I live across the street from Christopher High, and I was
wondering why every single light in the high school has to be lit
up during the nighttime.
“I live across the street from Christopher High, and I was wondering why every single light in the high school has to be lit up during the nighttime. It is a beautiful high school and it looks great but it seems like leaving the lights on would make a very high electricity bill that they don’t need. Why do they have to be left on 24/7?”
and …
“The field lights at the Gilroy High School seem to be on during the day a lot. The rest of us are all in the dark trying to conserve. So let’s get the high school involved.”
Red Phone: Dear Clap On Clap Off, In addition to the many after-school activities at the schools, other groups also use the fields for practice, said GUSD Deputy Superintendent Enrique Palacios. As a result, the lights are on late into the evenings.
“The lights remain on until all student activities are over and cleaning is done at the school,” he said.
The reason the lights were on earlier in the day at GHS is because the electrical system at the school was undergoing repairs, he said.
The lights were originally left on at CHS around the clock for the school’s first few months for security reasons, Palacios said. But that is no longer the case, he added.
Bound by big books
“I don’t know if any other parents are amazed by the new policy at Brownell Middle School (not sure if other schools are the same) that students must carry their books with them all day instead of the old policy of having a set of books for school and at home. My child’s backpack is unbelievably heavy! They have tried to help by limiting the books to two needed per day, but with their binders and other items, their backpack is still very heavy. I would be interested to know what the physical effects on our children will be and if the district has any intention of returning to the old book policy? Thank you.”
Red Phone: Dear Booked Through May, Back in the day, people used to carry their books through the snow uphill both ways to school. Unfortunately books for school get heavier the higher up in grades you go. Professors try to cram all they can into the dead trees. The more that’s in them, the more students learn, right? Oh, for the day you can carry your entire course load in a small handheld device.
But until then, the district is trying to make it as easy as possible for students.
“The weight of the backpack is a concern of ours and teachers are aware and work together to limit the load,” said Brownell Principal Greg Camacho-Light.
The school’s current policy for the three middle schools is to have two sets of math and science books – one for home use and one for school use – to limit carrying them back and forth, he said.
“The most that would be required of the student would be two books, one three-inch binder and a novel they are currently reading,” Camacho-Light said. “They certainly fill up a backpack, but there would not be a time when all four textbooks are required. As new text books are adopted, the district intends to purchase classroom sets.”
The language arts and social science books are up for new adoption over the next couple of years, he said.
