EMILY FODOR, SHARON CHANG, and JULIA BACCHETTI
Editor-in-Chief, Art Editor, and Social Media Editor
As high schoolers move on to their bigger school, some have forgotten that there is a new legacy for our old one. Monroe Township Middle School, established next door to us, took the place of Applegarth, and added sixth graders to the mix. Although all schools change throughout the years, the differences are prevalent while we remain united.
The first change is the fact that MTMS added 10 more teams to the original 6. In addition to that, each team has their own “pod”, which is a hallway where students have all their classrooms, with the exception of science.
“It’s kind of nice that you’re not late to any classes … there is no point in leaving [the pod] … there is no excuse of being late to your class because it is right across the hallway,” says Stephanie Wrobleski, an eighth grader who attended Brookside, Applegarth, and now MTMS.
All MTMS students and staff seem to be well-adjusted to their new school. The innovative system of pods and teams aid the school in being more organized. The transition from Applegarth, Brookside, and Woodland was smooth, as well as exciting. Everything was bigger and better in the eyes of the middle school staff.
“I was looking forward to being here. It [MTMS] was clean, beautiful, and large. It had all the things I need as a science teacher.” explains Mrs. Jeanne Czapkowski, a sixth grade teacher.
Similar to the high school, the middle school gives one elective to each student in the eighth grade, while sixth and seventh graders continue to have cycles. Although MTMS goes through block scheduling, the only period that is rotated is their gym and elective.
The school works a lot differently, but some previous problems have not disappeared yet. Space is still an issue. Although the hallways are less crowded, classroom sizes are quaint. There is one faculty room for the entire building of staff members.
All in all, as Monroe Township High School students, we are able to be proud of the legacy we left behind for the middle school students to continue. Although we are two different schools, we remain connected in a district where everyone rises above all expectations.
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