The Final Thank You

On Thursday, we had a productive forum, notes for which can be found here: http://tinyurl.com/ScheduleTownHall2Notes While the forum was productive, and around 50 students showed up, there were obvious faults. For one, we were not expecting questions about the nature of SEL -- rather, we expected questions on the nature of the schedule. While we should have made this clear, this points to the clear lack of information about SEL. We hope the SEL kickoff this week clears that up. Second of all, Dr. Herrmann, who we thank for taking the time to attend the survey, wasted time with her answers -- we feel she circumvented our main questions and talked about things not entirely relevant at all. What we never got an answer on was why a committee dedicated to the Schedule is not the committee making the decision on the Schedule. Otherwise, we are glad that this forum happened. Let it be noted, however, that the Administration should not claim full credit for the forum -- it had to be suggested by a petition coauthor themselves. On Friday, a few petition coauthors stopped by Dr. Herrmann's office for 20 minutes to debrief the forum and talk strategy for the next year. Dr. Herrmann rightly mentioned that the forum felt confrontational, and we really regret that. That being said, we did our best to let her know that listening to student voice and having student goodwill is paramount to the success of SEL. Thank you to everyone who supported us through this journey. We've come such a long way and we can't thank you enough. A few of our coauthors were interviewed by the Palo Alto Weekly, by Gunn's Oracle, and by Gunn's Chariot. Hopefully we continue to gain publicity for our cause. That being said, it seems that the decision was final. In spite of protest by students, lack of comprehension by parents, and total disapproval by teachers, the Administration seems to be set on implementing their preferred schedule, with a Flex period Thursday morning. Dr. Herrmann promised to release the schedule for next year today, but that has not happened. We hope that she has taken student voice into account -- we haven't lost this cause yet. But, the way the wind is blowing, it seems that they will choose their preferred option. In light of this, we ask for one last thing -- we ask for a meeting of the Creative Scheduling Committee to iron out any possible kinks in the final schedule chosen (mainly referring to the A period issue and end times). Thank you so much, everyone, for your support. Your contribution will not be forgotten. We were close -- we gained immense publicity, tons of traction in Palo Alto, and the observation of the Board. We were close, but, as of right now, no cigar. Student voice has spoken out. And we won't quiet down. For the sake of a more productive, connected, and trusting high school, we must have our voices heard and our opinions taken into account. No longer will we accept decisions by Administration that run not just contrary to the wishes of students, but also are handled with dubious procedures that disenfranchise students, as happened here. This isn't the end -- the Students of Gunn High School are watching. Thank you to everyone who supported us! We couldn't have done it without you!