Freshman wing a success

Blair's creation of a freshman wing this year has been a positive addition to the school, teachers and students said. The wing contains nearly all of Blair's freshman classes and has contributed to a decrease in tardiness and an improvement in freshmen adjustment to high school, according to freshman teachers.

Many freshmen have most of their classes in the wing, which includes all of the classrooms in the 250s through 270s hallways. As a result, lateness has been greatly reduced. "Students are getting to class on time more than they were," said U.S. History teacher Anne Manuel. She attributed this to both the wing and to the wing's security guard, Cedric Boatman. "[He's] so proactive - he is really working with us, dealing with freshman problems like cutting class or whatever, and that's really helping," she said.

English teacher Adam Clay agreed, saying that "[Boatman] is able to work the halls. He knows the kids because he's there every day. He makes sure the kids are in class on time." He also believes that addition of a teacher-rung cowbell, signaling a two-minute warning, has helped decrease tardiness. "The students know when they hear that bell that they better get in class on time," Clay said.

Students appreciated the benefits of the new wing as well. Freshman Catherine Rogers enjoys the close proximity of her seven classes, all of which are in the freshman wing. "I don't have to go all over school," she said.

Rogers did not originally like that idea of the freshman wing. "When I first heard about [the wing] I was shaky on it," Rogers said, adding that she now thinks it was a "very good idea" and should be continued. The wing allows her and other students to spend time with the same people throughout the day, making it convenient to find work partners. "You don't have to ask for phone numbers every class in order to call for homework," Rogers explained.

Teachers also enjoy the proximity to their colleagues. "It's nice because we all work together on the same team, and it's great to have [those teachers] next door," said Clay, adding that talking and coordinating activities with his social studies counterpart, U.S. History teacher Mary-Lou Thornton, is easier than in past years.

Some students still have doubts about the wing, however. Freshman Stevia Morawski feels the location of the wing was not well planned. Because the wing is on the second floor, "that means that the upperclassmen classes are on the first floor and third floor, and they have to go through the wing to get there," she said. Morawski thinks the wing would be better implemented if it were moved to one of the adjacent floors and believes the administration should try such an approach in the future.

Manuel, while having an overall positive response to the new wing, still voiced her doubt by warning that it is still too early to tell if the wing should be continued in upcoming years.

However, she acknowledged that the freshman wing is off to a great start. "There's a really relaxed atmosphere in the freshman wing. There isn't as much congestion and general mayhem," Manuel said.

Clay fully supports the wing and believes it is responsible for a calm beginning of school. "It's been an incredibly smooth beginning of the year, and I think the wing and the team have a lot to do with how smooth the beginning of the year has been," he said.