Dist. 203 high schools adding homeroom periods to schedule

To provide additional academic, social and emotional support to students, next semester Naperville Central and Naperville North high schools will add a homeroom period two days a week to their schedules.

The principals at the two Naperville Unit District 203 high schools detailed the plan during Monday's school board meeting. They said the shift is the result of work that began in 2016 and continued through the new teacher contract approved earlier this year that allowed for flexibility in teacher and student schedules.

The goal is to create an inclusive learning community of about 25 students and two or three educators that provides support through a sustained relationship during all four years of high school. Starting Jan. 6, the homeroom period will be between second and third periods on Tuesdays and Thursdays.

"Both high schools will offer a variety of supports and extensions based on student need," said Naperville Central Principal Bill Wiesbrook.

All eight periods still will take place on Tuesdays and Thursdays, but for 45 minutes instead of 50 minutes. The school day will maintain a 7:45 a.m. start time and 3:10 p.m. dismissal time.

In addition to academic support, the homeroom periods will allow for mentoring, course assessments, student collaboration and high-school transition support for the freshmen and sophomores. District officials aim to address students struggling to meet academic standards as well as students meeting and exceeding standards.

Safety drills and surveys also would occur during homeroom periods, reducing the number of interruptions in regular class periods. Students normally pulled out of class to meet with counselors and other staff members would have those meetings during homeroom.

"The purpose of homeroom is to provide a dedicated time and opportunity for students to build long-term relationships within the high-school community and to support continued growth of academic and social-emotional skills through schoolwide learning," said Naperville North Principal Stephanie Posey.