By John Williams –
With the 2020-21 school year right around the corner, juniors have the opportunity to choose from a selection of brand new classes. The new classes will allow students more opportunities to take classes that might impact what they want to do later in life.
“I think it is important, from an elective perspective, to allow our students to study things they are interested in studying,” Headmaster Tom Every explained.
Gonzaga will offer two entirely new classes for the 2020-21 academic year: Organic Chemistry and Anatomy and Physiology. Three courses will be returning from their debut in the 2019-20 school year: History of Totalitarianism, Lakota History and Journalism.
While juniors get some new options, some of the less popular classes will go away next school year. One change will be visible in the social studies department.
History and classics teacher Carl Cardozo’s War and Politics: Film Study replaced social studies teacher Mike Lipari’s War and Politics class during the 2019-20 academic year; however, next year Lipari’s class will return to the course offerings for rising seniors.
“The course seemed popular, but there is no chance of it returning for the 2020-21 year,” Cardozo said about his film study course.
Although the course seemed to be a popular idea with students initially, not enough students registered for the course, despite the fact that those who took the course found it interesting.
“I thought it was very interesting to see how movies in America changed over the decades,” said Kevin Rivera, a senior in this year’s class.
While many of the course offerings affect only rising juniors, some changes impact underclassmen, too. Mr. Every noted there will be an option to complete the required year of fine arts whichever year the student wants to, meaning rising freshmen are not required to immediately take their fine arts course.
Registration starts on Feb. 19, and juniors will need to figure out which classes to take in their final year on Eye Street; it can be a tough decision, but students are encouraged to talk to seniors who have taken the classes, the teachers offering classes or their guidance counselor if they are unsure of what to take.