A Detention-Free 2023?
During the school Pep Rally on September 7th, the high school administration gave returning students something to cheer about when they erased all carryover detentions accumulated over the past 3 years. Previously, students of LHS found themselves in a tight spot when dealing with their long detention hours. Consequences began to arise for these students as they were given little to no opportunities to participate in school activities and events.
Taking this into account, Mr. Kalender along with other staff members of LHS decided on clearing any and all detentions accumulated from the previous years. When speaking to Mr.Kalender, he stated, “Because students have an overabundance of detentions, they are not able to participate in school events and fundraisers which ultimately prevents them from expressing their school spirit.” He explained that as a result of this, there is a large absence in school-related functions. To prevent detention from limiting student participation, a clearance of them was more than necessary.
When asking Nicole Anez, a junior, about her perspective on the clearance of detentions, we discussed how this benefited her academics, participation of school events, and engagement in clubs. Nicole said, “This new clearance allowed me to maintain good grades, attend fun school activities, and focus on my sport without having to worry about making up any detentions.” She then followed up with “Thank you Mr. Kalender!” Nicole is definitely not the only student who is content with this new rule, to say the least.
Sophia Ustiuzhanin, another junior, believes that the decision to clear detentions was one of the best made during her time at LHS. When asked if she would encourage other students to make the most of this new adjustment to the rules, Sophia says, “I think that students should take advantage of this opportunity and use this free time to focus on spending time studying, but also show their school spirit by attending assemblies and other activities.”
Seniors Melakai Aligo and Regan Lynch both agree that this decision was what was best for the students. I asked them if they thought that a “fresh new start” was needed this school year. In response, Regan stated, “As president of the senior class and someone who is very involved in clubs, it is definitely difficult to work around the stress of detentions. I think it is important to start the school off with a fresh start and students should be given the freedom to do so.” In agreement with her fellow classmate, Melakai, stated, “It’s so hard to work around detentions and by being given a fresh start students can work on more important things.”
By dismissing any detentions accumulated from the past years, students are given a new outlook on the 2023-2024 school year. With more freedom, students at Leonia High School are able to make new memories, focus on their studies, and engage in new experiences. A fresh start creates a limitless and welcoming environment for the Leonia community.
