By: Elaine King

On Tuesday, March 21, the junior class will take the ACT and the underclassmen will endure the required state testing. The senior class is the only class not required to test that day. Bad news? The teachers will be preoccupied with testing and there is nowhere to put the seniors. Good news? Administration has given the seniors the opportunity to take the day and immerse themselves in the community. Instead of attending their classes on March 21, seniors can either volunteer in their community or shadow a professional in a field that interests them.

Beginning this year, Bellbrook High School offers a free ACT exam to every junior. The junior class will test for the majority of the day on March 21. The state requires the freshmen and sophomore classes to take End Of Course exams, and the school has lined up their testing for the same day. The staff of Bellbrook High School sat down and discussed what the seniors should do during the five-hour testing period. They settled on a job shadowing day. However, the senior class was given late notice and it was brought to the attention of the staff that it may not be possible for some students to job shadow due to the late notice they have received or that it is a very difficult process to shadow in their intended field. Finally, it was decided that the seniors could have a choice: take the school day and shadow in a field of interest, an opportunity to really understand what their career could entail beyond what the textbooks and online quizzes teach them, or spend the day lending a hand in their community and fulfilling their six service hour requirement for graduation.

BHS is calling it the Seniors’ “Community Involvement Day.” The seniors must spend the length of their usual school day participating in the activity. By March 20, the seniors must turn in a consent form. By March 27, the seniors must turn in a reflection sheet of the day. All forms and papers should be turned into their English teachers and the day will count as a summative English grade.