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Students largely unheard in 2010’s changes

This year has been one of the most transforming for the Academy, with new netbooks, new scheduling and a new building in the works. 2010 has been unofficially dubbed the “Year of the Whine” in lieu of students’, teachers’ and even neighbors’ complaints surrounding these changes. Although both administrators and students may blame these changes for their attitudes, 2011 will be exactly the same unless both parties change their outlook and commit to better communication.

Dear STA administration,

We know you may be tempted to look at us, whining about our brand new netbooks or bemoaning the new chapel you have tirelessly raised money to fund, and think that students are entirely to blame for the negative label placed upon the previous year.

However, maybe students and administrators both should reconsider the roles they played in these changes before they accuse others of being whiny and ungrateful.

STA students realize the benefits of all of the changes that have been made this year. We understand the benefits of laptops, of additional worship space and classrooms, of Moodle, new finals schedules and percentage grading.

What we do not understand is why it seemed that many of these changes, beneficial or not, were made without engaging us in the process.

The few opportunities you gave us to contribute, with student laptop testers and conferences about the new chapel design, were largely appreciated. But they’re not enough.

The new scheduling system, the transition to percentage grading, the introduction of Moodle and the alteration of finals schedules were all changes to STA that followed a pattern of poor communication.

Take, for example, the new scheduling system. You did not communicate that our system had fundamentally changed until shortly before school started. Then, when students became upset that a defining aspect of STA had been stripped away without our input, our genuine concerns were largely ignored in the chaos that accompanied the beginning of the new school year. The student body still is not aware of exactly why these changes happened. We understand now that the change was not intentional, but we wish that you would have come forth and explained the change to us, rather than feeding into gossip.

If the communication of just one of this years’ changes had been mishandled this way, students would have regarded it as simply oversight. However, the fact remains this pattern seems to represent an overall disregard for the value of student input and communication. You had opportunities to reach out to students for their input or feedback, and didn’t. You could have invited students to the teacher-administration meeting to discuss finals before the second semester began. You could have asked students if they saw the benefits of the new scheduling system.

We do not want to complain, we want to talk. We want you to ask us what we think and why we react the way we do. You have taught us to be thoughtful young women who deserve a say. Don’t take away our voices. Look at us as a group of students who want to help improve our school, too.

Dear STA students,

Consider if you were the administration of STA. Not only do you have to oversee over 560 students, teachers and faculty members, but you have to spearhead capital campaigns, supervise school renovations, facilitate alumnae interaction and (try to) get some sleep at night.

And after your efforts to improve the technology, facilities and daily life at STA for your students, they complain.

They complain about their netbooks. They complain about their netbook cases. They complain about their schedules. They complain about Moodle. They complain about the chapel. They complain about percentage grading. They complain about finals.

Now that you’ve imagined this, does it make sense that our complaints are trivialized?

The administration has so much on their shoulders, and when we make petty complaints about certain maroon netbook cases instead of lodging thoughtful criticisms, we enable them to think that we’re a school of whiners, instead of a school of concerned students.

Not all of us complain about 2010’s changes, but all of us do have a voice; STA has taught us that. But a voice isn’t enough; we need action.

Maybe we don’t get as many opportunities as we would like to contribute to the changes in our school, but we need to embrace the few opportunities we do have. We were all encouraged to attend a Q and A session last year with president Nan Bone to discuss the design of the new chapel. About 25 students attended.

We all talk to each other about the changes. At our lunch tables, walking across the quad or in our classrooms, we discuss these facets of STA. All of you have an opinion on the changes that have happened this year, don’t hide them. Do not confine them to your minds, or your lunch tables or your classrooms. If you want to complain, complain to someone who can make a change.

If we can’t go to the administration, we should consider talking to our class representatives. Maybe instead of flooding the administrative offices with changes we’d like to make, we could work to elect a school-wide council to sit on the board of directors and give a student perspective. We need someone who can hear our concerns, translate them into constructive feedback and convey them to our school leaders.

We cannot simply sit back and gripe about all the things we do not like or praise the things we love about STA. We cannot wait for the administration to come to us and ask us what we think. The communication between the administration and the student body is not entirely their responsibility; it’s 50-50.

Not only do we have a responsibility to ask for more of a voice (without whining), we need to utilize the opportunities we are given and prove that we deserve the faith the administration puts in us. If we want to be treated like serious students who deserve a say, we need to start acting like them.

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    -Feb 12, 2011 at 12:01 am

    Honestly we complain too much. I get it, the teachers are sick of us complaining about net books, the chapel, and the new schedule. I understand this gets irritating. However, are these not “make or break” topics for prospective students? Technology, atmosphere, and ability to meet new people. It is irritating that at St. Teresa’s they teach us that our opinions matter, but then turn around and plan major changes to STA that will affect the rest of our high school experience, without communicating the idea to the students. Yes, Nan Bone did have “informational meetings” for the students about the chapel and net books, and yes they tempted us to come with star cookies. But, did they really listen to our opinions? Had the entire student body voted against having the new chapel, would they have changed their plans? Honestly, I doubt it. There inlays the problem, is the administration really looking out for what WE the students want? When someone says that “it’s the administration’s job to innovate.” Well yes that is their job, but we have to live with their choices, those changes affect our entire High school experience, and I want more say in this school. We are the reason St. Teresa’s even exists, so shouldn’t we have a say in what goes on there?

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