classes that connect two subjects. Students present at the meeting generally favored these classes. "If someone is passionate about one subject, it is good for them to see it through a different lens to enjoy another subject," said Solange Azor, SHS student president. The courses allow students to master subjects in which they are weak by learning them through subjects in which they may be stronger.

The importance of "real-world" learning experiences to complement traditional classroom learning was also discussed. Ginsberg spoke of a course about old age that he taught in 1979. He took students to nursing homes to spend time with the elderly. His students and the elderly formed unexpectedly strong bonds that helped bring the subject to a personal level. When an elderly woman who the students were actively visiting died, the whole class mourned. Ginsberg reflected on this time as a critical and personal learning experience for his students. "The stuff we do inside the school is great, but getting outside the school is really important to learn things that cannot be taught in a classroom," said Ginsberg.

When asked what the students would change about SHS, most students seemed generally content with the schools' organization. Azor spoke of ideas under discussion by the school government including music rather than bells on the P.A. system between classes, the implementation of a "hug day," and a school day starting at 10 am instead of the usual 8 am.

The topic of a new fitness or "wellness" center was also up for discussion. If built, the center is planned to be a more gender-neutral environment than the current fitness center that largely attracts boys. It would also include labs where students would study health-related issues. Most students agreed that the old, cramped fitness center needed a change, but some thought a new wellness center may not be used by a lot of students because they are so busy with sports, clubs, and other activities.

Despite the divergence of opinions on many issues, both students and board members embraced the school's motto of "Non Sibi," or "not for oneself," and agreed that Scarsdale as not just a town of 17,293 people, but a strong community.

Contributor Isabel Klein is a sophomore at Scarsdale High School where she can be found using an abundant amount of exclamation points, writing for Scarsdale10583 and dreaming about wandering the streets of Manhattan, Africa, and hopefully one day, the moon. Follow her on twitter @isabel_ellis.