No School November: Another “Status Update” on Whitney Young Students During a Peculiar Month of the Year

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Alec Thomas

If you closely follow the Whitney Young Beacon,  you have probably noticed that this article is very similar to an article that was posted last month. You’re right in noticing this, by the way. Isn’t that cool? Anyway, enough dilly-dallying. On with the article!

The main focus of this article is a specific attribute of the month of November: namely, the high concentration of days off school. The end of the quarter, parent-teacher conferences, Veterans’ Day, and Thanksgiving Break all contribute to the labeling of this month as “No School November.” Also, we have two Third Thursday Early Dismissal Days this month, so there’s that too. Wow. As expected, the student body of Whitney Young has a variety of views pertaining to the frequent days off. Whitney Young students also use their days off in different ways.

No one interviewed for this article opposes having days off from school. Now there’s a news flash. Malachi Robinson ‘19 says, “‘No School November’ is great for the college apps with later deadlines, and for catching up with schoolwork. Plus, it’s a great chance to get a decent run in.” Julia Medina ‘20 told us she loves “No School November” because she looks forward to the month “that isn’t super stressful. It’s fun to be at home relaxing and doing fun seasonal things with family.”

Additionally, Whitney Young students had a lot to say about what their plans are for the days off this month. Robert Bitunjac ‘19 says he plans to use the days off “to do a little bit of homework and a whole lot of good old-fashioned nothing.” Julia Medina ‘20 mentioned that she plans to use her days off to relax and spend time with family and friendssome of whom she does not see during other parts of the year. Ari Karafiol ‘20 is very excited about the days off. “I’m super hyped! Give me those days off!” he exclaimed, “I’ll probably just binge watch Game of Thrones and work out. #nodaysoff.”

So whether you spend the days off getting some much needed relaxation, catching up on schoolwork, or as Bobby B. ‘19 said, doing “a whole lot of good old-fashioned nothing,” we can all agree that November is a very unique month of the school year. This is, in part, due to the fact that Whitney Young students technically have only one full week of school this month (No days off or early dismissals).

How do you plan to spend your days off this month? Do you use them more to catch up on school work, or in the case of seniors, schoolwork and college apps? Or, are you just planning on getting some rest and relaxation?