Lexington (MA) High School Senate

LEXINGTON HIGH SCHOOL STUDENT-FACULTY SENATE

2001-2002

Moderator Ilana Kessler, Assistant Moderator Michael Fiveash, Secretary Sara Enders

<http://lhs.lexingtonma.org/senate>

Agenda For the November 1, 2001 meeting:

1. Announcements

2. Committee Reports

3. Ten Minute Rule Bill

4. Honor Code Violation Policy Bill

5. New Business

Minutes From October 25, 2001 meeting:

[Amended Minutes approved]

[ Agenda approved]

Announcements

Fiveash: The Metco program is sponsoring a retreat from November 2nd to November 4th, for students who have shown a commitment to fighting racism in the community. Two spots on the retreat have been reserved for Senators. If you are interested in attending, please speak to me. Also, when we recess, we a few people to stay and help move the tables back to the commons. Thanks to those who helped us set up at the start of the meeting; we need more help with this, as well.

Ludwig: I spoke with the Yearbook Committee, and our picture will be taken next X-block.

K. Girondel: Could we receive the minutes on the Monday before each week's meeting?

S. Enders: Yes.

Committee Reports

Kieft: Policy held a brief meeting, yesterday, to discuss the situation of teachers being late to classes.

S. Girondel: Social Action made posters encouraging student involvement in the Condom Committee, but many of them were taken down.

S. Enders: In light of our discussions in Communications about publicizing our agenda before the meetings, flyers were distributed with a cartoon introducing the Ten Minute Rule and inviting students to come to Senate. Thanks to the artistic efforts of Lydia Conklin on this.

Ten Minute Rule

Kessler: I believe that this bill reflects our interest in being more representative of the student body. As I have not yet spoken about it with Dr. Seasholes, I advise that we not vote on it at this meeting.

Lessin: What is the current policy on teachers being late to class?

K. Girondel: Students should remain in the classroom. After ten minutes or so, one may inform the house secretary that the teacher has not come, from which the secretary will decide what should be done.

Lessin: Has anyone experienced a situation when this policy was inadequate?

Burson: In my experience, the current exercised policy is that there is an unspoken rule that the class may wait fifteen minutes, and then decide for themselves what to do. I don't think that making such a rule official would help anybody. It is conceivable that a teacher would be late, but I don't think that the time remaining in the class is then worthless. Also, in holding teachers to strict standards, students would have to also expect to be held to such standards, and I think we like a certain amount of flexibility.

K. Girondel: I will read now an email from Les Philips, containing his response to the ten minute rule as he understood it from seeing one of the flyers. He says <paraphrased>, 'Students should expect that teachers come to class on time. If a teacher is late or chronically late, students should deal with this by bringing it to the attention of the administration. Simply getting up and leaving is not constructive. Also, I think such a policy is beyond the jurisdiction of the Senate, especially as it would interfere with the faculty's responsibility to keep track of students in the school.'

S. Girondel: I've never experienced a teacher who was ten minutes late to class. I think that if this rule existed, students would stretch it for all they could, leaving after six or seven minutes, etc.

David: First, let me say that I find it ironic that I was ten minutes late to this meeting…. What is the rationale behind this bill? I find it to be disrespectful. When teachers are late, it is for very good reasons. I don't see where this is necessary, and I have a problem with its disrespect.

Walsh: When the second bell rings, students can be seen, not really trying to get to class on time. Personally, I allow an extra minute, but I see a lack of effort. Are students entitled to demand this of teachers? Also, I think this is an issue for the administration to oversee.

Nagiel: What people have been referring to are time periods under ten minutes. I think ten minutes is enough. If a teacher takes more than this, it impacts the class.

Fried: I'm confused with the part that says, "If the majority of students have open campus…." This is unclear.

Kessler: This bill is not intended to be punitive to teachers. The goal is not to punish anybody, rather to salvage an unfortunate situation. Generally, if a teacher is more than ten minutes late, they are not coming and the message that they would not be in didn't get through. In these instances, large amounts of time are often wasted, trying to figure out what is going on.

Enders: I agree with what Moderator Kessler has said. I've experienced a couple of situations where a teacher did not come to class and the time was pretty much lost.

Burson: I know of one instance when after ten minutes, a class dismissed itself. The last few students to leave met the tardy teacher coming in, who insisted that they sit in the room for the remaining of the period. There does need to be a policy on this, though it likely should come out of the administration.

K. Girondel: I think, if a teacher is chronically late to class, Administrators should be told. Rather than leaving, it would be more productive to report the instance. I do believe that there is a problem, but I don't agree with this bill, though I'm glad it came up. Tardiness in general, in this school, is a big problem.

Lessin: The intention of this bill is to create and clarify policy. However, if this bill is passed, I think it will backfire, and create more problems.

Fiveash: Firstly, how wide-spread is this problem? Secondly, I find this discussion interesting, particularly the description of various situations as "ironic." There are ways in which students and teachers' lives are similar. We all need to try as hard as we can to be respectful of each other. The disparity is that faculty are in positions of authority, and we should be held to a higher standard. Finally, I don't think it's a great disaster if students find themselves with a free half-hour in which to do "whatever."

List of Senators Absent from the October 11, 2001 Meeting

W. Cordero

M. Inouye

B. Collins