One of this year’s new school policies has changed the High Honors Breakfast to the Principal’s Breakfast. Students who had a high enough GPA (4.33) qualified for the breakfast, with students from College Prep to AP Classes qualifying for the celebration. This year, however, the policy changed.
The school is now hosting a Principal’s Breakfast, where only students who have received all A’s may attend the breakfast. Now, the honor roll breakfast is condensed into two periods (7th-9th grade in first period and 10th-12th in second). This significantly decreased the number of students who will be able to attend and celebrate their hard work. The school should bring back the old version of the Principal’s Breakfast.
As someone who has worked very hard to achieve a high GPA above 5.6, I feel like I deserve to be rewarded and enjoy the breakfast for taking nearly all AP Classes and managing my time wisely enough to get almost all A’s in them. As someone who has previously attended all honor roll breakfasts, this new change in policy comes as a huge disappointment. One B should not prevent me from celebrating my accomplishments at the Principal’s Breakfast. I saw no issue with the way the school handled the breakfast before, and I don’t know of anyone who had a problem with it.
In a poll of over 80 students, an overwhelming 88% did not agree with the change with the breakfast policy. One such student was sophomore Sofia Bareera, who said, “I don’t believe it’s fair to reward those who have all the As in classes with less rigor while excluding those who may have Bs in AP and honors classes, and are likely working much harder and likely have a higher weighted GPA nonetheless.” Honor roll breakfasts used to serve as a time to relax during a hard school day and celebrate our accomplishments.
Senior Jack Finneran agrees. “I feel it discredits students who may have worked incredibly hard to earn a B in a difficult AP or HH class.”
Some students did agree, however. Junior Ruby Cohen said, “The old breakfast was overcrowded and this new way also makes people work harder to get better grades.” If overcrowded, divide the honor roll breakfast by classes or raise the GPA recruitment. Add another session in order to ensure the celebration of all students.
In the end, I hope the school returns to the High Honor Roll breakfast as it has been for the past 25 years. Students who are working extremely hard in honors and AP classes to challenge themselves should not get stripped of their celebration as well. Instead of taking easier classes, students challenge themselves in higher classes, and by stripping celebration away from them, what incentive do they have to continue with their rigorous coursework?
Instead of punishing students for challenging themselves, a solution to this situation could potentially be rewarding both straight-A students as well as students with high GPAs, in order to ensure that students who are challenging themselves are being rewarded. Raising the GPA requirement could prevent an overflow of students (perhaps to a 5.33, a whole point increase). Or, as a last resort, fully get rid of the honor roll breakfast, in order to stop excluding students who work hard for their grades.
The Honor Roll breakfast serves as a time for students to socialize and celebrate together, while building school spirit. By getting rid of the environment of these breakfasts, students not only are discouraged from taking hard classes but feel unrewarded for their commitment to school. I am deeply saddened by the change in policy, especially as a senior with a 5.6 GPA, as academics is my main goal, and I truly enjoyed participating in the breakfasts. (Photos/Emma Colarte Delgado)
