For most of our time that students have been in the new North Atlanta school building, students have had 10 minutes during class transitions. When the new building first came online during the 2013-2014 school year, it took a period of trial and error experimentation before finally arriving at the 10-minute span. Not every high school has elevators and 11 stories, so it was understandable that it took some figuring.

At the start of last year, the initial time span was five minutes. But it did not take the administration long to recognize that allotment of time was not nearly enough. Students were late to class – and received detention – constantly. The administration experimented with some adjustments before arriving at 10-minute class transitions.

The number was based on the time it took Vice Principal Robert Whitman and former-Principal Gene Taylor to walk from the gymnasium all the way to the 11th floor. On paper, it would seem this span was plenty of time. But they forgot to consider one crucial factor: the traffic patterns of high school teenagers. Students walk slowly, talk in the halls, and go to the bathroom between classes. So what had been plenty of time for administrators to change classes was just barely enough time for students.

Recently the bell schedule changed again. It is now eight minutes and this means students have two less minutes for transitions. This change was an unpleasant surprise to students upon their return from winter break. The reason stated for shortening the transition time is that students were loitering in the hallways and not going to class on time.

For seniors and juniors the change has been problematical because most of their classes are on the 10th and 11th floors. So seniors, those scurrying from the gym to go to the 11th floor, have to rush to class and are in danger of being late and getting detention. Also, teachers require students to go to the restroom between classes, but students won’t have time to get to class in eight minutes, let alone go to the bathroom on top of that.

To address this issue, Whitman suggested that administrators may adjust the policy for teachers to allow for an early release for those students who have to go span particularly lengthy distances between classes and between floors.

“This year we will be watching the behavior of students to see if they are getting to class on time and if they are late because they are using the time to talk to peers instead of getting to class,” Whitman said.

The move from 10 to eight minutes has not been popularly received by students. Solicited student opinion was nearly uniformly negative. “This stinks. They need to change it back to ten minutes,” said junior Khady Ndiaye.

“Not being able to have those two extra minutes has really made it tough to get there,” said sophomore Jean-Paul Flerin. “And it was really valuable for those going from Hillside to higher floors. Students also no longer have time to use the restroom.” According to what Flerin has seen, tardies have increased during the current spring semester.

Despite student complaints, it seems unlikely that the eight-minute transition time will be lengthened back to 10 minutes. Students will have to endure the added inconvenience of making major hustles to get to class on time, with or without hurried bathroom breaks.