Harper Creek leaders pitch schedule change, small 'seminar' to address learning gaps

High school leaders told the Harper Creek Board of Education on Feb. 10 they are considering changing from a block schedule to a traditional schedule with a short seminar period, citing concerns about learning gaps and staffing.

At the meeting, a high school representative described findings from multiple staff, parent and student meetings and said 58 seniors currently use an open-lunch privilege under eligibility rules. He said benchmarking and test-score comparisons and a concern about the learning gaps created when students go a semester without a core subject drove the review: “There’s that huge learning gap,” he said, describing how students may have English one term and then not again for an extended period.

The proposed model would include a seminar of about 30 minutes intended for focused social-emotional learning, counselor interventions and grade-level work (test prep for freshmen; college-application work for seniors). Leadership said the change could also reduce staffing needs compared with a block schedule and that a course catalog and any graduation-requirement changes would need board-level approval by March 3.

Board members asked about parent and staff outreach; administrators said they have met with students, counselors and parents and will continue collecting feedback and refining details over the next month. No vote on a schedule change was requested at this meeting; the board was asked to note timing constraints for course-book and graduation-requirement approvals if a change is adopted.