The Northwood Headmaster’s Council has proposed to change the way study hall is conducted. In order to get quick approval of their proposal, the group of senior student leaders met with Northwood School’s Board of Trustees on September 22nd.
Olivia Skriloff ’18
A member of the Council, Olivia Skriloff ‘18, said the goal was to “increase freedoms as students get older.” The idea that study hall needs to be reformed is an idea that has circulated the school for years, yet there has been no action. This year’s Headmaster’s Council has decided to take action, and convincing the Board would be no small task.
The Headmaster’s Council outlined why the current system should be changed. The base issue revolved around the school’s mission statement: “Northwood School fosters growth in young people so that they may engage their world and lead lives of consequence.”
“The mission statement is a good foundation, and a good goal,” said Sara Donatello ‘18, a member of the Headmaster’s Council, “but it’s nothing that the school is executing. The fact that seniors and PGs are treated like freshmen is not helping the seniors grow and understand what the transfer to college will realistically be like,” Donatello said.
Skriloff said the students told Trustees that “Northwood students are not given any room to grow.” Other concerns the Council described were “18 year-olds are treated exactly the same as 13 year-olds,” and “seniors are going to college next year, but we aren’t ready for the freedom that comes with it.”
After identifying the problems, the Council laid out solutions. They suggested a new reformed study hall allowing more freedom, staggered bedtimes and check-ins, no 9:30pm weekend check-ins for upperclassmen, and a new wifi network that allows seniors to access the internet until 12:30am.
When asked about how the meeting went, Sidney Williams ‘18, a driving force behind this proposal, stated “Most of us were nervous. I know I was, but I think it went very well. The board seems to be on board with our plan, and Mr. Maher is very enthusiastic about this change. We are now working on making a formal written proposal to turn into Mrs. Walker. We are excited about the potential changes and how they will impact everyone at Northwood.”
