With a new year comes new changes. This year, RUHS is implementing a new policy for students who decide to stay on campus during their free period[s]. Starting Aug. 29, students who stay on campus must go to either the Student Union or the school library for the duration of that period.

“[In previous years,] students could just stay on campus and go wherever they wanted, but we wanted to make it a little more structured this year for the safety of all our students,” Assistant Principal Jeffrey Rosadini said.

The staff wants to make sure that anyone seen on campus is allowed to be inside the school, and can show proof of identification. Having designated spots for students in their free periods can help keep track of the people who may be roaming around campus. In addition to safety, the new policy is in place to minimize distractions for students who are in class.

“Sometimes teachers use their outdoor space to teach, or kids are taking tests outside, or students are just taking breaks, and we want to ensure that those learning environments are not disrupted by students with free periods just roaming around,” Rosadini said. “I also think it’ll help students with a free period to focus on studying if they choose to stay.”

Rosadini proposed the change this year as one of the changes he wanted to see as his first year being Assistant Principal.

“I wanted something a little more unified for our school so that students aren’t just wandering during the school day. I also took feedback from being a teacher here for 18 years and hearing from other people and teachers,” Rosadini said.

There is no requirement to be working on schoolwork while in the library or Student Union during the for the students there, but Rosadini hopes that the “students will use their time wisely.” Additionally, there are still classrooms around them, so the students cannot be disruptive to them.

“If you’re doing work and you want absolute quiet, you can go to the library. Even at the Student Union, there’s enough room to move around for some quiet, but you still need to be respectful of the other classes around there. We won’t have someone going around and checking what students are working on, but if [the security guards or admin] sees them roaming around school and they say ‘I have a free period,’ they’re going to be escorted back to one of the two designated places,” Rosadini said.

From now on, students who are out of class are required to have a note or a pass with them, regardless of whether they are going to the bathroom, seeing a counselor, or going anywhere else. Furthermore, students are also required to have a copy of their student ID on them, either physically or as a picture.

“Again, this is all for the safety of the students, even if they might not see it that way,” Rosadini said. “We want to make sure that people who are out of class are doing it for a legitimate reason, because we want to make sure that they’re getting the most out of their RUHS experience.”

Admin is still creating a “discipline menu” for students found wandering out of class, but according to Rosadini, admin feels that the biggest consequence for students is simply missing out on their education. Anything else that admin or security does to them is “a secondary consequence.”

One part of the policy that remains unchanged is that students with a free third or fourth period cannot leave campus. RUHS is not an open campus, so these students have to stay at school.

The policy is still new, so administration has not yet received student feedback, but Rosadini does not expect much trouble from students.

“I love our students here. They’re been good with changes like these; they’re awesome,” Rosadini said. “So I know that once they get used to the flow of things, [the free period policy] won’t be a problem.”