Morton High plans 4‑lunch homeroom to replace ‘Potter Hour,’ aims to boost academic support

Morton High School Principal Kirk Edwards proposed Tuesday that the school replace its current 30‑minute daily Potter Hour with a reorganized homeroom system that would run during four staggered lunches and include dedicated academic help for students.

Edwards said the change is intended to keep instruction from being interrupted by split‑class lunches and to give students more consistent access to tutoring, counseling and school communications. “We have 150 minutes a week being used for Potter Hour,” Edwards said. “What is our return on this? … We want rigor, but we must mirror that with support.”

Administrators and staff told the board the original Potter Hour program, introduced as social‑emotional learning, had become repetitive and unevenly implemented over four years. Edwards said staff meetings and surveys showed students and teachers had repeatedly reported seeing the same lessons recycled or no lesson at all. The proposed homeroom schedule would eliminate split classes tied to the three‑lunch model and move to four lunches so half the student body would be in homeroom while the other half is at lunch.

Supporters of the shift emphasized several practical goals: restore uninterrupted instructional time for core classes, provide built‑in academic labs (math and English), create a regular check‑in time for seniors (including college and career planning), and offer structured club opportunities to reduce out‑of‑school barriers to participation. Edwards said staff would supervise homerooms and that counselors and teachers could use the period for targeted tutoring: “We envision math and English labs so students can get help whether they’re in algebra or calculus.”

Edwards also described operational benefits: four lunches would reduce cafeteria crowding, allow targeted hallway supervision, and give administrators clearer attendance data during the school day. Under the plan, seniors would continue to be included rather than released; administrators said intentional time with seniors could improve post‑secondary readiness.

The staff developed the proposal after a series of weekly meetings that began in February. Their process included reviewing peer school schedules, stakeholder feedback, and best practices in advisory programming. Edwards said implementation would not require new hires but would require clear procedures and communication to families before the school year begins.

Edwards described a data plan to measure impact: monthly attendance monitoring, semester‑level club participation figures, and changes to the school’s 5Essentials survey. He proposed reporting back to the board after implementation with metrics such as attendance, participation and student survey results.

Board members asked about timeline and evaluation. Edwards suggested semester‑level reporting (semester and Christmas) would give the district early indicators, with a fuller review at the end of the school year that would include 5Essentials results and student feedback. He acknowledged potential pushback from students wary of a longer day, but argued the benefits for academic support and supervision outweigh that risk.

No formal action was taken; the presentation was a request for direction and for the board to consider the plan in time to finalize schedules and communications before fall registration.

Edwards said staff will finalize procedures and communications over the summer and would return to the board with implementation details and early outcome data in the fall.